Ayrton Senna

McLaren (1988 - 1993)

1988

In 1988, Ayrton Senna joined the McLaren team, building on the relationship he had developed with Honda during the previous season with Lotus. This marked the beginning of a fierce rivalry with McLaren's double world champion, Alain Prost. Despite their personal competition, Senna and Prost recognized the need to collaborate, especially during testing, to stay ahead of their main rivals from Ferrari, Williams, Benetton, and Lotus.

During the season, Senna faced several notable incidents. At the Monaco Grand Prix, he out-qualified Prost by a significant margin but crashed while leading the race. Instead of returning to the pit lane, Senna went to his apartment and only contacted the team later that night.

At the Portuguese Grand Prix, Senna made a daring move to block Prost, forcing him to nearly run into the pit wall. Prost was angered by this maneuver, but Senna later apologized for the incident.

In the end, Senna and Prost dominated the 1988 season, winning 15 of 16 races in the McLaren MP4/4. Senna secured his first Formula One world championship by taking eight wins to Prost's seven, despite Prost scoring more points over the season. Senna's record-breaking achievements included eight wins and 13 pole positions, surpassing previous records held by Jim Clark and Nelson Piquet. However, the Italian Grand Prix at Monza was an exception, as Senna's race ended with a collision with the Williams of Jean-Louis Schlesser, allowing Ferrari to secure a 1-2 finish, marking the only race McLaren did not win that season.

1989

In 1989, the rivalry between Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost intensified both on and off the track. Tension grew when Ron Dennis, McLaren's team principal, suggested differences in the Honda engines favored Senna over Prost. The feud escalated when Senna overtook Prost at the San Marino Grand Prix, violating what Prost claimed was a pre-race agreement. Senna denied any agreement, but Prost's version was supported by the team's sponsor, Marlboro.

Senna initially led the championship with victories in San Marino, Monaco, and Mexico, where he led every lap. He also won in Germany, Belgium, and Spain. However, a series of mechanical failures in Phoenix, Canada, France, and Britain, as well as more reliability issues in Italy, along with collisions in Brazil and Portugal, tilted the title race in Prost's favor.

Prost clinched the 1989 world title after a collision with Senna at the Suzuka Circuit in Japan, a race Senna needed to win to stay in the title race. Prost's car was modified to be faster on straights but slower in corners, making it harder for Senna to pass. On lap 46, Senna attempted to overtake Prost, but Prost cut him off, causing a collision that led to both cars sliding to a stop. Prost abandoned the race, while Senna received a push-start, rejoined, and won the race. However, he was later disqualified for various infractions, including the push-start, cutting a chicane after the collision, and crossing into the pit lane entry.

Senna criticized the FIA and its president, Jean-Marie Balestre, accusing them of favoring Prost. Senna finished the season second with six wins and one second place. Prost left McLaren for Ferrari the following year due to his strained relationship with Senna and even severed ties with Ron Dennis due to a trophy-related incident in Italy.

1990

In 1990, Ayrton Senna established a strong lead in the Formula One championship with six wins, two second places, and three third-place finishes. With Alain Prost now at Ferrari, Senna had Gerhard Berger as his new teammate. He won races like the season opener in Phoenix, battling Jean Alesi's Tyrrell, and Germany, where he had a fierce competition with Alessandro Nannini of Benetton. As the season progressed, Prost in his Ferrari made a comeback with five wins, including a crucial victory in Spain, narrowing the championship gap to just nine points with two races remaining.

Senna collaborated with Akira Toriyama, the creator of Dragon Ball, on artwork for Weekly Shōnen Jump featuring McLaren-themed illustrations of Dragon Ball characters. He was also featured in GP Boy, a manga series published in Weekly Shōnen Jump to celebrate Shueisha's sponsorship of McLaren.

At the penultimate race in Japan at Suzuka, Senna took pole position ahead of Prost. However, a dispute over the pole position position on the track and crossing the yellow pit exit line before the first corner left Senna frustrated. During the race, Prost got ahead of Senna, who attempted to regain the lead at the first corner. The two cars collided, and Senna went off the track, eventually crashing into a tire barrier. Senna became the world champion due to this collision.

