Charles Leclerc continued an unwanted record at the 2024 Azerbaijan Grand Prix by failing to convert yet another pole position into victory around the streets of Baku.

It meant the Ferrari driver has now started the event from pole on four occasions but is still to win the Azerbaijan GP in his career.

The first pole came in 2021 when the Monegasque was surprisingly faster than championship protagonists Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen, after picking up a significant tow from the Mercedes driver in the closing stages of the track.

But Ferrari trailed Mercedes and Red Bull in race pace that year, so within the opening seven laps Leclerc had dropped behind Hamilton, Verstappen and the Dutchman’s team-mate Sergio Perez. So, he eventually came fourth, despite neither title challenger finishing the race.

He lost his lead even quicker the following year, as Perez overtook Leclerc at race start before the Ferrari driver retired on lap 21 due to a power unit failure.

A “surprised” Leclerc then completed a hat-trick of poles at the 2023 grand prix, but Red Bull was again superior that year as both of its drivers had overtaken the pole sitter by lap six.

Leclerc did finish third though for his first podium at the Azerbaijan GP and he stood on the steps again in 2024, but not the top one despite a fourth successive pole.

This time McLaren had the superior race pace and Leclerc was overtaken by Oscar Piastri at Turn 1 on lap 20.

Although Leclerc made several attempts to repass his McLaren rival, the Ferrari tyres eventually faded and the 26-year-old settled for second.

So that first F1 win in Azerbaijan still eludes Leclerc, but are there any other drivers to have a similar pole record with no wins at a certain grand prix?

F1 drivers with three or more poles at a single grand prix but no wins

Jim Clark – Monaco Grand Prix (four)

In 2024 Leclerc tied Jim Clark for the most pole positions at a single grand prix without winning it. That’s because the double world champion started from pole on four occasions at the Monaco GP, yet failed to even claim a podium in the principality.

Clark first raced there in 1961 where he finished 10th after suffering a faulty fuel pump, though he took the first pole position of his career at the 1962 grand prix. But more bad luck struck, as the Lotus driver was overtaken by Ferrari’s Willy Mairesse at Turn 1 before retiring just over halfway through with a clutch problem.

That weekend was the first of three successive pole positions for Clark in Monaco, as he went seven-tenths quicker than Graham Hill in 1963 but eventually retired with a gearbox issue while the BRM driver won.

Clark again failed to finish in 1964, despite being classified in fourth. He started from pole and led for most of the early stages, but pitted on lap 37 because of a broken anti-roll bar which dropped him behind Dan Gurney and Hill. Although Clark fought back and challenged Hill for the lead, an engine failure scuppered his chances and he retired with four laps to go – only the BRM driver completed the full distance.

The late great skipped the 1965 race to contest the Indianapolis 500, which he won, before returning in 1966 to claim another pole. Once again it ended in agony though, as the then 30-year-old suffered a horrendous start because his Lotus 43 was stuck in first gear.

It dropped him down the order and although Clark climbed back to third, he eventually retired on lap 60 due to a failed suspension. A suspension problem also cost him in 1967 when he started the Monaco GP from fifth, meaning his final race in the principality also ended in retirement.

Rene Arnoux – Austrian Grand Prix (three)

Rene Arnoux is one of five drivers to have claimed three pole positions for a grand prix which they never won. The Frenchman did this at the Austrian GP, where he took his first career pole in 1979 during his first season at Renault. 

He finished sixth that year after dropping to fifth on lap one, yet Arnoux still claimed another pole at the Osterreichring in 1980 and once again endured a poor start.

Although he eventually reclaimed the lead, Arnoux began suffering from severe tyre degradation which forced him to pit and finish ninth in the end. 

But for a third successive occasion, the eventual seven-time grand prix winner took pole for the Austrian GP in 1981. This time, Alain Prost overtook him at race start but Arnoux was first again when his Renault team-mate retired on lap 26 due to a suspension failure. 

The pace of Jacques Laffite in the Ligier proved too much though, as he took the lead in the closing stages forcing the Renault driver to settle for second.

Even though he stayed in F1 until 1989, Arnoux only had one more big opportunity to win the Austrian GP. This came during his first season at Ferrari in 1983, where he started and finished in second but led for much of the race until Prost overtook him in the closing stages.

