Fantasy F1 concludes the tour of the Eastern Hemisphere with an early Sunday morning slate on DraftKings. Round 5 of DFS F1 action will be open-wheel racing with a plate of late-night pizza or coffee, eggs and bacon for the Chinese Grand Prix. The long-awaited return to mainland Asia is accentuated by the $20K grand prize offered to the winner of the DraftKings featured DFS Formula 1 contest.
The DraftKings Lenovo Chinese Grand Prix 2024 slate locks at 3 a.m. ET on Sunday.
Set your DraftKings Fantasy F1 lineups here: F1 $80K Grand Prix [$20K to 1st]
1. Max Verstappen ($16,400) — His wins are irrelevant. Is Verstappen playable in DFS F1? The answer is yes. Verstappen and Red Bull were in the optimal fantasy Formula 1 lineup in the last round in Japan.
2. Sergio Perez ($10,000) — His runner-up finishes are irrelevant. Is Checo playable in DFS F1? The answer is it depends. If the fantasy Formula 1 value picks do not score DraftKings points, then Verstappen falls out of the optimal lineup and Perez slides into the winning DFS F1 lineup.
3. Carlos Sainz ($9,400) — This has been quite the season for Sainz. He lost his seat at Ferrari and had an emergency appendectomy. His racing future was up in the air. He responded with a win in Australia and a podium in Japan.
4. Charles Leclerc ($9,800) — Ferrari may not be able to beat Red Bull, but they are having a terrific season. Leclerc finished fourth in the Japanese Grand Prix. That’s his worst finish of the 2024 season (3.3 average finish).
5. Lando Norris ($9,400) — McLaren improves every week, but so does Ferrari. After a podium in the Australian Grand Prix, Norris slid down the food chain to fifth when Red Bull bounced back in Japan (Verstappen won and Perez was the runner-up).
For F1 insight and quick DFS help, follow Pearce Dietrich (@race4theprize) on Twitter.
6. Oscar Piastri ($7,800) — Experience will not be a disadvantage for Piastri in the Chinese Grand Prix. The Formula 1 circuit has not raced in Shanghai since 2019 and this will be a sprint race weekend with only one practice. The competition could be leveled in Round 5.
8. George Russell ($7,600) — Mercedes was great in the Japanese Grand Prix practice. The race didn’t go as well. The Silver Arrows have a way to go, but they’re making improvements with their car. Russell doesn’t need a podium at this DFS F1 price. A top-5 finish will work and he’s not that far away.
9. Fernando Alonso ($7,000) — A happy Alonso is a fast Alonso. The veteran signed a multi-year deal with Aston Martin this week. He’s committed to the team and the team is committed to him.
9. Guanyu Zhou ($3,000) — The Chinese driver may not get a significant boost racing in his home country. A significant boost isn’t necessary with his DraftKings DFS F1 salary. Zhou only needs to beat his teammate. That’s not a tall order and the team orders will likely favor Zhou in China.
10. Logan Sargeant ($3,200) — It’s not likely that Sargeant will be the optimal Fantasy F1 pick for the second week in a row. However, his ranking serves as a guide. Sargeant finished 17th in the Japanese Grand Prix. Value DFS F1 picks come down to beating teammates or wrecks. Alexander Albon ($4,600) has been doing a lot of the latter.
Set your DraftKings Fantasy F1 lineups here: F1 $80K Grand Prix [$20K to 1st]
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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is greenflagradio2) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skill and judgment in building lineups. I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.
