There are few doubters about the raw speed and talent Charles Leclerc possesses. One noteworthy element of his driving that has captured the attention of many is the exceptional pace he exhibits during qualifying sessions. At present, Leclerc has secured only 23 pole positions in 123 starts, a figure that is three times fewer than the legendary Michael Schumacher. However, when examining the narrative based on the percentage of top starting positions, Leclerc is closely trailing the German great.
For a more comprehensive perspective, we can closely examine how Charles Leclerc secured the most number of pole positions, totaling nine, in 2022 amidst Red Bull’s track dominance. However, to conduct a thorough analysis, let’s compare the Ferrari driver and some of the past greats.
According to autohebdo.fr, despite driving a less competitive car, Leclerc holds the 14th position among all-time pole sitters with 23 poles. A detailed analysis of his pole positions reveals that he is sandwiched between Fernando Alonso (22) and Nelson Piquet (24). However, there’s a notable gap when comparing him to the highly prolific Lewis Hamilton, who boasts an impressive 104 pole positions.
Despite this, he claims the title of the fifth-greatest pole sitter in F1 history among drivers with at least 100 Grand Prix appearances. Notably, he ranks just below Sebastian Vettel (19.06%), Michael Schumacher (22.15%), Lewis Hamilton (31.33%), and Ayrton Senna (40.37%). Furthermore, he is just below Schumacher when considering the current generation of drivers.
The statistics could experience a notable shift if Leclerc were to have a more competitive car. The Monegasque has endured a combination of persistent bad luck and his cars falling short on race days. Else he has title-winning potential in a better reliable car. Despite that, Leclerc consistently outperformed his teammates.
In 2019, he outshone Sebastian Vettel with 7 poles compared to Vettel’s 2. This trend has continued in the last three years, where Leclerc secured 16 poles, relative to Carlos Sainz’s 5.
What distinguishes Michael Schumacher from Charles Leclerc in particular?
Since Michael Schumacher’s dominant era in the early 2000s, Ferrari has been determined to recapture their past glory. Their optimism is around the young talent Charles Leclerc, who shares the ambition to revive the team’s success. However, Ferrari has encountered persistent challenges in their pursuit. Amidst these difficulties, a former Ferrari engineer, who has experienced both eras, has expressed his insights on comparing the two drivers.
During a conversation on the Sky Sports podcast, Rob Smedley acknowledged the difficulty of directly comparing the two drivers. Despite this, he underscored a notable difference by highlighting that Michael Schumacher, upon joining Ferrari, was already a two-time champion.
This prior championship experience provided Schumacher was a bonus for the Scuderia. His understanding of what it takes to lead a championship-winning team enabled him to guide Ferrari in that direction. On the other hand, Smedley noted that Charles Leclerc, while aspiring to secure a world title with Ferrari, is lacking that edge.
Smedley said, “When Michael got to Ferrari, he was already a two-time world champion, and he had kind of already gotten his feet under the table of what it meant to win world championships. So it’s difficult to draw comparisons right now because I think that Charles and Carlos are at different stages of their careers and lives.”
With this, it becomes apparent that the current Ferrari drivers lack championship experience and wisdom. Both Leclerc and Carlos Sainz have won their maiden races at the Scuderia. Before their Maranello stints, they were part of midfield teams as younger inexperienced drivers. Thus, it will be novel for them when they lead the team in a championship fight.