Nelson Piquet – Austrian Grand Prix (three)

Piquet features twice on this list as he also qualified on pole for the British GP three times, yet never won the event. He spun off on his debut there in 1979 before finishing second the following year, but could not get close to Alan Jones who maintained a comfortable advantage.

He then retired from his next two: in 1981 Piquet’s tyre blew while running third at Silverstone and in 1982 his fuel pump failed when he was leading after nine laps at Brands Hatch.

Piquet stood on the Silverstone podium in 1983, but was second and 19.1s behind winner Prost. In 1984, this one at Brands, he finally claimed his first British GP pole but was overtaken by the previous year’s victor at the lap 12 restart which was caused by Jonathan Palmer’s crash.

The Brabham driver failed to repass Prost and he eventually dropped to seventh after a late failure to his turbocharger. He was on the podium for his other two poles at the grand prix though, but both times finished second in a Williams 1-2.

In 1986 Mansell overtook him a third of the way through, while the 1987 race was an all-time classic as the Williams pair battled for the lead throughout. But with 28 laps remaining, Mansell pitted and rejoined 29s behind yet broke the Silverstone lap record eight times to be on his team-mate’s tail again.

Piquet ultimately lost the lead with two laps remaining and finished 2s behind for his final British GP podium before retiring at the end of 1991, meaning he never won an F1 race in the United Kingdom.

Graham Hill – Belgian Grand Prix (three)

Hill qualified on pole for the Belgian GP three times in the space of four years. The first was in 1962, where he lost the lead to Trevor Taylor on lap two amid an epic five-way battle between Hill, Taylor, Bruce McLaren, Willy Mairesse and Clark at Spa-Francorchamps.

By lap eight Hill had dropped back and was in a back-and-forth battle with McLaren for third. But, the eventual 1962 world champion then lost another position as a rapid Clark progressed through the field, before Hill claimed fourth again when McLaren retired on lap 19 after losing oil pressure.

The BRM driver then gained another two positions as Taylor and Mairesse suffered a devastating crash while battling for second with seven laps remaining. It came after Mairesse gave a slight nudge through Blanchimont which caused both to slide, with Taylor slamming into a trackside telegraph pole while his Ferrari rival hit a ditch before being ejected from the car that caught fire.

Fortunately, both drivers were unharmed and Hill came second for his first podium in Belgium, finishing behind Clark who took his maiden grand prix victory. The following year, Hill again lost his lead from pole early on, this time to Clark, before retiring on lap 17 with a gearbox problem.

Fifth place followed at the 1964 Belgian GP, which was also Hill’s position in 1965 despite taking his third pole at Spa. That year, Hill was overtaken by Clark at the end of lap one before the Lotus driver quickly pulled away, while the BRM car struggled in the wet causing the Englishman to drop to fifth.

That was Hill’s final points finish in Spa, despite winning his second championship in 1968 where he retired in Belgium on lap five due to a halfshaft failure.

Rubens Barrichello – Brazilian Grand Prix (three)

Rubens Barrichello endured a lot of heartache at his home race as he retired from 10 of his first 11 Brazilian GPs. During that run, his best chance of victory was arguably in 1999 when he led early on before dropping to fourth after his pitstop.

On lap 35 Barrichello overtook Eddie Irvine for third, the position the Brazilian started, before retiring from that position seven tours later when his Stewart’s Ford engine failed.

Barrichello’s 11th trip to Interlagos saw him start from pole while driving for Ferrari in 2003. But, he lost the lead to David Coulthard at the lap eight start, the race began behind the safety car, before dropping further down until retiring on lap 46 when his Ferrari ran out of fuel.

He also started on pole the following year, this time Brazil was the season finale, yet Barrichello again lost his lead on the first racing lap as Kimi Raikkonen overtook him through the opening sector. Barrichello struggled to fight back in the damp conditions and eventually finished third, also falling behind Juan Pablo Montoya who won the race.

But that was Barrichello’s only podium at his home grand prix, despite also starting from pole in 2009 while driving for that year’s world champion Brawn GP. It was the race his team-mate Jenson Button sealed the drivers’ title, while Barrichello controlled the first phase of the grand prix before being overtaken by Red Bull’s Mark Webber during the pit window.

Barrichello subsequently faded away, as Robert Kubica next overtook him for second before the 11-time race winner dropped to eighth, his finishing position, as contact with Lewis Hamilton in the battle for third caused a puncture on the Brawn.

F1 drivers with two or more poles at a single grand prix but no wins