Formula One, abbreviated to F1, is the highest class of open-wheeled auto racing defined by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), motorsport's world governing body.^[1] The "formula" in the name refers to a set of rules to which all participants and cars must conform.^[2] The F1 World Championship season consists of a series of races, known as Grands Prix, held usually on purpose-built circuits, and in a few cases on closed city streets.^[3] The polesitter is the driver that has qualified for a Grand Prix in pole position, at the front of the starting grid.^[4] Out of the 1,105 completed Grands Prix (as of the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix), the driver that has started in first has gone on to win the race 473 times.^[5]

Qualifying is traditionally contested on the Saturday (Friday for some events) of a Grand Prix weekend to determine the drivers' positions on the starting grid of the race held on the Sunday (although from 2021 to 2023, in a small number of the events, so-called sprint races are held on the Saturdays, in which case the qualifying session is held on the Fridays of those Grand Prix weekends. In 2021 the winner of the sprint was credited with pole position. In 2022 the pole-sitter of the sprint race was officially awarded the pole position in those events. From 2023 a separate qualifying session is held for sprints, named sprint shootout. The fastest qualifier in sprint shootouts is not generally credited with a pole position). Historically, there have been a number of different qualifying systems; previously, each driver was only allowed a single lap to set his qualifying time.^[6] Drivers currently have to compete in three rounds before pole position is determined. The first round, known as Q1, is contested by twenty drivers in an 18-minute session, at the end of which the five slowest cars are eliminated. This is followed by Q2, a 15-minute session, where the slowest five are again eliminated. The remaining ten cars contest Q3, the final 12-minute session, to determine their places on the grid and who will sit on pole position.^[7]

Lewis Hamilton holds the record for the most pole positions,^[8] having qualified first on 104 occasions.^[9] Michael Schumacher is second with 68 pole positions.^[10] Ayrton Senna is third with 65 poles. Senna holds the record for the most consecutive pole positions; he qualified in first place in eight Grands Prix in a row from the 1988 Spanish Grand Prix to the 1989 United States Grand Prix.^[11] Sebastian Vettel is the youngest polesitter; he was 21 years, 72 days old when he qualified in first place for the 2008 Italian Grand Prix.^[12] The oldest person to qualify in pole position was Nino Farina, who was 47 years, 79 days old when he was polesitter for the 1954 Argentine Grand Prix.^[13] As of the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix, 106 drivers have been on pole position in the 1,105 Grands Prix since the first World Championship race, the 1950 British Grand Prix, with the most recent driver to achieve their first pole position being Kevin Magnussen at the 2022 São Paulo Grand Prix.^[9][14][15] Since 2014, the driver with the most pole positions in a season has been awarded the Pole Trophy.^[16] The inaugural Pole Trophy was won by Nico Rosberg,^[17] while Max Verstappen is the most recent recipient of the award with 12 poles in 2023.

By driver

Formula One polesitters^[18]

