Who is the world's fastest runner in the 40-yard dash?

Answer 1

The reality is that there is no single "official" time in the 40-yard dash at a Combine.

That said, Bo Jackson has the best verifiable time at a Combine with his 4.12 clocking at the New Orleans Superdome in 1986.

I assume you are referring to the 40 yard dash as it applies to American Football. Currently, there is no official recognition of any 40 yard dash time. The 40 yard dash, as measured by the NFL combine, uses a method slightly different than standard track & field. In Track and Field, the runner reacts to the starting gun, where as the NFL combine allows the runners to start whenever they want, with the timers starting precisely when the runner does. This gives the combine method around a .15 second advantage. Also, combine participants are timed using 2 methods - by coaches with hand-held stopwatches and electronically.

With that said, the fastest 40 yard dash runners on the planet are most likely world-class sprinters (Asafa Powell, Tyson Gay, Maurice Greene, Usain Bolt) whose track and field times would translate to very low 4 second range NFL combine-style 40 times.

Regarding the fastest 40 ever run by an NFL player, there are lots of players noted to have been clocked around 4.1, such as Darrell Green, Deion Sanders, Raghib Ismail, Joey Galloway to name but a few. There are also many notable burners over the years who could have no doubt ran in the 4.1 range, such as Willie Gault, Bob Hayes, Cliff Branch and so on. There have been pure sprinters who have tried their hands at pro football who also should be mentioned, such as Renaldo Nehemiah, Alexander Wright and Jimmy Hines.

But it is Olympic athlete, Ben Johnson, who was believed to have run 40 yards faster than any human in history. Johnson is best known for injecting steroids and winning the 100 meters at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul in 9.79 seconds, only to have his gold medal and world record stripped after failing a post-race drug test.

Timing officials have since broken down that famed race into 10-meter increments, and Johnson was so preposterously fast that he went through 50 meters in 5.52 seconds and 60 meters in 6.37 - both under the current world records at the time at those distances. He went through 40 yards that day in 4.38 seconds. But, no matter how fast he was on steroids, Usain Bolt's legal 9.69 (9.55 without slowing) 100m time (40 yards of it) blows it away. Usain Bolt's 40 yard during his 100m record was likely a VERY low 4 such as 4.09 or 4.02.

Answer 2

The 40 yard dash is not an IAAF recognized event, therefore no official record exists. Unofficially, Darrell Green holds the fastest time of 4.08.

That time has never been verified. His official time was 4.15. The fastest verified time in the 40yd dash is 4.12 by Bo Jackson.

