Senna is one of the greatest drivers in Formula 1 history. He won three world championships and dominated the sport in the 1980s and early 1990s, making him one of the most iconic racing drivers in history. He won nine pole positions—just one less than Michael Schumacher who went on to become F1’s most successful driver.
Early life
Ayrton Senna was born on March 21, 1960 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. His parents were well-to-do and his father was a businessman while his mother stayed home to raise him.
Name
There’s an interesting story behind how Ayrton Senna got his name. His father, Milton da Silva, was a race car enthusiast and named his son after his favourite racing commentator. The name “Ayrton” was chosen from Ayrton Senna da Silva, a Brazilian racing driver who started out as an aviation mechanic before becoming a Formula One driver. He won three F1 drivers’ championships between 1988 and 1991 and died in 1994 at age 34 as a result of injuries sustained during the San Marino Grand Prix in.
Youngest world champion
As the youngest F1 world champion ever, Ayrton Senna was just 25 years old when he won his first championship in 1988. This made him three years younger than Michael Schumacher when he won his first title and the first Brazilian driver to win a world championship.
Monaco Grand Prix
You already know that Senna was the only driver to win the Monaco Grand Prix 3 times in a row, but did you know he was also the only driver to win the Monaco Grand Prix in his first attempt?
The track is notoriously difficult to drive, and it’s considered one of the most prestigious races on the Formula One calendar.
In fact, Senna had always dreamt of winning this race since boyhood. He said: “I used to watch Monaco GP every year on TV.”
Death
It was the most tragic accident in Formula One racing history. On 1st May 1994, during the San Marino Grand Prix at Imola, Italy, Ayrton Senna’s car crashed onto a concrete wall at nearly 200 mph and he was instantly killed. He had been leading the race when it was suspended because of rain. When the race restarted for its second lap, Senna tried to overtake his teammate Damon Hill (who won that year) going into turn 3 but lost control of his car and hit a wall head-on at around 135 mph before bouncing off into an unprotected area where marshals were standing.
He was pronounced dead on arrival at hospital and post-mortem showed that he had died instantly from massive brain trauma with no sign of any pre-impact injuries or heart attack.
Impact on F1
Despite dying at the age of 34, Senna was still able to leave his mark on Formula 1. He had 41 pole positions, 65 wins and three world championships compared to Schumacher’s 52 poles, 91 wins and seven championships.