Rank	Driver	Nationality	Poles	Entries	Seasons active	First pole	Last pole
1	Lewis Hamilton†	United Kingdom	104	336	2007–	2007 Canadian Grand Prix	2023 Hungarian Grand Prix
2	Michael Schumacher‡	Germany	68	308	1991–2006, 2010–2012	1994 Monaco Grand Prix	2006 French Grand Prix
3	Ayrton Senna‡	Brazil	65	162	1984–1994	1985 Portuguese Grand Prix	1994 San Marino Grand Prix
4	Sebastian Vettel‡	Germany	57	300	2007–2022	2008 Italian Grand Prix	2019 Japanese Grand Prix
5	Max Verstappen†	Netherlands	36	189	2015–	2019 Hungarian Grand Prix	2024 Japanese Grand Prix
6	Jim Clark‡	United Kingdom	33	73	1960–1968	1962 Monaco Grand Prix	1968 South African Grand Prix
	Alain Prost‡	France	33	202	1980–1991, 1993	1981 German Grand Prix	1993 Japanese Grand Prix
8	Nigel Mansell‡	United Kingdom	32	191	1980–1992, 1994–1995	1984 Dallas Grand Prix	1994 Australian Grand Prix
9	Nico Rosberg‡	Germany	30	206	2006–2016	2012 Chinese Grand Prix	2016 Japanese Grand Prix
10	Juan Manuel Fangio‡	Argentina	29	52	1950–1951, 1953–1958	1950 Monaco Grand Prix	1958 Argentine Grand Prix
11	Mika Häkkinen‡	Finland	26	165	1991–2001	1997 Luxembourg Grand Prix	2000 Belgian Grand Prix
12	Niki Lauda‡	Austria	24	177	1971–1979, 1982–1985	1974 South African Grand Prix	1978 South African Grand Prix
	Nelson Piquet‡	Brazil	24	207	1978–1991	1980 United States Grand Prix West	1987 Spanish Grand Prix
14	Charles Leclerc*	Monaco	23	129	2018–	2019 Bahrain Grand Prix	2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix
15	Fernando Alonso†	Spain	22	384	2001, 2003–2018, 2021–	2003 Malaysian Grand Prix	2012 German Grand Prix
16	Damon Hill‡	United Kingdom	20	122	1992–1999	1993 French Grand Prix	1996 Portuguese Grand Prix
	Valtteri Bottas*	Finland	20	227	2013–	2017 Bahrain Grand Prix	2021 São Paulo Grand Prix
18	Mario Andretti‡	United States	18	131	1968–1972, 1974–1982	1968 United States Grand Prix	1982 Italian Grand Prix
	René Arnoux	France	18	165	1978–1989	1979 Austrian Grand Prix	1983 British Grand Prix
	Kimi Räikkönen‡	Finland	18	353	2001–2009, 2012–2021	2003 European Grand Prix	2018 Italian Grand Prix
21	Jackie Stewart‡	United Kingdom	17	100	1965–1973	1969 Monaco Grand Prix	1973 German Grand Prix
22	Stirling Moss	United Kingdom	16	67	1951–1961	1955 British Grand Prix	1961 Monaco Grand Prix
	Felipe Massa	Brazil	16	272	2002, 2004–2017	2006 Turkish Grand Prix	2014 Austrian Grand Prix
24	Alberto Ascari‡	Italy	14	33	1950–1955	1951 German Grand Prix	1954 Spanish Grand Prix
	James Hunt‡	United Kingdom	14	93	1973–1979	1976 Brazilian Grand Prix	1977 United States Grand Prix
	Ronnie Peterson	Sweden	14	123	1970–1978	1973 Brazilian Grand Prix	1978 Austrian Grand Prix
	Rubens Barrichello	Brazil	14	326	1993–2011	1994 Belgian Grand Prix	2009 Brazilian Grand Prix
28	Graham Hill‡	United Kingdom	13	179	1958–1975	1962 Belgian Grand Prix	1968 British Grand Prix
	Jack Brabham‡	Australia	13	128	1955–1970	1959 British Grand Prix	1970 Spanish Grand Prix
	Jacky Ickx	Belgium	13	122	1967–1979	1968 German Grand Prix	1972 Italian Grand Prix
	Jacques Villeneuve‡	Canada	13	165	1996–2006	1996 Australian Grand Prix	1997 European Grand Prix
	Juan Pablo Montoya	Colombia	13	95	2001–2006	2001 German Grand Prix	2005 Belgian Grand Prix
	Mark Webber	Australia	13	217	2002–2013	2009 German Grand Prix	2013 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
34	Gerhard Berger	Austria	12	210	1984–1997	1987 Portuguese Grand Prix	1997 German Grand Prix
	David Coulthard	United Kingdom	12	247	1994–2008	1995 Argentine Grand Prix	2001 Monaco Grand Prix
36	Jochen Rindt‡	Austria	10	62	1964–1970	1968 French Grand Prix	1970 Austrian Grand Prix
37	John Surtees‡	United Kingdom	8	113	1960–1972	1960 Portuguese Grand Prix	1968 Italian Grand Prix
	Riccardo Patrese	Italy	8	257	1977–1993	1981 United States Grand Prix West	1992 Hungarian Grand Prix
	Jenson Button‡	United Kingdom	8	309	2000–2017	2004 San Marino Grand Prix	2012 Belgian Grand Prix
40	Jacques Laffite	France	7	180	1974–1986	1976 Italian Grand Prix	1981 Spanish Grand Prix
41	Phil Hill‡	United States	6	51	1958–1964, 1966	1960 Italian Grand Prix	1961 German Grand Prix
	Emerson Fittipaldi‡	Brazil	6	149	1970–1980	1972 Monaco Grand Prix	1974 Canadian Grand Prix
	Jean-Pierre Jabouille	France	6	55	1974–1975, 1977–1981	1979 South African Grand Prix	1980 South African Grand Prix
	Alan Jones‡	Australia	6	117	1975–1981, 1983, 1985–1986	1979 British Grand Prix	1980 German Grand Prix
	Carlos Reutemann	Argentina	6	146	1972–1982	1972 Argentine Grand Prix	1981 Caesars Palace Grand Prix
	Ralf Schumacher	Germany	6	182	1997–2007	2001 French Grand Prix	2005 Japanese Grand Prix
47	Nino Farina‡	Italy	5	36	1950–1955	1950 British Grand Prix	1954 Argentine Grand Prix
	Chris Amon	New Zealand	5	108	1963–1976	1968 Spanish Grand Prix	1972 French Grand Prix
	Clay Regazzoni	Switzerland	5	139	1970–1980	1970 Mexican Grand Prix	1976 United States Grand Prix West
	Patrick Tambay	France	5	123	1977–1979, 1981–1986	1983 United States Grand Prix West	1984 French Grand Prix
	Keke Rosberg‡	Finland	5	128	1978–1986	1982 British Grand Prix	1986 German Grand Prix
	Carlos Sainz Jr.*	Spain	5	189	2015–	2022 British Grand Prix	2023 Singapore Grand Prix
53	Mike Hawthorn‡	United Kingdom	4	47	1952–1958	1958 Belgian Grand Prix	1958 Moroccan Grand Prix
	Didier Pironi	France	4	72	1978–1982	1980 Monaco Grand Prix	1982 German Grand Prix
	Jarno Trulli	Italy	4	256	1997–2011	2004 Monaco Grand Prix	2009 Bahrain Grand Prix
	Giancarlo Fisichella	Italy	4	231	1996–2009	1998 Austrian Grand Prix	2009 Belgian Grand Prix
57	José Froilán González	Argentina	3	26	1950–1957, 1960	1951 British Grand Prix	1955 Argentine Grand Prix
	Tony Brooks	United Kingdom	3	39	1956–1961	1958 Monaco Grand Prix	1959 German Grand Prix
	Dan Gurney	United States	3	87	1959–1968, 1970	1962 German Grand Prix	1964 Belgian Grand Prix
	Jean-Pierre Jarier	France	3	143	1971, 1973–1983	1975 Argentine Grand Prix	1978 Canadian Grand Prix
	Jody Scheckter‡	South Africa	3	113	1972–1980	1976 Swedish Grand Prix	1979 Monaco Grand Prix
	Elio de Angelis	Italy	3	109	1979–1986	1983 European Grand Prix	1985 Canadian Grand Prix
	Teo Fabi	Italy	3	71	1982, 1984–1987	1985 German Grand Prix	1986 Italian Grand Prix
	Daniel Ricciardo*	Australia	3	244	2011–	2016 Monaco Grand Prix	2018 Mexican Grand Prix
	Sergio Pérez*	Mexico	3	265	2011–	2022 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix	2023 Miami Grand Prix
66	Stuart Lewis-Evans	United Kingdom	2	14	1957–1958	1957 Italian Grand Prix	1958 Dutch Grand Prix
	Jo Siffert	Switzerland	2	100	1962–1971	1968 Mexican Grand Prix	1971 Austrian Grand Prix
	John Watson	United Kingdom	2	154	1973–1983, 1985	1977 Monaco Grand Prix	1978 French Grand Prix
	Gilles Villeneuve	Canada	2	68	1977–1982	1979 United States Grand Prix West	1981 San Marino Grand Prix
	Michele Alboreto	Italy	2	215	1981–1994	1984 Belgian Grand Prix	1985 Brazilian Grand Prix
