Senna spirit lives on in brilliance of Max and Lewis
THE most significant downside of Red Bull’s dominance of Formula One is that we are deprived of what was once an epic sporting rivalry.
It did not last for too long but Lewis Hamilton versus Max Verstappen was still a racing enmity for the ages.
The 2021 season ended in unrivalled controversy but that race in Abu Dhabi had been preceded by a year-long duel that reminded fans what F1 and motor racing was all about.
In Hamilton and Verstappen, the spirit of Ayrton Senna lived on – and still lives on.
As historians of their sport, do not think Hamilton and Verstappen have not seen the clip of an interview Senna gave to Sir Jackie Stewart after a first-lap collision with Alain Prost, above, at the Japanese Grand Prix which had given the Brazilian the 1990 world title.
Senna told Stewart: “You should know that by being a racing driver, you are at risk all the time. Being a racing driver means you are racing with other people. If you no longer go for a gap that exists, you are no longer a racing driver.”
In that famous sit-down with Stewart, Senna provided the definition of a grand prix driver.
Hamilton and Verstappen have baulked at comparisons to Senna, acknowledging he was operating in an era when Formula One was a more dangerous environment.
The tragic events of that race at Imola remain desperately sad evidence of that. But the mindset of these characters remains the same.
Senna was not the first or the last to believe you should go for any gap that exists but, chillingly, he became the epitome of fearlessness in sport. When remembering Senna and when comparing the current greats to him, it is worth reminding everyone that even modern F1 – with all its advancements in safety – is still based on the brilliance and fearlessness of drivers.
It is still based on the brilliance and fearlessness of Max and Lewis.
Every time they get into a car, Senna’s fate is still a spectre. Of course, it was not just Senna’s fearlessness that defined him, it was his instinct behind the wheel.
But Verstappen and Hamilton would agree that Senna summed up what it is really about.
And both would agree that if you no longer go for a gap that exists, you are no longer a racing
driver.