Ref: http://www.gridironstuds.com/blog/the-fastest-40-yard-dash-ever/

Answer 3

There is no official world record for 40 yards, BUT here's some of the material and times that has been reported: Many reported times are unreliable due to differences in timing methods if not intentional falsifications. The NFL did not begin using partial electronic timing (started by hand, stopped electronically) at the Scouting Combine until 1990. In track and field races, the runner must react to the starting gun, which can take 0.10 to 0.20 seconds. For electronically timed 40 yard dashes, the runner is allowed to start when he wishes, and a timer hand-starts the clock (after a reaction time of 0.10 to 0.20 seconds). Although the 40-yard dash is not an official race in track and field, the 60 meter dash is an official distance in indoor track and field, with the world record for that race being 6.39 seconds (run twice by Maurice Greene, and once by Ben Johnson, whose record was annulled for Steroids). The fastest 60m split time is probably 6.32 seconds by Asafa Powell, in his 9.74 second 100m World Record run in Rieti, Italy. Fast starting elite sprinters such as Powell (and others past and present) can run a "Football 40" close to 4 seconds, because the sprinter does not have to react to the sound of the gun, and the starter has to react to their movement before the clock starts. In the 2001 World Championship 100m final in Edmonton, Greene covered 30m in 3.75 seconds running time and 40m in 4.64 seconds running time, putting his 40 yard (36.576m) running time at about 4.24 seconds. Given a hypothetical timer's reaction time to Greene's motion, Greene's "Football 40" time for this race would have been between 4.00 and 4.14 seconds. Billy Emory ran the fastest time ever at 3.89 during an Olympic trial. . There actually is no single, "official" 40 time at the NFL Combine. National Scouting, which runs the combine, provides three times per run, two fully hand-held and one stopped electronically. Each player may run twice, thereby yielding a potential six times. National Scouting provides all six of these times to NFL teams. The teams then do what they want with those times, or ignore them. Some teams use the best electronic time. Some teams throw out the fastest and slowest and average the rest. Some teams use the best time provided. And some teams use a time provided by their own scout on site. Many players with incredible "reported" times have also done amazing things in the NFL, for example: Darrell Green ran an unofficial 4.09[citation needed] in training camp for the Washington Redskins. He is considered by many as one of the best corners of all time. Many see him as the fastest man in NFL history, having won several NFL's Fastest Man competitions. * Bo Jackson ran a 4.12. As a part-time player, Bo averaged 5.4 yards per carry. He also had 221 rushing yards on November 30, 1987 (just 29 days after his first NFL carry), which is still a Monday Night Football record. * DeAngelo Hall, a cornerback currently playing for the Atlanta Falcons, ran a 4.15 second 40 yard dash.[citation needed] * Randy Moss, a wide receiver currently playing for the New England Patriots, ran a 4.25 second 40 yard dash.[citation needed] Moss currently holds the rookie TD reception record with 17 and the single-season TD reception record with 23. * Devin Hester ran a disappointing 4.45 40 at the 2006 NFL Scouting Combine, but is now considered one of the best kick returners in NFL history and holds numerous return records.[citation needed] * Reggie Bush ran a 4.33, in 2006,[citation needed] he was the only rookie and the only running back to score a rushing TD and punt return TD. He also led the rookie running backs in receiving and set the NFL record for most catches by a NFL rookie running back * Heisman Trophy winner, Herschel Walker was said to have run a 4.25 (hand-timed) also for the Dallas Cowboys.[citation needed] He was a notable sprinter who also ran in the Olympic Trials. The Fastest Players in the NFL include the following. # Devin Hester (4.24 @ Miami Pro Day, 4.45 @ 2006 NFL Combine, 100 speed in Madden 08) # Reggie Bush (4.33 @ University of USC at Pro Day 2006) # Ike Taylor (4.18 @ University of Louisiana at Lafayette Pro Day) # Laveranues Coles (4.16 @ Florida State University, 4.29 @ Jets Media Guide) # Ahman Green (4.19 @ Pre-Draft Workout in Nebraska) # Michael Puckett (4.19 @ Pre-Draft Workout at CCCC) # Zach Rehmert (4.20 @ Pre- Draft workout at Collin College) # Kevin Curtis (4.21 @ Utah State Pro Day) # Donte Stallworth (4.22 @ 2003 Tennessee Pro Day) # Willie Parker (4.23 @ 2004 North Carolina Pro Day) # Randy Moss (4.25 @ Marshall University) # Fabian Washington (4.29 @ 2005 NFL Combine) # Champ Bailey (4.28 @ 1999 NFL Combine) # Jerome Mathis (4.28 @ 2005 NFL Combine) # Willis McGahee (4.28 @ Miami Pre-Injury) # Michael Bennett (4.17 @ Wisconsin Pro Day, 4.37 @ 2001 NFL Combine) Also, Bob Hayes won all but 1 race in the 40 yard dash back in the late 1960's, and he was once timed in 4.1. Back then, electronic timers only had 10ths of a second and didn't round, just stayed on a number until the next one was hit. In one race, he clocked in at 4.1. So figure it was probably under 4.2 but over 4.1 or somewhere in the neighborhood. They use to call the race, "King of the Hill" and it was raced in indoor track meets which NFL stars raced in.

That King of the Hill race was for pro-football players only. And the separation he would get was unbelievable, most times beating the field by at least a yard. Here's another source:

The NFL's fastest official 40 yard dash time was 4.25 seconds by cornerback Fabian Washington. Previous to electronic timing, Deion Sanders held the official record at 4.29 seconds. Here are some unofficial claims to players who have broken the 4.2 second mark.

1. Ted Ginn Jr. (4.06) 2. Alexander Wright (4.09) 3. Michael Bennett (4.13) 4. Bo Jackson (4.14) 5. DeAngelo Hall (4.15) 6. Darrell Green (4.15) 7. Lavernaues Coles (4.16) 8. Deion Sanders (4.17) 9 Joey Galloway (4.18) 10. Ahman Green (4.19) 11. Laveranues Coles (4.2) 12. Don Beebe (4.21) 13. Donte Stallworth (4.22) 14. Ryan Dotson (4.24) 15. Michael Vick (4.25) 16. Randy Moss (4.25) 17. Willie Parker (4.23) 18. Devin Hester (4.24) 19. Champ Bailey (4.28) 20. Willis McGahee (4.28) 21. Stanford Routt (4.29) 22. Fabian Washington(4.29) 23. Reggie Bush (4.33)

You can also go the the web site at the bottom.

Answer 4

There is no world record in the 200 yard dash as that distance is not recognized by the IAAF. The men's world record for the 200 meter dash 19.30 seconds set by Usain Bolt at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing and the women's world record for the 200 meter dash is 21.34 seconds set by Florence Griffith-Joyner at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul.