The Most Iconic Athletes At Every Number (40-49)

Welcome back to a continuation of our weekly blog detailing the most iconic athletes at every number. While we took a bye week last time, we’re back and ready for a stacked roster of players from #40-#49. Welcome back to WLTL’s most iconic athletes at every number.

#40 - Gale Sayers (Honorable Mentions: Shawn Kemp and Rick Sutcliffe)

One of the early standouts at the runningback position, Gale Sayers was known as “The Kansas Comet” for his performances in college as a twice All-American with the University of Kansas Jayhawks. Sayers was drafted with the 4th overall pick by the Chicago Bears in 1965, and he started his career with a bang, setting a league record with 22 touchdowns (including 6 in a single game) and running away with the Rookie of the Year award. Despite being injury-riddled throughout his career, Gale Sayers notched 5 First Team All-Pro nods, 4 Pro Bowls, and was twice the league’s leading rusher in his short tenure in the league. At age 34, he was invited to Canton and remains the youngest player to ever be entered into the Hall of Fame. While his career was short, it was most certainly sweet, and his time in the league cemented Gale Sayers as one of the greatest runningbacks of the NFL merger era.

#41 - Dirk Nowitzki (Honorable Mentions: Wes Unseld and Tom Seaver)

Every team has one player that defines their franchise, and for the Dallas Mavericks, that player is Dirk Nowitzki. When he arrived from Germany, Dirk skipped college and declared for the NBA draft, being taken 9th overall by the Milwaukee Bucks before being traded to the Dallas Mavericks alongside future star Steve Nash. He initially wanted to wear #14; however, it was in use by Mavericks player Robert Pack, who refused to give it up for a rookie, so Dirk resolved to flip the digits and landed with #41. Together with Steve Nash, Michael Finley, and a talented supporting cast, Dirk transformed the Mavs from the poultry franchise they were known as for most of the 90s to a true contender, making the playoffs for the first time in 2002 and the Western Conference Finals in 2003. In 2006, after the departure of Nash for Phoenix and the wavering of Finley, the Mavericks made their first finals, where they blew a 2-0 series lead to the Miami Heat, and much of the blame was placed on Dirk’s shoulders for his poor performance in the final games. While he won the 2006-07 league MVP, it came just after his #1 seeded Mavericks lost in the first round to the #8 seeded “We Believe” Golden State Warriors, becoming the first ever 1-seed to do so. After years of woes in the playoffs, many thought that the championship window had closed for Dallas; however, the 2011 playoffs saw the Mavericks go on a magic run to the NBA Championship against a familiar opponent with new faces as Dirk Nowitzki, playing with a high fever in Game 4, beat down the super team of Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh, and Lebron James. Nowitzki stuck around the Mavericks until 2019, when years of injuries and no real team around him led him to retire from the league. With his legendary “unblockable” fadeaway, Dirk Nowitzki has stood the test of time as one of the greatest foreign-born players in NBA history, and for what he’s meant to not only his franchise but his city, he gets our honor as the most iconic #41 of all time.

#42 - Jackie Robinson (Honorable Mentions: Ronnie Lott and James Worthy)

What more is there to say? A trailblazer and activist, Jackie Robinson began his ballplaying days in the segregated Negro League in the 1940s with the Kansas City Monarchs. It was in the mid-40s that Brooklyn Dodgers manager Branch Rickey contacted Robinson and convinced him to sign with the team to become the first black MLB player since 1884. In 1947, Robinson made his major league debut with the team. While he dealt with harsh adversity from fans and players, Robinson began to excel alongside a talented Dodgers team as he broke the color barrier around baseball. He won league MVP in 1949 and was elected to the 1949 MLB All-Star game, the first to include black players. The Dodgers came up short in the World Series several times throughout the 1950s, however, Robinson won his lone Championship in 1955 over the local rival New York Yankees. Robinson would retire two years later from the league as a leading figure in the Civil Rights movement. While he died in 1972, he received the ultimate honor when his #42 was retired league-wide in 1997, and it remains an untouched number in baseball history. The number 42 was unquestionable when we made this list, and Robinson will forever be remembered as a legend of sports.

