F1 British Grand Prix: Focus on the homegrown rookies

F1 world championship leader Lewis Hamilton is guaranteed raucous support at this weekend's British Grand Prix as he continues to close in on a sixth drivers title. But there are three other home-grown heroes in the field at Silverstone, and here we take a look at their prospects.

Lando Norris McLaren

Best grid Fifth
Best finish Sixth
Season points 22, eighth in the championship

F1's clown prince of social media, 19-year-old Norris has made a huge impression on and off the track in his debut season.

After seven top-ten starts from his nine races and four points finishes, Norris is eight points behind his more experienced and highly-rated team leader Carlos Sainz.

The McLaren has shown much-improved form in recent races and Silverstone, with its fast straights and sweeping curves, should give the Renault-powered machine another chance to shine.

How to back Norris at Silverstone Top-six finish

The top five drivers in the championship usually fill the first five places in races but there's a hotly contested battle for sixth with seven different drivers having filled that spot in nine races this year.

The McLaren seems to have nosed its way to the front of the midfield pack and punters should get a good run for their money backing Norris for his third top-six finish of the season.

Norris's path to the F1 grid

After winning the karting world championship in 2014, Norris raced a number of categories each season in cars. He collected two Formula Renault titles and the Formula Three championship as well as becoming the first European driver to win the New Zealand based Toyota Series in 2016.

Norris took pole position, victory and fastest lap in the 2018 Formula Two season-opener in Bahrain, but that was his only win in the series and he ended the season second to George Russell. A test driver for McLaren last season, he was elevated to a race seat when Fernando Alonso stepped away from F1 this year.

George Russell Williams

Best grid 16th
Best finish 15th
Season points 0 (19th in championship)

GP3 and Formula Two champion Russell is saddled with the slowest car on the grid. The only driver he can be directly compared with is his Williams teammate Robert Kubica, but the veteran Pole is returning to the cockpit after an eight-year injury absence so it's anyone's guess how strong that form is.

It has allowed Russell to settle into Formula One away from the limelight, however, and the 21-year-old from King's Lynn has done as well as could be expected. He has dominated Kubica in qualifying, beating him in all nine events, and has finished ahead of his senior teammate in eight of their nine races.

How to back Russell at Silverstone Match bet v Kubica

Unfortunately for Russell there are few markets in which he won't be a hopeless outsider. The Williams is slowly improving but it would take a miracle for him to get near the points.

The only feasible bet involving Russell would be a race or qualifying matchbet against his teammate, but he will be a very short price to outperform Kubica once more.

Russell's path to the F1 grid

A two-time European karting champion, after winning the 2014 Formula Four title Russell became the youngest ever recipient of the coveted McLaren Autosport BRDC award.

Russell won both of F1's feeder series, GP3 and Formula Two, at the first attempt, beating Lando Norris and Alex Albon to the title in the latter. He also undertook testing duties for Mercedes and Force India F1 teams.

Alex Albon Toro Rosso

Best grid Tenth
Best finish Eighth
Season points Seven, 15th in championship

A reluctant call-up to the Red Bull F1 family after the surprise departure of Daniel Ricciardo from the senior team to join Renault, Albon has acquitted himself very well at Toro Rosso.

The car has proved a bit inconsistent but on its going days Albon has put it to good use, and he picked up a point for tenth place in China after starting from the pit-lane in only his third grand prix.

Albon officially races under the Thai flag - his mother's nationality - but he was born in London and went to school in Ipswich, so the Silverstone crowd are likely to see him as one of their own.

How to back Albon at Silverstone Points finish

Toro Rosso have scored just one point in the last three races but both cars have had a grid penalty to contend with during that time to allow the team to fit Honda's upgraded engine.

Albon has managed three points finishes and been one place away in 11th twice. He will be targeting increasing his tally at Silverstone, where he won the Formula Two feature race last year.

Albon's path to the F1 grid

Albon has yet to win a car racing championship but he finished second to his teammate Charles Leclerc, now of Ferrari, in the 2016 GP3 series. He took four wins and three pole positions on his way to third place in Formula Two last year behind Russell and Norris.

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