He calls his predictions "bold". I agree.
I also think many are very unlikely.
6 teams getting a first place in 2023 seems real unlikely.
from
https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article.lawrence-barrettos-5-bold-predictions-for-the-2023-season-how-many-of-these.3FSmoI5hqrNNk8AfOpS9l6.html
Lawrence Barretto’s 5 bold predictions for the 2023 season – how many of these will come true?
Lawrence_Barretto.png
F1 Correspondent & Presenter
Lawrence Barretto
16 hours ago
2023 SEASON PREVIEW MERCEDES VERSTAPPEN HAMILTON
All 10 Formula 1 teams have been working relentlessly through the
winter, laser-focused on producing a car they hope will improve their
fortunes in 2023 – or in the case of Red Bull and Max Verstappen, defend their respective titles. I, meanwhile, have spent that time enjoying the festivities and pondering my bold predictions for the season ahead, so
let's dive in...
1. Lewis Hamilton will win his eighth drivers’ title
2022 will go down as the most disappointing campaign of Lewis Hamilton’s illustrious F1 career, the Briton finishing a career-worst sixth in the drivers’ standings and losing his streak of scoring at least one pole
and one win in every season he’s driven in the sport.
READ MORE: Best drives, biggest shocks, and funniest moments – Our
writers reflect on the thrilling 2022 season
But rather than 2022 being the beginning of the end for the 37-year-old,
the defeat will only be a blip and I expect the Mercedes driver to come
out on top and win a record eighth World Championship, enhancing his credentials for the accolade of greatest of all time.
To do that, he’ll need his Mercedes team to make a leap forward next
year, but there was enough evidence in their comeback last season –
moving from a team mired in the midfield to a challenger to the dominant
Red Bull team – to suggest the Silver Arrows can be a force once more.
And it’ll be Hamilton who will utilise his years of experience to fend
off rising star and team mate George Russell to lead the Mercedes charge
and edge out two-time defending champion Verstappen.
leclerc hamilton verstappen podium.jpg
Will Hamilton beat Verstappen and Leclerc to the title in 2023?
2. Alpine will break into the top three
Alpine were a contender for team of the year in 2022, the French
manufacturer snatching P4 in the constructors’ championship with a car
that was strong at almost every circuit.
Their rate of development was tremendous, the technical team bringing
updates – which worked as expected based on data – to every single Grand Prix, and while the car was unreliable, when it was on song, big points
were on offer.
READ MORE: Alpine boss Rossi proud of team's recovery from pre-season ‘shambles’ to P4 in the standings
The riskier strategy paid off, but it’s one thing to top the midfield
and quite another to close the long-held gulf between F1’s so-called top three – Mercedes, Red Bull and Ferrari – and the rest. That said, I
reckon Alpine have the building blocks in place to do that.
Expect the Fernando Alonso-less team, with Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly
at the wheel, to challenge for podiums regularly – and even be in
contention for victories on occasions – as they end the year inside the
top three for the first time in their history.
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Can Ocon and Gasly propel Alpine into the top three next year?
3. Alonso will score at least two podiums
Aston Martin wanted a big name to replace the retiring Sebastian Vettel
and they couldn’t have signed much bigger in Alonso, the two-time world champion showing he’s lost none of his speed, determination and hunger
after a two-year returning stint with Alpine.
Last season, he reckons he lost more than 70 points because of
unreliability, and failed to score a podium. Ending that run at Aston
Martin might seem fanciful given the team in green didn’t trouble the
top five last year.
READ MORE: ‘I feel honoured’ – Alonso overjoyed with first drive for ‘iconic brand’ Aston Martin at Abu Dhabi test
However, Alonso has form for outperforming his car and on his day – like
in Canada in 2022 when he took a front-row start in the rain – he can
deliver a shock result.
I expect Aston Martin to take a step on from P7 in the constructors’ championship – having ended the season strongly – and for Alonso to make the most of it, delivering a couple of special performances that will
yield some podium silverware.
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Alonso will be racing in the green of Aston Martin in 2023
4. Norris will win his first Grand Prix
Last year, I predicted Carlos Sainz would win his first Grand Prix – and
I reckon 2023 is the season that his former team mate and friend Lando
Norris will follow suit after several near-misses, most notably in Italy
and Russia in 2021.
The McLaren driver may have scored fewer points last year than the
previous campaign, but in my opinion, he drove far better and more
consistently – and was the only non-Mercedes, Ferrari or Red Bull driver
to score a podium in a car that underdelivered.
READ MORE: Norris says McLaren 'can't be satisfied' with 2022 season
after P5 finish
McLaren – now led by Andrea Stella following Andreas Seidl’s departure
to Sauber – will avoid the sluggish start that made 2022 a bit of a
slog, and instead endure a more enjoyable season that will have some
sharper peaks, including Norris’s first victory.
I expect Norris to beat new rookie team mate Oscar Piastri, too, the
Briton further establishing himself as McLaren’s lead driver and future
world champion.
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Will Lando Norris step into the winners' circle in 2023?
5. Six teams will win a race in 2023
Red Bull, Mercedes and Ferrari will once again be the main contenders
for victory in 2023, but they won’t have it all their own way as was the
case last season.
McLaren will get back in on the action, adding to their most recent
triumph in the Italian Grand Prix through Daniel Ricciardo in 2021, with
Alpine also adding to Esteban Ocon’s Hungary 2021 triumph.
THE PALMERS: Jolyon Palmer picks his stand-out drivers and performances
from a sizzling 2022 season
The sixth team is harder to call – and will likely come in fortuitous circumstances. Alfa Romeo have a great shot, as do Aston Martin,
especially with Alonso behind the wheel.
As a result, we’ll have six different teams standing on the top step for
the first time since 2012.
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