	Jean Alesi	France	2	202	1989–2001	1994 Italian Grand Prix	1997 Italian Grand Prix
	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	Germany	2	160	1994–2003	1997 Monaco Grand Prix	1999 European Grand Prix
73	Walt Faulkner	United States	1	6	1950–1951, 1953–1955	1950 Indianapolis 500	1950 Indianapolis 500
	Duke Nalon	United States	1	5	1951–1953	1951 Indianapolis 500	1951 Indianapolis 500
	Fred Agabashian	United States	1	9	1950–1957	1952 Indianapolis 500	1952 Indianapolis 500
	Bill Vukovich	United States	1	6	1951–1955	1953 Indianapolis 500	1953 Indianapolis 500
	Jack McGrath	United States	1	6	1950–1955	1954 Indianapolis 500	1954 Indianapolis 500
	Jerry Hoyt	United States	1	5	1950, 1953–1955	1955 Indianapolis 500	1955 Indianapolis 500
	Eugenio Castellotti	Italy	1	14	1955–1957	1955 Belgian Grand Prix	1955 Belgian Grand Prix
	Pat Flaherty	United States	1	6	1950, 1953–1956, 1959	1956 Indianapolis 500	1956 Indianapolis 500
	Pat O'Connor	United States	1	6	1954–1958	1957 Indianapolis 500	1957 Indianapolis 500
	Dick Rathmann	United States	1	6	1950, 1956–1960	1958 Indianapolis 500	1958 Indianapolis 500
	Johnny Thomson	United States	1	8	1953–1960	1959 Indianapolis 500	1959 Indianapolis 500
	Jo Bonnier	Sweden	1	108	1956–1971	1959 Dutch Grand Prix	1959 Dutch Grand Prix
	Eddie Sachs	United States	1	7	1957–1960	1960 Indianapolis 500	1960 Indianapolis 500
	Wolfgang von Trips	Germany	1	29	1956–1961	1961 Italian Grand Prix	1961 Italian Grand Prix
	Lorenzo Bandini	Italy	1	42	1961–1967	1966 French Grand Prix	1966 French Grand Prix
	Mike Parkes	United Kingdom	1	7	1959, 1966–1967	1966 Italian Grand Prix	1966 Italian Grand Prix
	Peter Revson	United States	1	32	1964, 1971–1974	1972 Canadian Grand Prix	1972 Canadian Grand Prix
	Denny Hulme‡	New Zealand	1	112	1965–1974	1973 South African Grand Prix	1973 South African Grand Prix
	Patrick Depailler	France	1	95	1972, 1974–1980	1974 Swedish Grand Prix	1974 Swedish Grand Prix
	José Carlos Pace	Brazil	1	73	1972–1977	1975 South African Grand Prix	1975 South African Grand Prix
	Vittorio Brambilla	Italy	1	79	1974–1980	1975 Swedish Grand Prix	1975 Swedish Grand Prix
	Tom Pryce	United Kingdom	1	42	1974–1977	1975 British Grand Prix	1975 British Grand Prix
	Bruno Giacomelli	Italy	1	82	1977–1983, 1990	1980 United States Grand Prix	1980 United States Grand Prix
	Andrea de Cesaris	Italy	1	214	1980–1994	1982 United States Grand Prix West	1982 United States Grand Prix West
	Thierry Boutsen	Belgium	1	164	1983–1993	1990 Hungarian Grand Prix	1990 Hungarian Grand Prix
	Nick Heidfeld	Germany	1	185	2000–2011	2005 European Grand Prix	2005 European Grand Prix
	Robert Kubica	Poland	1	99	2006–2010, 2019, 2021	2008 Bahrain Grand Prix	2008 Bahrain Grand Prix
	Heikki Kovalainen	Finland	1	112	2007–2013	2008 British Grand Prix	2008 British Grand Prix
	Nico Hülkenberg*	Germany	1	210	2010, 2012–2020, 2022–	2010 Brazilian Grand Prix	2010 Brazilian Grand Prix
	Pastor Maldonado	Venezuela	1	96	2011–2015	2012 Spanish Grand Prix	2012 Spanish Grand Prix
	Lance Stroll*	Canada	1	149	2017–	2020 Turkish Grand Prix	2020 Turkish Grand Prix
	Lando Norris*	United Kingdom	1	108	2019–	2021 Russian Grand Prix	2021 Russian Grand Prix
	George Russell*	United Kingdom	1	108	2019–	2022 Hungarian Grand Prix	2022 Hungarian Grand Prix
	Kevin Magnussen*	Denmark	1	168	2014–2020, 2022–	2022 São Paulo Grand Prix	2022 São Paulo Grand Prix

