Canadian rapper Drake bet on Charles Leclerc to win the Spanish Grand Prix and lost more than $230,000 in Bitcoin (BTC).
Last Sunday’s Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix did not go well for Leclerc and Ferrari fans. Despite starting in the first place, the Monegasque driver had to withdraw due to engine failure. Leclerc’s biggest rival for the championship, Dutch Max Verstappen, won the Grand Prix and took the lead in the tournament.
Drake, who told his Instagram story before the race that he had bet $230,000 on Leclerc’s victory, unfortunately lost. The bet was placed through Stake, the sports betting platform known for accepting cryptocurrencies. Had Leclerc finished first, the music star would have earned $353,000 in BTC. However, the rapper lost the entire stake.
While it’s a huge amount by normal standards, it’s not a big deal for Drake. The artist’s net worth was $200 million as of last year.
F1 and cryptoworld
This was Drake’s first bet at the Formula One Grand Prix and it won’t be his last. The singer has a strong friendship with seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton. Drake will also be able to bet on his friend at the Grand Prix this season.
Formula 1 itself has increasingly become a cryptocurrency friendly tournament. Many of their teams have sponsorships from crypto exchanges and projects. For example, OKX is the official sponsor of McLaren, while Red Bull has added Tezos’ logo to their uniforms, which has already launched the NFT collection. Finally, one of the main sponsors of Formula 1 is Crypto.com.
