The 4 Most Untouchable Records in the History of Pro Sports
When Rafael Nadal won his eighth French Open title a few years ago, he became the first man in the Open era to win a single Grand Slam eight times, setting an impossibly high bar for future generations of tennis players to compete with. It was also his twelfth major title, reigniting whispers that maybe, just maybe, he could challenge Roger Federer’s seemingly safe record of seventeen total major titles. Records, like promises, were made to be broken, and every year, we see one significant records or another falling in all of our major sports. Still, there are a few numbers that have stood the test of time and increasingly seem to be untouchable, unbreakable milestones of greatness. Here’s our list of the records that will never be broken.
Cy Young's 511 Wins
Of all the sports, baseball is the one most concerned with numbers, and thereby also the one where we could come up with the most unbreakable records: Rickey Henderson’s 1,406 steals, Ty Cobb’s career .367 batting average, and Hank Aaron’s total of 755 legitimate home runs are all records unlikely to ever be challenged. But given the changing nature of the game, which has pitchers starting fewer games, throwing fewer innings, and specializing more and more in what kinds of batters they match up against, Denton True ‘Cy’ Young’s record of 511 total wins stands above them all as a record that can never, ever be challenged. Young won almost 100 more games than Walter Johnson, who is second on the all-time list; meanwhile, in today’s game, winning 200 games is a benchmark of a long and successful Major League career. They don’t call it the Cy Young award for nothing.
The Eight Consecutive Championships of the Boston Celtics
When the Miami Heat successfully defended their a few years ago, it highlighted that team’s historic greatness, but it also underscored how difficult it is to win, not just two straight championships, but a single title; Miami was twice stretched to seven games in the postseason, and if the Spurs had hit a few more free throws in Game Six or gotten a few more foul calls that went their way, they would likely have been the champs. In light of that, it seems increasingly safe to say that the Celtics’ unprecedented run from 1959 to 1966, which saw them win eight consecutive NBA titles, will never again be matched. It’s true, of course, that today’s league is larger, and has more talent, than it did in back in the early 1960s. As in baseball, the game has changed. But don’t let that take away from the Celtics’ accomplishment: No other North American professional team has had as long an uninterrupted streak of dominance, and they were playing against teams with all-time greats like Wilt Chamberlain and Jerry West. Their eight straight titles were part of a larger and similarly untouchable run of eleven titles in thirteen years.
Roger Federer's Seventeen Major Titles
Yes, people are rumbling about the potential of Rafael Nadal tying or beating Federer’s record of seventeen total titles, but we’re going to put our foot down right now and say it: If anyone’s going to beat Federer’s record, it will be Federer himself extending it. People look at the fact that Nadal would "only" have to win five more majors to equal Federer’s total and think that it’s fully conceivable — ignoring the fact that winning five total majors would be a Hall of Fame tennis career. The fact is that Nadal’s mastery at the French Open has to some degree inflated his tennis pedigree, as he’s won twice as many titles there as at all the other events combined; and, with players like Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic playing at just as high a level — not to mention an ever-hungry Federer still playing consistently excellent tennis — it’s hard to imagine that he’ll catch up to the Greatest of All Time.
Wayne Gretzky Scoring 2800 Total Points
During his playing career, Gretzky was commonly referred to as "The Great One," a reference to the fact that, watching him play, spectators were aware that they were witnessing a singular talent that would likely never be seen again. Nowhere is that fact reflected more fully than in Gretzky’s career record of 2,857 total points (goals plus assists) — a mark that puts him at almost a full one thousand points above the next highest total, the 1,887 of Mark Messier. Unsurprisingly, Gretzky also holds the records both for most assists and most goals scored. Perhaps most impressive of all, though, is the sheer number of official records that he holds in the NHL, a total of 60.
[All pics via Wikimedia Commons. Top - Javad Tavakool. Gretzky - Hakandahlstrom. Federer - Derek Holtham. Celtics - Library of Congress. Cy Young - Library of Congress.]