#43 - Richard Petty (Honorable Mentions: Dennis Eckersley and Troy Polamalu)

The King. It’s hard to find another athlete who did as much for his sport as Richard Petty did for NASCAR. The 200-time NASCAR Cup Series winner and 7-time Champion got his start in the late 50s, and nearly had his first win during at 1959 race in Lakewood, Georgia before his father, Lee Petty (A 3-time Cup Champion in his own right), protested the finish on account of a scoring error and he received the win instead. While Petty became a solid midpack driver in the early 60s, his career truly exploded in 1963 when he won his first of 7 Daytona 500s alongside 8 other races en route to the 1963 NASCAR Cup Series Championship. Driving a #43 since he raced alongside his father who drove a #42, Petty became the first ever 2-time winner of the Daytona 500 in 1966, and the next year he won an astounding 27 races of the 48 he competed in and the championship to boot, and it was after this season that he received one of the most iconic nicknames in sports: “King Richard”. While most of his career was run in the “last era of legends” with little recorded media of the time and a lot of hearsay, Richard’s career is the stuff of legend, and his rivalries with icons like Bobby Allison, David Pearson, Darrell Waltrip, and other Hall-of-Famers alongside his unbreakable records separate him from the pack and let the STP #43 become an icon that transcends beyond the world of sports.

#44 - Lewis Hamilton (Honorable Mentions: Hank Aaron and Jerry West)

The other competitor gunning for the crown of the most extraordinary Formula 1 driver of all time, Lewis Hamilton started his F1 career with a bang as he won his first race in only his 6th start with McLaren in 2007. While his 2007 title bid would be foiled in a 1-point loss by inconsistencies at the tail end of the season, the next year, he would get on the winning side of that 1-point gap as he won the 2008 Formula 1 World Championship over rival Felipe Massa. His final 4 years at McLaren, however, didn’t yield much in the way of success as he was unable to make a year-long campaign for the championship with the team, leading to his departure in 2013 for Mercedes. In the switch, Hamilton decided to take up the number 44 because it was the car number on his dad’s license plate. Paired with driver Nico Rosberg, the two endured a fiery rivalry known colloquially as “The Silver War”, as the two teammates brutally fought each other for the title year after year in the dominant Mercedes. Hamilton would score the 2014 and 2015 championships, while Rosberg would win his lone cup in 2016 before he retires from the sport and is replaced by Finnish driver Valtteri Bottas. With a new teammate, Hamilton’s reign of dominance continued as he would clinch 4-straight World Championships and just narrowly lost out on a 5th to Max Verstappen in 2021. Even now, as he competes for victories at Ferrari, Lewis Hamilton continues to add to his legacy as he seeks to one day become the undisputed greatest Formula 1 driver of all time.

#45 - Bob Gibson (Honorable Mentions: Pedro Martinez and A.C. Green)

In a tight race, we gave the honors to Bob Gibson for our greatest #45. After briefly becoming a Harlem Globetrotter, Gibson chose to pursue baseball and signed with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1959. It was with the team that he took on his childhood number, 45, and got off to a rocky start with the team before a managerial change saw him under the leadership of his former minor league manager. He earned his first of 9 All-Stars the next year in 1962, and, together with the rest of the Cardinals, championed an anti-racist system within their team at a time when the nation was heavily divided over the issue of Civil Rights. In 1964, the team fought their way to face off against the New York Yankees in the World Series, with Gibson earning the final out in Game 7 to win the Cardinals their first championship since 1946 and set an MLB record with 31 strikeouts in the series. The team made its way back to the top of the league in 1967, winning the World Series over the Boston Red Sox. The next season, though it yielded no championship, was his masterpiece. In what was considered “The Year of the Pitcher”, 1968 saw Gibson win the NL MVP and the Cy Young award as he topped the MLB charts as new rules favored pitchers more heavily. He closed out his career in 1975 with his St. Louis Cardinals, and though his story is one typically lost among other pitching legends, Bob Gibson is a St. Louis legend and our pick for #45.

#46 - Valentino Rossi (Honorable Mentions: Lee Smith and Todd Christensen)

While this list has been heavy with stick and ball sports representation (save for the occasional Formula 1 or NASCAR driver), it was hard to argue with the resume of the greatest motorcycle racer of the 21st century. Valentino Rossi made his first appearance in the MotoGP championship in 2002, driving for Honda and managed to finish 2nd in the championship in only his rookie season. While he had the chance to take the #1 instead of his given #46, he elected to retain his number, and that #46 saw Rossi to the legendary status he now has. He proved his talent when he followed up the stunning rookie campaign with 5 straight MotoGP championships (3 at Honda and 2 at Yamaha). Throughout the decade, Rossi managed a lowest championship finish of 3rd only twice with two runner-up championship finishes and a staggering 7 championships. After an unsuccessful stint at Ducati, Rossi returned to Yamaha and cemented his legacy with a 6 year run of no championship finish worse than 5th. While his career ended on a whimper with back-to-back disappointing seasons, Rossi made the transition from two wheels to four as he races GT cars in the pursuit of Le Mans victory. “The Doctor” is an icon of the motorcycle world, holding records for the most wins in MotoGP history (89), the most podium finishes (199), most championship points scored (5,413), and several other records which cement his place as one of the greatest two-wheeled racers of all time.

