At the next race in Monaco, Verstappen qualified second behind Charles Leclerc, but Leclerc suffered a driveshaft failure on the way to the grid and was unable to start the race. Verstappen controlled the race from the front on the way to victory. Hamilton (who qualified seventh) finished seventh, though claiming an extra championship point by setting the fastest race lap. The result enabled Verstappen to take the lead in the Drivers' Championship for the first time in his career, by a margin of four points over Hamilton. At the 2021 Azerbaijan Grand Prix Verstappen qualified 3rd behind Leclerc and Hamilton. Verstappen and Hamilton passed Leclerc in the opening laps before Verstappen took the lead by way of a faster pitstop. Verstappen would comfortably hold the lead until lap 46 when he suffered a tyre failure causing him to crash and retire. A mistake by Championship rival Hamilton on the restart dropped him to last place, meaning Verstappen maintained his championship lead. Verstappen took pole for the 2021 French Grand Prix. A mistake on the first lap allowed Hamilton to take the lead which Verstappen retook during the pit stop phase. Verstappen pitted for a second time from the lead and chased down the two Mercedes, overtaking Hamilton for the lead on lap 52 of 53. He also took the fastest lap point, extending his championship lead to 12 points. Verstappen took pole again at the 2021 Styrian Grand Prix, and led from start to finish to give him his 4th win of the season and further extend his lead to 18 points.