In China, Leclerc qualified fourth behind Vettel. After overtaking his teammate during the start, he was asked to yield and let Vettel pass, eventually finishing the race in fifth. In Azerbaijan, he was the favourite for pole position until a crash in the second qualifying session ended his contention. He started eighth after penalties for the two Alfa Romeos and finished the race fifth with an extra point for the fastest lap of the race. At the following race in Monaco, he was eliminated in Q1 and started 15th due to Ferrari's erroneous strategy that kept him in the garage to save tyres, underestimating track evolution at the end of the qualifying session. He suffered a puncture and severe floor damage after a failed attempt to pass Nico Hülkenberg, leading to his second retirement at his home race. Leclerc qualified and finished third in Canada, his second podium finish, behind the controversial 1–2 finish of Hamilton and teammate Sebastian Vettel. He would finish third again in France. At the Austrian Grand Prix, he qualified on pole position, the second pole of his Formula One career. He subsequently finished second after colliding with Red Bull's Max Verstappen, having led for the major part of the race. The incident was investigated by the stewards after the race, who deemed it a racing incident and decided against taking action.