Dubious Achievements/Statistics in Sports
Posted: Tue Mar 10, 2026 5:33 pm
So yesterday I learned about the German race car driver Hans Heyer. While he managed several wins in his career (all in endurance racing events), he is perhaps more dubiously notable for being the only driver to have earned a Did Not Qualify, Did Not Finish and a Disqualification in the same race. Hans failed to qualify for the 1977 F1 German Grand Prix but managed to earn the third reserve driver spot. Only two drivers dropped out of the race so he decided to race anyway, and I guess in 1977 you could just Do That with the race officials being none the wiser.
He sneaks onto the track from the pit lane and runs for nine laps before the gearbox fails and he has to retire the car. Only after the race officials realize he’s not even supposed to be there does he get officially disqualified.
There is something that is both deeply beautiful and hilarious to me about racking up that many black flags (in the same fucking race!) that I got to thinking there’s got to be more cases of Outstanding Dismalness in the Field of Sporting out there, and I figure the greater PRF Hive Mind has to know more examples of this type of thing. So please, who’s the best (worst) guy you got?
He sneaks onto the track from the pit lane and runs for nine laps before the gearbox fails and he has to retire the car. Only after the race officials realize he’s not even supposed to be there does he get officially disqualified.
There is something that is both deeply beautiful and hilarious to me about racking up that many black flags (in the same fucking race!) that I got to thinking there’s got to be more cases of Outstanding Dismalness in the Field of Sporting out there, and I figure the greater PRF Hive Mind has to know more examples of this type of thing. So please, who’s the best (worst) guy you got?