Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc star in the most balanced duel between teammates in the 2026 Formula 1 season. The Monegasque driver leads the head-to-head by just 6 to 5 in qualifying for the GPs.
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Leclerc’s advantage is also minimal when considering the average time difference between the two. According to data gathered by RacingNews365, Leclerc is, on average, only 0.050 seconds faster than Hamilton, highlighting the balance in the competition.
One of the most extreme examples occurred in Belgium, where Leclerc beat Hamilton by just 0.002 seconds in Q3. The largest difference between the two was recorded in Barcelona, but the result requires a particularity in the methodology used for the data collection.
Leclerc crashed in Q3 before setting his time, while Hamilton completed his lap. Therefore, since neither had recorded a time in that session under the conditions considered for the calculation, the Q2 times were used, the last session in which both set a lap. By this criterion, Leclerc was 0.237 seconds ahead of Hamilton.
The Ferrari duo appears slightly ahead of two other matchups that are also at 6 to 5, Sergio Perez against Valtteri Bottas at Cadillac, and Liam Lawson against Arvid Lindblad at Racing Bulls. Perez and Lawson have an average advantage of less than 0.100 seconds over their respective teammates.
At the other end, Fernando Alonso has the largest advantage among teammates, with 9 to 2 over Lance Stroll and an average difference of 0.375 seconds. Carlos Sainz also shows a significant advantage over Alex Albon, while Nico Hulkenberg leads 6 to 5 over Gabriel Bortoleto, but with an average difference of 0.394 seconds.
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