Preview: The French Grand Prix

This weekend, it's time for the first-ever tripleheader in F1-history! It's time to preview the first of the three; the French Grand Prix, a venue that makes its return after 28 years of absence.

Expectations

On face value, the Paul Ricard has similarities to the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, in the sense that there's a lot of straights. Ferrari and Mercedes will therefore be expected to be the teams to beat, as Red Bull tend to struggle with straight-line speed with their Renault-engine. Maybe that was one of the reasons why the Bulls have opted to switch engine partners from 2019 on.

Mercedes will now have the upgrade that was delayed in Canada, which was probably why they were relatively anonymous in Montréal. This could prove to be the deciding factor during this weekend.

Looking down the grid, Force India will likely explode into life with that same Mercedes upgrade. The Pink Panthers were in a proper scrap with Renault for the 'best of the rest' title in Canada, with Nico Hulkenberg eventually grabbing P7. Renault will have the home advantage, but Force India will likely have the edge when it comes to the engine.

Prediction

This season hasn't been as straight-forward as many people thought, as Red Bull and Ferrari have taken the majority of the wins so far this season. Mercedes do have the lead in the constructors' championship, but it's Sebastian Vettel who is leading Lewis Hamilton as of now.

However, it's hard to look past Mercedes in France. The team will probably bounce back from Canada with their upgrade package now being installed, and Mercedes are never a team to slump for several races. We think the Silver Arrows will assert their dominance with a one-two. It's hard to gauge Red Bull as Max Verstappen did surprisingly well in Canada, and we think the Dutchman might have some more where that came from. We'll put him down to complete the podium.

Top 5

1. Lewis Hamilton

2. Valtteri Bottas

3. Max Verstappen

4. Sebastian Vettel

5. Kimi Raikkonen