Hamilton extends F1 record span between first and latest poles to 19 years

Lewis Hamilton’s 105th pole, in Mexico City on Saturday, extended the record span between his first and most recent poles to 19 years, four months and 22 days. His first came in Montreal in 2007, at his sixth attempt.

The ranking measures the time between a driver’s first and most recent pole, not the total number of poles. Kimi Räikkönen is second at 15 years, two months and four days; Rubens Barrichello is third at 15 years, one month and 20 days, followed by Mario Andretti at 13 years, 11 months and six days. Alain Prost, Michael Schumacher, Riccardo Patrese, Giancarlo Fisichella, Sebastian Vettel and Sir Jack Brabham complete the top ten.

Michael Schumacher is sixth on the list. He set the fastest qualifying time in Monaco in 2012, but a five-place grid penalty for causing a collision at the previous Grand Prix in Spain denied him pole. Under a ranking based on fastest qualifying times rather than pole positions, Schumacher would be second.

Hamilton’s pole tally peaked at 12 in 2016; he also scored double-digit totals in 2015, 2017, 2018 and 2020. His pole haul was leaner in the ground-effect era, when he topped Grand Prix qualifying only once, in Hungary in 2023. After a frustrating 2025 at Ferrari, his 2026 campaign has been stronger, including in qualifying.