Here are the drivers with the smallest gaps between picking up their first and second
F1 pole positions.
If a driver has a quick car and is challenging at the front of the field fairly early in their career, then the first and second
F1 pole positions they score can be separated by very little time.
Seven - time F1 world champion Michael Schumacher's debut
F1 pole positions also came just 14 days apart, early in his career and during his first championship - winning season.
Italian racer Giancarlo Fisichella managed to score his first
F1 pole position quite early in his career, for Benetton at the 1998 Austrian GP — despite the team struggling slightly without works Renault engines.
For some drivers, securing their first
F1 pole position is quickly followed by a second, and third, and fourth.
Not exact matches
Although he sits at the top of the list for the most
pole positions in
F1 (although not for much longer if Lewis Hamilton has his way), you wouldn't necessarily say that qualifying was one of Michael Schumacher's strongest points.
He took
pole position for the first race of the season in Australia, the second of his
F1 career, and eventually won the race.
It was only his second
F1 season and he snatched
pole position at the 1994 Belgian GP, but it took him quite some time to repeat the achievement.
Unfortunately, for Mario Andretti, he not only holds the record for the longest wait between first and second
F1 wins, but he also has the largest gap between first and second
pole positions too.
It doesn't happen all that often, but sometimes
F1 drivers take their first and second
pole positions in quick succession
Argentine racer Jose Froilan Gonzalez competed in
F1's debut season in 1950, and the following year scored his first
pole position in the sport at the 1951 British Grand Prix — driving for Ferrari.
@wtf1official Teo Fabi has scored three
pole positions during his
F1 career but surprisingly, also has never led a single lap during his
F1 career #WTF1Fact
The first
pole position of a
F1 driver's career is obviously a very special moment, but it probably feels even better when it's also a new lap record.
His father made 306
F1 starts, winning 91 races, scoring 155 podiums, 68
pole positions and seven world titles in total.
He secured his first
pole position during that initial on / off stint in
F1, at the 1968 United States Grand Prix, but it took him until the 1976 Japanese Grand Prix (driving for Lotus) to return to the front of the grid, eight years and 18 days later.
Mansell had started the race from
pole position — his first ever in
F1 — and led the first half of it race before his tyres went off and he fell back before eventually having to pit.
Having looked at the shortest gaps between first and second
pole positions, we thought we'd dive into more niche
F1 stats and see who had to wait the longest.
However, the Italian team wasn't competitive enough to challenge for
pole positions, meaning Alesi had to wait until Italy in 1994 to score his first in
F1.
It now means he has the same number of
pole positions as seven - time
F1 champion Schumacher, with 68 in total.
Driven by a plethora of Italian
F1 stars such as Michele Alboreto, Alessandro Nannini, Ricardo Patrese and Teo Fabi, the Ferrari - powered cars took
pole positions here, there and everywhere in the WSC, but were just too fragile to get to the end of the race.
Few drivers achieve success straight away in
F1, but Lewis Hamilton burst onto the scene with a front - running car and found himself storming to his maiden
pole position at the 2007 Canadian GP.
He went on to score 91 wins in total during his
F1 career and 68
pole positions, the latter record could be matched this weekend if Lewis Hamilton secures
pole.
F1 racer Romain Grosjean was the star of the show in the Super Final on Saturday, taking
pole position and going on to win the race in his Renault Clio.
Surprisingly Bruce McLaren never managed a
pole position in his
F1 career - probably because he spent most of it racing increasingly uncompetitive Coopers and then going through the challenges of starting his own team (it's called McLaren - you might have heard of it).
Dan Gurney was one of
F1's fastest drivers for much of the 1960s, as evidenced by the fact that his first
pole position at the Nordschleife in 1962.
Not just one of Newey's best designs, but also one of the most iconic cars in
F1 history, the FW14B dominated the 1992 season and the FW14 and FW14B won a combined 17 races and secured 21
pole positions.
In qualifying Kubica didn't disappoint, and he took an historic
pole position - the first for a Polish driver, and the first for BMW Sauber (to date, it is the only
pole for Sauber in its 25 years of
F1).
While Formula One games always seemed to limp out of
pole position compared to the content - heavy Forzas and Gran Turismos of the world, the past few console generations sported several top - quality
F1 simulations with premier drivers, authentic locales, and an uncluttered sense of speed.
In May 2014, Grand Prix fans will be able to access the atmosphere of the most prestigious race of the
F1 season in Monte Carlo, when guests on Star Flyer will be in
pole position in the harbour.
As time marches on another
F1 racing season approaches (the 66th beginning on March 15 in Australia), so take the
pole position to relive the 65th 2014 Formula One season with Codemasters» racing simulation game
F1 2014, which is widely available now at a reduced price.
Alberto Ascari, two - time
F1 World Champion, piloted the Lancia D50 towards the end of the 1954 season, taking
pole position and fastest lap in the car's first race.
Does the
F1 achieve
pole position in the budget phone rankings?