64% of Poles in the Last Decade Belong to Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen, and Charles Leclerc

Few drivers in F1 are good enough when it comes to qualifying pace to compete for pole position, regardless of their car’s performance. In recent years, Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen, and Charles Leclerc have proved they are the best.

Hamilton and Verstappen, unsurprisingly, have amassed numerous pole positions thanks to their dominance over the past decade. Leclerc, however, stands out as an outlier in this trio, capable of securing pole positions even with a car that isn’t competitive enough to win races on Sunday.

Over the past 10 seasons, Verstappen, Hamilton, and Leclerc have claimed 132 pole positions, accounting for 64% of all poles, while the rest of the grid managed just 74 — a stat F1 analyst Daniel Valente pointed out on X (formerly Twitter).

Valente was talking about the 2015-2024 period, which began with Hamilton’s era of dominance and Verstappen’s debut in the sport. Leclerc entered the mix three seasons later in 2018 and from 2019 onwards, all three drove in the three biggest teams of F1 — Mercedes, Red Bull, and Ferrari. Naturally, most of the time, they were fighting at the sharp end of the grid.

It takes immense skill to navigate a car’s inconsistencies over a season, especially when teams experience dips in form. Not every season can be as dominant as Hamilton’s in 2020 or Verstappen’s in 2023. In such challenging seasons, the elite caliber of these drivers allows them to outperform their machinery, securing pole positions and even race wins.

Hamilton’s reigning one-lap pace

When Mercedes nailed the turbo-hybrid engine regulations in 2014, Hamilton had a nearly invincible car that could cruise to poles, victories, and championships. Until 2021, Mercedes’ supremacy over the field and his skill on a one-lap pace helped him secure several poles.

While his teammates Nico Rosberg (2013-16) and Valtteri Bottas (2017-2021) were also quick enough to beat him, Hamilton’s consistency came in handy. Bottas, in particular, saw first hand, how the seven-time world champion would beat him in the races despite poor showings in qualifying.

Even after the ground-effect regulations kicked in in 2022, Hamilton’s single-lap pace did not wither away. In Hungary last year, when the car had a decent pace at best, he added to his century-plus tally of poles, taking advantage of other drivers’ misfortunes.

While the Briton may not be at his best currently, there is a reason why he has the most P1 starts in F1 history (104).

Verstappen can deliver when it matters

Unlike Hamilton and Leclerc, Verstappen is not deemed a qualifying specialist. Still, the Dutchman has 40 pole positions to his name. He often focuses more on winning the races, which explains why he has more wins than poles.

Nevertheless, as Verstappen climbed the ladder and started competing at the front with Red Bull, he steadily unleashed his one-lap pace. The Red Bull driver would often put his car on the front row alongside the dominant Mercedes cars between 2018 and 2020 — a very underrated feat.

Since acquiring race-winning and championship-contending machinery in 2021, Verstappen has not looked back. The majority of his pole positions and race victories came during his dominant campaigns in 2022 and 2023. Even with Red Bull struggling with their car this season, Verstappen has managed to secure eight pole positions in 21 rounds — the most of any driver so far.

Leclerc is a specialist in qualifying

It is no secret that Leclerc has made a name for himself in F1 for his supreme single lap pace. The Ferrari driver started showing his qualifying abilities in his very first season at Ferrari, when he gave four-time World Champion Sebastian Vettel a run for his money.

Even in 2020, during Ferrari’s abysmal season, Leclerc managed to deliver strong qualifying performances, dragging the team to respectable results and salvaging some pride.

While the Scuderia has often provided the Monegasque with an unstable car, he has rarely faltered in qualifying. Leclerc often out-drives his car in qualifying, placing it in positions it arguably doesn’t deserve based on raw pace. There’s a widely held belief that drivers like him and Hamilton possess an extra few tenths in their arsenal, making the crucial difference between a car qualifying P5 and securing pole position.

Despite his qualifying brilliance, Leclerc would want to improve his failure to convert these poles into wins. The #16 driver currently has eight race wins and 26 pole positions, quite an opposite record to Verstappen.

All in all, Leclerc, Hamilton, and Verstappen have dominated qualifying over the past decade. Each of them has faced different challenges with their cars and got fortunate situations to eke out poles at certain races.