Charles Leclerc F1 pole positions: Record so far and woeful win percentage

Charles Leclerc

Charles Leclerc F1 pole positions: Woeful win record starting first

Charles is Mr Saturday afternoon...but very rarely Mr Sunday

Chris Deeley

Friday 26 January 2024 06:57

Charles Leclerc has claimed heaps of pole positions in his F1 career - but lately that has rarely translated into crucial championship points.

The Monegasque has had no trouble putting his Ferrari first on the grid, but has consistently struggled to be the first over the line on Sundays.

Leclerc got another chance to convert at the much-hyped Las Vegas Grand Prix on Saturday, but again he failed - coming home in P2 behind world champion Max Verstappen.

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Here is a rundown on how Leclerc has fared in Quali across his F1 career so far, and how that translates to wins on Sundays.

How many pole positions does Charles Leclerc have?

His first was in Bahrain in 2019, kicking off a stellar haul of seven during his first season with the team from Maranello.

Leclerc then endured a miserable 2020 along with then team-mate Sebastian Vettel as the mighty Italian team struggled to compete.

The 24-year-old scored two more in 2021, followed by his haul of nine in 2022. Now he has five in 2023.

Leclerc’s pole positions so far are:

Season	Grand Prix	Race Result
2023	Las Vegas	2nd
2023	Mexico	3rd
2023	United States	DSQ
2023	Belgium	3rd
2023	Azerbaijan	3rd
2022	Singapore	2nd
2022	Italy	2nd
2022	France	DNF
2022	Azerbaijan	DNF
2022	Monaco	4th
2022	Spain	DNF
2022	Miami	2nd
2022	Australia	1st
2022	Bahrain	1st
2021	Azerbaijan	4th
2021	Monaco	DNS
2019	Mexico	4th
2019	Russia	3rd
2019	Singapore	2nd
2019	Italy	1st
2019	Belgium	1st
2019	Austria	2nd
2019	Bahrain	3rd

Where will Charles Leclerc start?

Leclerc started from pole for Saturday's 2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix.

How often does Leclerc convert poles into wins?

Okay, here is the really grim part, when Leclerc starts P1 he has a woeful record of going on to win the race on Sundays.

Of his 23 races from pole so far, only four have resulted in wins - a miserable strike rate of just 17 per cent.

How Verstappen destroys Leclerc's pole conversion record

Yes, Verstappen is the man who regularly spikes any chance of Leclerc reigning on Sundays.

So far Max has claimed victory in 11 of the 23 races where Charles has started from the front of the grid.

Who has the most F1 pole positions?

Seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton leads the way with an astonishing 104 throughout his career.

The British star is followed by legends Michael Schumacher [68] and Ayrton Senna [65] and then four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel [57].

Who is the youngest ever F1 pole sitter?

A very young Sebastian Vettel [at 21 years and 72 days] holds that record after qualifying on pole for the 2008 Italian Grand Prix.

Reigning champion Max Verstappen remains the youngest driver to win a grand prix [aged 18 in Spain in 2016]. Perhaps bizarrely though, he did not claim a pole until Hungary in August 2019.

By then he was ancient - almost 22 years of age!

Max Verstappen Ferrari Charles Leclerc Sebastian Vettel Bahrain Las Vegas Grand Prix