Leclerc matches Schumacher at Ferrari with striking statistic

Charles Leclerc saw Max Verstappen take victory at the Italian Grand Prix, leaving him with a deficit of more than 100 points six race weekends before the end of the season. On another front, he did show himself positively.

Indeed, after 2004, no Ferrari driver managed to achieve at least eight pole positions in a single season. At the time, it was Michael Schumacher who succeeded in this and took his seventh world title that year. Leclerc was allowed to start at the front for the eighth time in Monza.

Charles Leclerc is the first Ferrari driver to take 8 pole positions in a single season since Michael Schumacher in 2004! pic.twitter.com/Oe5WZcpHLC

— ESPN F1 (@ESPNF1) September 10, 2022

Leclerc barely benefits from pole

Eighteen years ago, the season had 'only' 18 races, of which Schumacher managed to win 13. For the German, it was his fifth consecutive World Championship victory, which incidentally was also his last in his career.

Despite Leclerc's many pole positions, the Monegasque only managed to win three races this season. Whereas in Bahrain and Australia he started from first position and won, in Austria it was Max Verstappen who started from the front and gave the race away to his rival. In the other cases, pole position did not yield a win for Leclerc this race year.