Worst grand prix driver ever 1906 onwards

[ybee02]

Who do you think the worst grand prix driver is ever please post your replys to this thread.

[Hazard]

You mean I can't have Felice Nazzarro!!!

[ECW Dan Selby]

Deletraz

Selby

[Bononi]

Worst ? What do you mean by worst ?

[ensign14]

Ottorino Volonterio - 25% slower than the field - and Otto Stuppacher (never qualified, generally 30% slower) have to be up there as the ultimate in slow drivers.

There was one chap at the Belgrade GP in 1939 called Bosko Milenkovic, who raced an aged Bugatti T51 and came 4th. Out of 5 starters (one of which retired). 19 laps off the lead. In a 50 lap race.

[Hazard]

There we go...I think ensign's conclusively answered that one!

[Chatters]

Al Pease. Finished 43 laps down in a 90 lap race, then black flagged because he was too slow!

[ensign14]

There was a good reason for Pease to be 43 laps down...he lost 6 laps at the start because of a faulty battery and it conked later in the race, so he had to run back to the pits to replace it. (He was actually black-flagged in his second GP but that was more for wild driving, he nerfed Silvio Moser out and hit Beltoise as the latter was lapping him. In neither GP did Pease qualify last.)

[Armco Bender]

Hans Heyer,started the race(his only F1) illegally out of the pits and broke down before he got black flagged.

[ensign14]

But he wasn't the worst ever, surely? 2.5 seconds slower than his team-mate, admittedly, but there have been others a LOT slower in comparison (e.g. Giovanna Amati, Ricardo Zunino) - and despite having nearly zero single seater races he outqualified Emerson Fittipaldi. For "worst ever" we have to go to a very special level of ineptitude.

[Smokey 6 litre]

obviously being quite young i haven't had the privelidge of seeing many of the auful driver you note but from recent times Alex Yoonge in the Minardi and obviously Ide in the Super Aguri.

The worst person i've ever seen driving an F1 car (although not in an F1 race) was Juli Lyons driving a Surtees (sponsored by Rizzla and Penthouse) at the silverstone classic, 30 seconds of the pace round silverstone (with the second chicane removed) and battling to stay on the rear of a FF2000.

[Bononi]

For starters I would say it's hard to think of a "worst driver" when one are brave enough to get to drive an F1 car and actually try to compete with it in a professional manner.
The ideal title would be "Less successful Grand Prix Driver" then. It's always good to avoid hurting feelings of someone we don't know...

[Skam85]

Yes, that's right Bon, because I know for a fact my good pals Jean-Denis Deletraz and Ricardo Rosset read these forums every day, to see if they can get any positive feedback on their respective careers...

[CamF1]

The worst I've seen were definently Deletraz and Hideki Noda. I think they both drove for Larrouse in '94? I recall seeing Deletraz being lapped numorous times and generally getting in the way at the 1994 Australian GP.

[Bononi]

Originally Posted by Skam85

Yes, that's right Bon, because I know for a fact my good pals Jean-Denis Deletraz and Ricardo Rosset read these forums every day, to see if they can get any positive feedback on their respective careers...

I'm not sure they would read, but if I could tell, you would be amazed who read this forum in a daily basis...

[Alan Raine]

Just thank god Arnold Glass never managed to get into a Grand Prix. He was known to hold up Formula Fords around Oulton Park in his F1 McLaren!

[Erki]

Originally Posted by Skam85

Yes, that's right Bon, because I know for a fact my good pals Jean-Denis Deletraz and Ricardo Rosset read these forums every day, to see if they can get any positive feedback on their respective careers...

Deletraz might even get. He races in FIA GT in an Aston Martin and isn't very slow.

[Bononi]

Told ya.

[Hazard]

Deletraz and Yoong have gone on to redeem themselves in other Formulae.

Of the '95 squad, surely Taki Inoue's more of a runner?

Anyway, no one I've seen I could call the worst F1 driver since 1906...I simply haven't seen that many races!

[foreversideways]

The Japanese certainly have had a few drivers who could lay claim to this title. But it's worth remembering that the last guy on the grid is still a great driver, just not as great as those in front of him.

[Marbot]

Originally Posted by foreversideways

But it's worth remembering that the last guy on the grid is still a great driver, just not as great as those in front of him.

That's so right,and see my sig.

[Bononi]

What I've been saying since the start of the thread...

[ensign14]

Doesn't mean that there wasn't a worst, though...

[ybee02]

Thank You all for posting your replys and i think the worst ever grand prix driver is Yuji Ide he lost his super licence.

[kipper]

Originally Posted by ybee02

Thank You all for posting your replys and i think the worst ever grand prix driver is Yuji Ide he lost his super licence.

An issue with using the removal of a super licence as justification for deciding on the worst driver is that it is a relatively recent introduction (compared to 1906 anyway), so there could be drivers who have raced before its introduction, who would have lost their licences had that option been available. Whilst it is difficult to comprehensively state the best driver in Grand Prix history due to differing contexts, I'd argue that reaching any sense of consesus regarding the worst driver is likely to be equally difficult.