Who was/is the most unluckiest driver

[Mark F1]

I'm going for Barrichello, when will he get a decent break !!

He has been right up there figthing TGF for the last two Grand Prix, he has lost two almost certain pole positions in the last few minutes of qualifying in both Imola and Barcelona, TGF steals his setup's and in the case of Imola, his car, and he fails to even start the Spanish Grand Prix, not to mention the 3 DNF's he had in Australia, Malaysia and Brazil.

He has also had to play second fiddle to Schumacher for too long, most notably Austria last year, and yet despite his speed and experience, he still only has one win to his name in Germany 2000, and even that was a lucky win !!

What more can I say

[calais]

definately rubens

[BBKing]

I has nothing to do with luck. It is more likely Ferrari testing something for Schumacher's car for the next race. That is the way Ferrari does it.

The unluckiest? JH.

[Miss Hardt]

I think it's Jacques.Because he tasted the success and then lost it.

Rubens' victory was not a matter of luck!It was the matter of place!

[calais]

jacques unlucky????????
he's the second highest paid driver, does no PR and very little testing.
what a life!!!!!!!!
his loss of success is his own making

[Damon]

I voted other meaning Nigel Mansell. He was bad luck personified!!

[steve nielsen]

it's very hard to choose between Barichello and Trulli, so I voted for Trulli since Rubens has actualy had a race where the car got him into the points, Trulli has had just a litle more bad luck this season.

and Sato was'nt unlucky, he was pushing too hard and made a mistake.
Fisichella was (also AGAIN) unlucky.

the price for the luckiest man of the race goes to Heinz Ketchup who overtook nobody but because 5 or 6 cars in front of him retired still scores a point.

[SILVERS95]

Johnny Herbert must be the most unlucky driver ive ever seen

[Raven]

How can you put DC on that list but not Raikkonen?

[BootsOntheSide]

Trulli by a mile, whatever car he's in seems to break down on him while his team mates usually have no problems. Maybe there's something bad in his driving style which stresses the car, but I doubt it because it always seems to be something different each time.

[Dr. Austin]

Man, everyone sure forgot about chris amon, didn't they? I don't think anyone ever got so close so many times only to get a punture or run out of gas or something stupid. I don't think I can remember anyone as unlucky, though really, the guys who died are probably the unluckiest. I mean, what's losing a couple GP's compared to losing everything?

[Dr. Austin]

And don't forget Helmet marko who was at the top of his game and surely destined for stardom. He lost an eye at zandvoort when a rock pierced his visor. Instant career termination for an otherwise healthy man. It had to be infuriating for him.

[Muzza]

Where the hell is Chris Amon??? He was the unluckiest guy in F-1 history. Comparing him to Barrichello and Alesi is unnecessary. Comparing Amon's bad luck to Herbert's or Coulthard (?) is almost a (bad) joke.

What about Alan Stacey - a brilliant driver despite his physical handicap (the lower half of his right leg was artificial) - who was killed in the 1960 Belgium GP, after being struck in the face by a bird?

What about Tom Pryce?

Did you forget that there was Formula 1 before 1990?

Doc, congratlations for mentioning the great Helmut Marko (I miss his RSM team). I think, though, that the accident with Helmut Marko was in Clermont Ferrand, in the 1972 French GP). One car (according to most sources Emerson Fittipaldi's Lotus) run wide in one turn and spat stones behind, and one of then indeed went through Marko's visor and blinded him (I believe he lost sight of his right eye, someone please confirm)

Regards,

Muzza

[Daisy]

Jacques Villeneuve is absolute not unlucky. He decided to go to BAR and he had the chance to leave the team last year, and the year before that. My vote is going for Rubens.

[bart_jacobs]

Originally posted by BootsOntheSide
Trulli by a mile, whatever car he's in seems to break down on him while his team mates usually have no problems. Maybe there's something bad in his driving style which stresses the car, but I doubt it because it always seems to be something different each time.

I don't understand why Flavio took him as a driver!!!HE IS SO FAST but what are you with a driver that has bad luck !!!I'm telling you,he's jinxed!!he is a fabulous driver but to score points you first have to finish!!!!