#47 - Mel Blount (Honorable Mentions: Jack Morris and Tom Glavine)

The Pittsburgh Steelers used a third-round pick in the 1970 NFL draft on a player that, unbeknownst to them, would become a franchise legend just a few years later. Mel Blount was well regarded throughout the league for his intense toughness and commitment to his play. Additionally, Blount possessed the unique ability to be able to read routes run by receivers, allowing him to be the first modern cornerback in the NFL. He intercepted a pass in all 14 of his years in the NFL and collected a total of 57 interceptions in his career, leading the NFL to create “The Mel Blount Rule” to change pass coverage and help out receivers. Even with the rule change, Blount continued to dominate in the league, being a proud member of the Steelers dynasty that won 4 Super Bowls in the 1970s. Mel Blount’s style of play revolutionized the league and the position of CB, and his contributions to NFL history make him our choice for the greatest #47 of all time.

#48 - Jimmie Johnson (Honorable Mentions: Scott Young and Torii Hunter)

The last of the 3 7-time NASCAR Cup Series Champions to make our list, Jimmie Johnson was one of the top prospects of the 2000s. Out of the gate, he won the pole position for the 2002 Daytona 500 in his first ever start in the series, and he won his first ever race in only his 13th start at his home track of Auto Club Speedway in California. Johnson became the first ever rookie to lead in the series points standings, but, though he finished 5th in the championship, he lost out on Rookie of the Year to “Rocketman” Ryan Newman. Johnson went on to finish 2nd in the championship for the next two seasons and had a shot to win the 2005 championship at the finale in Homstead-Miami, but crashed out of the race with a tire problem and finished 5th in the championship again. Then, after starting the 2006 season with his first Daytona 500 victory, he went on a remarkable run of 5 straight NASCAR Cup Series Championships, including becoming the first driver to win the AP Athlete of the Year in 2009. While his 2011 season was mainly a write-off, it remained notable for his triumph in what was at the time the closest NASCAR Cup Series finish of all time, with a 0.002 margin of victory over Clint Bowyer at Talladega. He finished third in the 2012 championship to an up-and-coming Brad Keselowski and Clint Bowyer riding a one-season-wonder. 2013 saw his return to form as he won the Daytona 500 and remained consistent throughout the season en route to his 6th championship. After a string of down years in 2014 and 2015, a stroke of good luck in the championship finale of 2016 when championship driver Carl Edwards was wrecked by fellow championship hopeful Joey Logano in the closing stages of the race, allowing Johnson to tie the record with 7 championships. Johnson earned his final wins in his legendary Lowe’s #48 in the following years, though the 8th championship always eluded him. After brief unsuccessful stints in IMSA and Indycar, Johnson retired from full-time professional racing in 2022 to pursue an ownership role in the Cup Series. While he is often the most disrespected of the “Big 3”, Jimmie Johnson is a name synonymous with modern NASCAR, and his ability to establish continued dominance over the series even while contending with a revolving door of championship formats makes him the easy choice for the greatest #48 of all time.

#49 - Hoyt Wilhelm (Honorable Mentions: Ron Guidry and Bobby Mitchell)

#49 featured some players who were new to us here at the station, but after some proper investigating, we decided to spotlight “Old Sarge”. James Hoyt Wilhelm grew up in North Carolina and went into the military during World War II. When he returned, he finally made his major league debut on the mound at the age of 29. With his trademark knuckleball, Wilhelm became notorious for his longevity and his skills as a reliever. Wilhelm won 124 games as a reliever, still standing as the record holder, and was the first player ever to reach 200 saves. Wilhelm played for 10 different teams in his career, yet the only playoff play came in the 1954 World Series with the New York Giants as they won the trophy over the Cleveland Indians. The 8-time All-Star is yet another forgotten name in MLB history, however, his performances set the standard for relievers going forward, and his place in the MLB Hall of Fame cements him as our greatest #49 of all time.