By nationality

Formula One polesitters by country^[18]

Country	Poles	Driver(s)
United Kingdom	292	19
Germany	166	8
Brazil	126	6
France	79	9
Finland	70	5
Italy	48	13
Austria	46	3
United States	39	15
Argentina	38	3
Netherlands	36	1
Australia	35	4
Spain	27	2
Monaco	23	1
Canada	16	3
Sweden	15	2
Belgium	14	2
Colombia	13	1
Switzerland	7	2
New Zealand	6	2
South Africa	3	1
Mexico	3	1
Poland	1	1
Venezuela	1	1
Denmark	1	1

Most pole positions per season

Highest number of pole positions per season

Year	Driver(s)	Constructor(s)	Poles	Races	Ref.
1950	Juan Manuel Fangio	Alfa Romeo	4	7
1951	Juan Manuel Fangio	Alfa Romeo	4	8
1952	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari	5	8
1953	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari	6	9	[19]
1954	Juan Manuel Fangio	Maserati, Mercedes	5	9
1955	Juan Manuel Fangio	Mercedes	3	7
1956	Juan Manuel Fangio	Ferrari	6	8	[19]
1957	Juan Manuel Fangio	Maserati	4	8
1958	Mike Hawthorn	Ferrari	4	11
1959	Stirling Moss	Cooper-Climax	4	9
1960	Stirling Moss	Cooper-Climax	4	10
1961	Phil Hill	Ferrari	5	8
1962	Jim Clark	Lotus-Climax	6	9	[19]
1963	Jim Clark	Lotus-Climax	7	10	[19]
1964	Jim Clark	Lotus-Climax	5	10
1965	Jim Clark	Lotus-Climax	6	10	[19]
1966	Jack Brabham	Brabham-Repco	3	9
1967	Jim Clark	Lotus-Ford	6	11	[19]
1968	Chris Amon	Ferrari	3	12
1969	Jochen Rindt	Lotus-Ford	5	11
1970	Jackie Stewart	Tyrrell-Ford	4	13
	Jacky Ickx	Ferrari
1971	Jackie Stewart	Tyrrell-Ford	6	11	[19]
1972	Jacky Ickx	Ferrari	4	12
1973	Ronnie Peterson	Lotus-Ford	9	15	[19]
1974	Niki Lauda	Ferrari	9	15	[19]
1975	Niki Lauda	Ferrari	9	14	[19]
1976	James Hunt	McLaren-Ford	8	16	[19]
1977	Mario Andretti	Lotus-Ford	7	17	[19]
1978	Mario Andretti	Lotus-Ford	8	16	[19]
1979	Jacques Laffite	Ligier-Ford	4	15
	Jean-Pierre Jabouille	Renault
1980	Alan Jones	Williams-Ford	3	14
	René Arnoux	Renault
1981	René Arnoux	Renault	4	15
	Nelson Piquet	Brabham-Ford
1982	René Arnoux	Renault	5	16
	Alain Prost
1983	René Arnoux	Ferrari	4	15
	Patrick Tambay	Ferrari
1984	Nelson Piquet	Brabham-BMW	9	16	[19]
1985	Ayrton Senna	Lotus-Renault	7	16	[19]
1986	Ayrton Senna	Lotus-Renault	8	16	[19]
1987	Nigel Mansell	Williams-Honda	8	16	[19]
1988	Ayrton Senna	McLaren-Honda	13	16	[19]
1989	Ayrton Senna	McLaren-Honda	13	16	[19]
1990	Ayrton Senna	McLaren-Honda	10	16	[19]
1991	Ayrton Senna	McLaren-Honda	8	16	[19]
1992	Nigel Mansell	Williams-Renault	14	16	[19]
1993	Alain Prost	Williams-Renault	13	16	[19]
1994	Michael Schumacher	Benetton-Ford	6	16	[19]
1995	Damon Hill	Williams-Renault	7	17	[19]
1996	Damon Hill	Williams-Renault	9	16	[19]
1997	Jacques Villeneuve	Williams-Renault	10	17	[19]
1998	Mika Häkkinen	McLaren-Mercedes	9	16	[19]
1999	Mika Häkkinen	McLaren-Mercedes	11	16	[19]
2000	Michael Schumacher	Ferrari	9	17	[19]
2001	Michael Schumacher	Ferrari	11	17	[19]
2002	Juan Pablo Montoya	Williams-BMW	7	17	[19]
	Michael Schumacher	Ferrari
2003	Michael Schumacher	Ferrari	5	16
2004	Michael Schumacher	Ferrari	8	18	[19]
2005	Fernando Alonso	Renault	6	19	[19]
2006	Fernando Alonso	Renault	6	18	[19]
2007	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	6	17	[19]
	Felipe Massa	Ferrari			[19]
2008	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	7	18	[19]
2009	Jenson Button	Brawn-Mercedes	4	17
	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull-Renault
	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes
2010	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull-Renault	10	19	[19]
2011	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull-Renault	15	19	[19]
2012	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	7	20	[19]
2013	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull-Renault	9	19	[19]
2014	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	11	19	[19]
2015	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	11	19	[19]
2016	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	12	21	[19]
2017	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	11	20	[19]
2018	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	11	21	[19]
2019	Charles Leclerc	Ferrari	7	21	[20][21]
2020	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	10	17	[19]
2021	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing-Honda	10	22	[19]
2022	Charles Leclerc	Ferrari	9	22	[19]
2023	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing-Honda RBPT	12	22	[19]
2024	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing-Honda RBPT	4	4*

* Season still in progress.