[bart_jacobs]

I'm not sure if it was last year or the year before that,but I think he was leading or second in his Jordan,being fast all weekend,but he had to retire cuz of gearbox trouble.they say that his driving style over-heated the gearbox witch led to a retirement, a real shame,he would have wone that day.....

[Peter Mallett]

Originally posted by Dr. Austin
................chris amon, ....................

That's the one Dr A.

(I think kit's a matter of age. We've got it, they haven't. )

[EERO]

Marko, (Le Mans winner in 1971) was at Clermant-Ferrand in 1972 when he lost his eye. The greatest irony was that on this tough track, Marko qualified high in an uncompettive BRM, I think 6th and was running with the big boys for the first time. Fortunately he was able to bring the car to a safe halt despite having a stone kicked up from the verge, shatter his visor and destroy an eye.


(Ironicly, this race was also Chris Amon's most brilliant drive, having led, suffered a puncture from one of the same stones on the verge and, set a series of fastest laps and clawed his way back to third.)

Doc, I agree with your point about the unluckiest guys being those who died, but in the spirti of the thread, I'd have to say Amon, and of the current crop, DC.

[EERO]

Originally posted by calais
jacques unlucky????????
he's the second highest paid driver, does no PR and very little testing.
what a life!!!!!!!!
his loss of success is his own making

I'm with you calais, Jacques' turn of fortune was of his own making.

[Lola]

Its got to be Chris Amon.........no doubt!!!!!

[Liz]

Jacques' "unluckiness" is that of a man who has made $1 million at roulette and bets it all on Red. That's really just not knowing when to quit.

Sato isn't unlucky, he's inexperienced.

Rubens isn't unlucky -- it's simply coincidence that the car most widely touted as "the most reliable car in Formula One" disintegrates the minute he gets into it.

If we draw a line at the end of 1993, the unluckiest driver on this side of that line is Jean Alesi -- for being in F1 on this side of the line and not the other side where he could easily have raced with the best.

But I would say that the unluckiest man in Formula One was Roland Ratzenberger. He had to wait an unconscionably long time for his big break -- and he was killed in practice for his first race -- and hardly anybody remembers him at all because a superstar died the next day.

R.I.P. Ratzenberger. Some of us do remember.

[Nicholas]

Jacques wasn't unlucky, he just made an extremely bad career move and now has to suffer the consequences to avoid jumping into the fire.

All GP drivers are unlucky unless their name is Michael Schumacher post-1999. Wasn't JPM so unlucky at Brazil last year, isn't Raikkonen so unlucky for getting into a rubbish top team instead of staying at a good midfield team, isn't Fisichella unlucky for being at Jordan, wasn't Alesi unlucky for his talent at picking the wrong teams?

Yes Barrichello is unlucky for pushing TGF harder than any previous team-mate and only getting six points for his efforts, never retiring below 2nd place but worse things could happen to him. For a start he could be at Jaguar and then he wouldn't be unlucky, he would be just another fourth rate driver.

The only really unlucky drivers are the dead ones or those who never even got the chance.

[Muzza]

Hello, Liz,

Under the view of much more important considerations, I know this is a purely academical thing, but just for the sake of accuracy let me correct you. Ratzenberger was killed during a qualifying session (and not in practice) for his second start (and not first, as you wrote).

Ratzenberger failed to obtain a grid slot for the first GP of the season, in Brazil, but he did start the second one, in Aida (Pacific GP). He then perished when qualifying for the San Marino GP.

Muzza

[nameless]

i think that anybody who has died in an f1 car can be considered unlucky, im surprised that no-one has mentioned gilles villeneuve on that count, francois cervert, roger williamson, tom pryce, ronnie petersen.
however in terms of bad luck in races id say johnny herbert (sorry, but im not old enough to remember chris amon)

[Spudgun]

On a lighter note.. Taki Inoue was a tad unlucky being run over by the safet car.. it would have been different if he'd have been hurt, but lookng back it always brings a smile..

But in the actual vote I went for Herbert. He shattered both legs in the late '80's and also you could practically set your watch to his mid-race retirement interview..