However, despite this dominance in qualifying, the Ferrari driver has yet to taste victory on the shores of the Caspian Sea. With his second-place finish last year, the number 16 equaled the British legend’s record of four consecutive pole positions at a single Grand Prix without converting any of them into a win.
Jim Clark, a two-time Formula 1 World Champion, originally set this record at the Monaco Grand Prix. Between 1962 and 1964, and again in 1966, Jim Clark started from pole position, but his best result during that stretch was only a fourth place in 1964. In 1965, he skipped the Monaco race altogether as he was competing in the Indianapolis 500, which he went on to win, adding further weight to his iconic racing career.
Charles Leclerc’s record in Baku is not as disappointing as Clark’s Monaco story, since the Monegasque has completed three of his races in Azerbaijan and even managed a runner-up finish. But if he secures his second pole position of the 2025 season on Saturday and once again fails to turn it into a victory, he will officially surpass Clark’s long-standing record.
Looking back at his history in Baku: in 2021 Charles Leclerc finished fourth, in 2022 he was forced to retire from the lead due to an engine failure, in 2023 he finished third, and in 2024 he came home second behind Oscar Piastri. He also managed to take pole position for the Sprint race in 2023, where he eventually finished second behind Sergio Perez. These results highlight his consistency at the circuit but also underline the frustration of not yet turning qualifying excellence into a race win.
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