After all, who was Ayrton Senna?

This Wednesday, 1st, marks 30 years since the death of Ayrton Sennaone of the greatest pilots in F1who passed away prematurely at the age of 34 in a tragic accident at the Imola circuit, in Italy, on the same date, in 1994, leaving an insurmountable legacy, being remembered and idolized to this day by motorsport fans and colleagues.

First years

The relationship of Ayrton Senna Racing on four wheels began when he was still a child, as he was already racing karts at the age of four. Still, it was in his teens, at 13, that he started competing, participating in national karting races until he was 21 years old.

When he was older, he moved and began to participate in competitions in Europe, where he won, in 1981, the Formula Ford 1600 championship in the United Kingdom, by winning 12 out of 20 races. In 1983, he won the British Formula 3 title which, at the time, was the missing step to reach Formula 1.

Debut as an F1 driver

Thus, the following year, Senna He debuted his career in the elite of motorsport, competing for Toleman. The first race of Ayrton under the title of Formula 1 driver occurred on March 25, 1984, at the Jacarepaguá GP, in Rio de Janeiro, where he lost to his future rival: Alain Prost.

The debut year of Senna It wasn’t easy, since, out of 14 races competed, he abandoned 8 due to problems suffered with the car sponsored by Toleman, the first highlight being at the Monaco GP, where, amid rain, he qualified 13th on the grid. start and finished in second place, according to the GE portal.

First victories

Still, the first victory of Senna It wouldn’t take long to arrive — and better yet, it would be followed by his second podium. This happened in 1985, after he became a Lotus driver, where he secured pole position and won the Portuguese GP in Estoril, followed by first place in the Belgian GP, ​​still in the same year.

As the last triumphs for Lotus, in 1986, Senna he won the Spanish and United States GPs and, in 1987, he won the Monaco and United States races.

World Titles

In 1988, Senna became a McLaren driver, achieving his first victory under the new uniform on May 1 at the San Marino GP — which would be the first of many that year, as the driver achieved impressive numbers, achieving 13 pole positions, 11 podiums and 8 victories in 16 races.

Among these was the race that would give him his first world title, won at the Japanese GP, where, amid rivalry with the Alain Prostsince, until then, the two had won 15 of the 16 races in the championship, the Brazilian overtook the Frenchman on the 28th lap, becoming the winner and world champion for the first time.

The rivalry between the two drivers continued in the 1990 and 1991 seasons. Still, Senna emerged victorious again from the world title on the same circuit, in 1990, even with equipment inferior to that of Prost, who, at the time, was racing for Ferrari. A year later, he became four-time champion by overtaking Nigel Mansell.

It was also in 1991 that Senna He achieved his first victory in his homeland as a Formula 1 driver, winning the GP Brasil at the Autódromo de Interlagos.

Historical feats

Senna He competed in a total of 161 GPs, where he accumulated 65 Pole positions (being the third highest number for a driver), 80 podiums, 41 victories, 2 runners-up (1989, 1993) and 3 titles (1988, 1990, 1991).

Furthermore, Senna has records that have not yet been surpassed in F1. Are they:

• Number of victories in Monaco (6)
• Rankings in a row in the top 10 (136 GPs)
• Consecutive poles (8)
• Consecutive pole positions in a single GP (San Marino, 7)
• Consecutive front row starts (24)

Last years

Senna He remained with McLaren until 1994, after some important victories, such as the last of his career in Adelaide, in the same Australian GP. That same year, he signed with Mansell’s Williams due to the technology that the brand’s cars had.

At the time, advanced features, such as active suspension, were blocked by the International Automobile Federation (FIA). From then on, the Williams project began to demonstrate several problems, culminating in a lack of team victories. Ayrton that year.

At the opening of the championship, in Brazil, Senna ran on the track. He then had a crash at the Pacific GP and, finally, the race that would end his career on the tracks took place at the San Marino GP in Imola, where, on the seventh lap, he ended up losing control of the vehicle and crashing into the wall. from the Tamburello curve. The loss of Sennaled Brazil to issue an official declaration of three days of mourning.

Three years later, Adrian Newey (Williams designer) and the bosses Frank Williams It is Patrick Headin addition to three other people, were indicted for the death of Senna which, at the time, was attributed to the steering column of his Williams breaking due to poor welding, but no one was arrested, as the prosecution was unable to prove the cause of death.

However, in 2007, a new trial was held, where, according to the GE, it was concluded that “the accident was caused by a failure in the steering column. This failure was caused by poorly designed and poorly executed. The responsibility lies with Patrick Headguilty of omitted control”. Patrick Head was not arrested.