28 years ago, Ayrton Senna left the world after what was one of the most horrific accidents ever in the history of F1, he was 34.
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Who is your favourite Formula One driver? The answer that will be given by an overwhelming majority of F1 fans will Lewis Hamilton and Michael Schumacher. Ever wonder who their idol might be? Lewis made it clear in an interview he did a few years ago. Michael raced against this same guy and considered him to be one of the greatest ever to do it. Born in Brazil and with three world champions, this McLaren legend might be the greatest of them all when it came to sheer speed and one’s control over it. His name was Ayrton Senna and 28 years ago, he left the world after what was one of the most horrific accidents ever in the history of F1. He was 34.
If one has to dedicate a piece to the Brazilian legend, and make it worthy of his legacy, it would be an entire novel. So how about we focus on something more specific, something that perhaps feel more of an achievement than winning a world championship. Something tugged at Senna’s heartstrings when he achieved it, something intimate. A single race.
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By 1991, the Brazilian had become a two-time world champion, and one of the legendary drivers of the sport. However, there was one thing he had not achieved yet. Something that he might have dreamt of doing before he even thought about being world champion. Well, that something unfurled on March 24, 1991. Formula One, on that date, travelled to Interlagos for the 1991 Brazilian Grand Prix.
Home town hero and already an F1 legend, the support Senna had going into the event was, quite simply, indescribable. So, when the McLaren-Honda driver recorded the fastest lap in qualifying and took pole position, the decibels from inside Interlagos was off the charts. With a time of 1:16.392, Ayrton Senna secured his position at the front of the grid, ahead of the Williams-Renault duo of Riccardo Patrese and Nigel Mansell. Senna’s teammate, Gerhard Berger, started in fourth place.
There was more cause for celebration at the start of the race on Sunday as Senna got off to a dream start. The Brazilian zoomed his way further from the rest of the pack and by lap eight, had established a three-second gap at the front. Speed personified. Indeed, those in attendance at Interlagos that day was witness to just how fast their compatriot could drive, but that was not the only thing they witnessed.
Senna might have been fast, but he was not the only one who had pace that day. Williams-Renault’s Nigel Mansell, an F1 legend in his own right, was closing in, inching towards the Brazilian lap by lap. By the time they reached lap 20, the gap was reduced to only 0.7 seconds. However, the Brit had not overtaken Senna just yet. Mansell decided to pit on lap 26 and on paper, it was a good decision. However, his pitstop crew was not nearly as quick as necessary. The stop lasted a gruelling 14 seconds and Mansell had to rejoin in fifth place behind the likes of Ricciardo Patrese, Jean Alesi, and Gerhard Berger.
Mansell’s woes would not end there as he suffered a tyre-puncture on lap 50, right when it seemed like he could get the better of Senna. However, the Brazilian had troubles of his own. Unbeknownst to the fans, Senna’s gearbox had been failing and by lap 60, he had lost fourth gear. It was the same lap that saw Mansell set the fastest lap. Perhaps in Senna’s head, all looked lost but on the very next lap, Mansell’s own gearbox failed, causing the Brit to spin and retire from the race.
It might have seemed like a cakewalk for Senna until the checkered flag at that point, but it was exactly the opposite. With only a few laps to go, the clouds darkened and the sky roared. Interlagos was drenched and driving at those speeds on a wet track is never something a driver is comfortable with. Senna had even signalled to the race marshalls to halt the race but was not heeded.
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With only two laps to go, the Brazilian had lost the third and fifth gears. He had to complete the remainder of the race in sixth gear on a soaking wet circuit. Through the slow and medium corners, that McLaren must have been a monster to handle at those speeds, but the Brazilian got it done in front of his very own countrymen. Not just speed, but the act of having total control over it in the toughest of situations.
Not only was it one of the most emotional races of Senna’s career, it was perhaps the most physical. The McLaren-Honda driver could not even get out of the car for a while as his entire body ached from controlling his vehicle continuously in sixth gear for two laps on a wet track. There are many reasons why Senna is considered to be one of the gods of F1 and that performance is one of them.
Best thing at the end of that day? Senna standing on the top step of the podium at Interlagos, tears in his eyes, celebrating his first ever Brazilian GP victory.