In an interview with Jackie Stewart after the race in Australia, Senna defended his aggressive racing style, stating that being a racing driver means going for gaps and not yielding, despite the pressure and controversies. In a later admission, Senna revealed he deliberately crashed into Prost at the previous year's Japanese Grand Prix, explaining his motives and frustrations with the FIA's decisions, including his 1989 disqualification and the pole position issue in 1990. Prost criticized Senna's actions as "disgusting" and revealed telemetry data suggesting that Senna had taken him out intentionally.

1991

In 1991, Ayrton Senna secured his third Formula One world championship, becoming the youngest three-time champion at the time. He achieved this by winning seven races and increasing his pole position record to 60 out of 127 events. Alain Prost, his main competitor in the past, was no longer a serious threat due to Ferrari's performance decline.

Senna had initial concerns about the car's competitiveness with the new Honda V12 engine, but he won the first four races of the season. Nigel Mansell in the Williams-Renault later became a strong rival. Senna faced challenges, including an injury from a jet-skiing accident, a dramatic car rollover in testing at Hockenheim, and a close encounter with Mansell at the Spanish Grand Prix.

Despite these obstacles, Senna's consistency, car improvements, and Honda's engine development helped him secure the championship. He won three more races and clinched the title in Japan, where Mansell's race-ending incident handed victory to Senna's teammate Gerhard Berger.

Senna initially planned to move to Williams for the 1992 season but decided to stay with McLaren-Honda out of loyalty at the personal request of Honda's CEO, Nobuhiko Kawamoto.

During the year, Senna received the "International Racing Driver Award" from Autosport magazine and gave one of his helmets to Jean-Marie Balestre, his renowned foe, as a gesture at the Fédération Internationale du Sport Automobile (FISA) gala dinner in Paris.

1992

In 1992, Ayrton Senna faced challenges with McLaren's inability to compete with Williams' dominant FW14B car. McLaren's new MP4/7A model had delays and lacked active suspension, causing reliability issues and unpredictability in fast corners.

Senna won races in Monaco, Hungary, and Italy but struggled for consistency and reliability throughout the season. One notable incident occurred during the Mexican Grand Prix when Senna's car hit a bump, leading to a crash into a concrete retaining wall. While he raced the next day, gearbox failure forced him to retire from the race. Senna finished fourth in the championship, behind Williams' Mansell and Patrese and Benetton's Schumacher.

Senna's relationship with rising star Michael Schumacher was strained, with incidents at the Brazilian and French Grands Prix leading to confrontations on and off the track.Questions arose about Senna's future in Formula One as he didn't have a contract by the end of 1992. He declined an offer from Ferrari and explored the possibility of testing an IndyCar with Penske, which garnered significant attention. Ultimately, he did not participate in the 1993 Indianapolis 500 due to McLaren boss Ron Dennis' intervention.

1993

In 1993, Ayrton Senna's attempts to secure a competitive car led him to consider leaving McLaren for Williams, but Alain Prost's veto prevented him from joining the team. McLaren faced challenges with customer Ford V8 engines and an inferior power output compared to other teams. Senna initially agreed to stay with McLaren on a race-by-race basis after testing their 1993 car, the MP4/8.

Senna began the season with a second-place finish in South Africa, followed by wins in Brazil and Donington, which is considered one of his greatest victories. He set a record for the fastest lap in an F1 race during this event. Senna won in changing conditions and achieved a record-breaking sixth victory in Monaco.

As the season progressed, mechanical failures plagued Senna, and Alain Prost and Damon Hill in Williams-Renault cars asserted their dominance. Senna won the penultimate race in Japan but was involved in an incident with Eddie Irvine, resulting in a suspension threat. However, the suspension was lifted due to a compromise reached between Senna and the FIA president. The season concluded in Australia with Senna's 41st and final F1 career win, marking an emotional victory as he defeated Prost for the last time.

Senna finished the championship in second place behind Prost, with the season ending on a more pacifying note between the two rivals.