So my earlier griping about Dan & Jordan being among the least deserving “Amazing Race” winners got me thinking. And calculating. I added up the placements (1 point for first, 2 for second, etc., lowest total score wins) from each leg of the race for the top three teams from all 16 seasons (except for the Family Edition, which never happened. Never happened, I tell you!).
The results? Dan & Jordan were the least deserving winner ever. For comparison’s sake, their total of 52 points was the same as Brent & Caite’s, and 1 point worse than last season’s third-place finishers, Brian & Ericka.
By my calculations, the top 5 least deserving winners were: Dan & Jordan (52 points), Season 11’s Eric & Danielle (47), and a three-way tie with Season 6’s Freddie & Kendra, Season 5’s Chip & Kim and Season 2’s Chris & Alex, each with 44. I was surprised Chip & Kim were so low, I remember them as one of my favorite winners ever; I had forgotten how poorly they did in the early legs.
Of course, statistics aren’t always perfect. Just look at who came out as the most deserving winner: Season 9’s second-place finishers Eric & Jeremy (21 points), who I pretty much hated. That was a pretty weak field though; they and winners BJ & Tyler won 10 of the 11 legs. The most deserving actual winner was last season’s Meghan & Cheyne, with 24 points and 7 first-place finishes. Rounding out the top five: Season 14’s Tammy & Victor (25), fan faves and second-place finishers Kris & Jon from Season 6 (26), and Season 13’s Nick and Starr (27). Meghan & Cheyne and Nick & Starr had the most first-place finishes, 7 each.
Jet & Cord ended up with a very respectable 31 points, putting them in the company of Season 14’s Margie & Luke (30, kinda a shocker), and Season 5’s epic villains, Colin & Christie (a surprisingly low 32).
The complete list is after the jump, with total points and number of first-place finishes. One asterisk (*) signifies a second-place finisher, two (**) is for third-place finishers.
Top 5
21: *Eric & Jeremy (Season 9), 5 first
24: Meghan & Cheyne (Season 15), 7 first
25: Tammy & Victor (Season 14), 5 first
26: *Kris & Jon (Season 6), 4 first
27: Nick & Starr (Season 13), 7 first
Middle of the pack
28: *Ken & Tina (Season 13), 3 first
28: BJ & Tyler (Season 9), 5 first
29: *Rob & Amber (Season 7), 4 first
30: Tyler & James (Season 10), 4 first
30: *Frank & Margarita (Season 1), 3 first
31: *Jet & Cord (Season 16), 4 first
31: **Margie & Luke (Season 14), 3 first
32: Rob & Brennan (Season 1), 5 first
32: *Colin & Christie (Season 5), 6 first
34: *Tara & Will (Season 2), 3 first
35: Flo & Zach (Season 3), 2 first
35: **Ken & Gerard (Season 3), 3 first
35: TK & Rachel (Season 12), 3 first
36: *Rob & Kimberly (Season 10), 2 first
38: Uchenna & Joyce (Season 7), 3 first
38: *Dustin & Kandice (Season 11), 4 first
38: *Ronald & Christina (Season 12), 3 first
38: *Sam & Dan (Season 15), 2 first
39: **Joe & Bill (Season 1), 1 first
39: **Ron & Kelly (Season 7), 2 first
41: Reichen & Chip (Season 4), 2 first
43: **Brandon & Nicole (Season 5), 2 first
44: Chris & Alex (Season 2), 3 first
44: Chip & Kim (Season 5), 4 first
44: Freddie & Kendra (Season 6), 2 first
46: **Nick & Donald (Season 12), 1 first
46: *Jaime & Cara (Season 14), 0 first
47: Eric & Danielle (Season 11), 1 first
48: **Blake & Paige (Season 2), 2 first
50: *Kelly & Jon (Season 4), 1 first
51: **Brian & Ericka (Season 15), 0 first
52: **David & Jeff (Season 4), 4 first
52: **Ray & Yolanda (Season 9), 1 first
52: Dan & Jordan (Season 16), 2 first
52: **Brent & Caite (Season 16), 1 first
Bottom 5
54: **Charla & Mirna (Season 11), 2 first
55: **Adam & Rebecca (Season 6), 1 first
57: **Andrew & Dan (Season 13), 0 first
59: *Teri & Ian (Season 3), 3 first
60: **Lyn & Karyln (Season 10), 0 first
