21, March 1960 - 1, May 1994 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayrton_Senna
21, March 1960 - 1, May 1994 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayrton_Senna
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwLEE420v20
Indeed he was, my favorite driver of all time. I stopped following F1 right around his death.
A hero and benchmark for all who followed. Ayrton was a great driver and master of the craft. I would say that Even Michael Shcummacher is hard pressed to match Ayrton with pure car control. A true legend for sure.
Mike Kirby
I only got to watch him for a couple of years before the tragedy, he was beyond an amazing driver he made Monaco look like a joyride, and anyone else could forget about outpacing him in wet conditions before the race even started
I remember when Rob Walker did his annual appraisal of FI drivers for R&T and he said Senna was too frail or sickly to do well.
My favorite car 
That Donnington start was some good driving especially considering his car was quite a bit slower.
He passed 5 cars and a collective 12 championships in 1 lap
I'll always rate Senna with the highest marks for car control and outright speed but he loses big-time for his ruthless tactics.
If one doesn't care for the dive-bomb chops and general lack of ethics in today's drivers, the credit goes to Senna and the FIA for allowing it to happen.
He was ruthless, wouldnt think twice about putting another car in the dirt to make a pass. But a lot of the best were like that, Look at Dale, they didnt call him the intimidator for nothing
In reply to ryanty22:
Which is why I never put the likes of Senna, Earnhardt and their ilk on anything resembling a pedestal.
Don't forget:
Roland Ratzenberger, the second to last driver to die in a F1 event.
oldsaw wrote: In reply to ryanty22: Which is why I never put the likes of Senna, Earnhardt and their ilk on anything resembling a pedestal.
I think its hard to find a successful racing driver that doesnt employ the tactics that those drivers used. Schumacher, Andretti, Prost, Mansell. All had examples of ruthless and aggressive driving which is a big part of why they were so successful. Nice guys finish last. Thats been part of Jeff Gordons problem for several years now he scaled back how aggressively he drove and hasnt been anywhere near as good as he had been
ryanty22 wrote:oldsaw wrote: In reply to ryanty22: Which is why I never put the likes of Senna, Earnhardt and their ilk on anything resembling a pedestal.I think its hard to find a successful racing driver that doesnt employ the tactics that those drivers used. Schumacher, Andretti, Prost, Mansell. All had examples of ruthless and aggressive driving which is a big part of why they were so successful. Nice guys finish last. Thats been part of Jeff Gordons problem for several years now he scaled back how aggressively he drove and hasnt been anywhere near as good as he had been
Other than Schumacher and Earnhardt, I don't know of too many other greats that were pretty much known for being willing to take people out to win races. Senna was, and I say that as a fan. I don't think there's ever been a driver with more God-given car control talent. But it's a disservice to his memory to gloss over the less-admirable traits he had.
ryanty22 wrote:oldsaw wrote: In reply to ryanty22: Which is why I never put the likes of Senna, Earnhardt and their ilk on anything resembling a pedestal.I think its hard to find a successful racing driver that doesnt employ the tactics that those drivers used. Schumacher, Andretti, Prost, Mansell. All had examples of ruthless and aggressive driving which is a big part of why they were so successful. Nice guys finish last. Thats been part of Jeff Gordons problem for several years now he scaled back how aggressively he drove and hasnt been anywhere near as good as he had been
Drivers use those tactics today because everyone else is using them. Everyone is using them because they were/are allowed to. But, it wasn't always that way. Drivers who crossed the line either killed themselves on the track or were thumped to their senses by competitors off the track.
I see drivers using the chrome horn as not skilled enough to make a clean pass.
YMMV...
I love this painting of Senna. It's titled "If Only": http://fineartamerica.com/featured/formula-alone-oleg-konin.html
ryanty22 wrote:oldsaw wrote: In reply to ryanty22: Which is why I never put the likes of Senna, Earnhardt and their ilk on anything resembling a pedestal.I think its hard to find a successful racing driver that doesnt employ the tactics that those drivers used. Schumacher, Andretti, Prost, Mansell. All had examples of ruthless and aggressive driving which is a big part of why they were so successful. Nice guys finish last. Thats been part of Jeff Gordons problem for several years now he scaled back how aggressively he drove and hasnt been anywhere near as good as he had been
Rubbin' is racin'. If someone is between you and the win and holding you back, you move them out of the way.
I never really knew much about Senna until I watched the movie on Velocity last weekend... the guy was a badass, the F1 version of Dale Earnhardt, on and off the track. That's probably why Dale took the time to mention him in victory lane on the day he died- you can bet that not too many NASCAR fans knew or cared who this Ayrton guy was that Sr was talking about, but he was memorialized by a fellow racing legend.
Fobroader wrote: Indeed he was, my favorite driver of all time. I stopped following F1 right around his death.
Agreed!
In reply to Tom_Spangler:
That painting is awesome....yeah....if only.....
1966stang wrote:Fobroader wrote: Indeed he was, my favorite driver of all time. I stopped following F1 right around his death.Agreed!
Same here!
It's interesting to see the then/now cockpit steering wheel/gear shifter layouts.
F1 technology fascinates me.
Senna was the best at driving those cars back then.
If you haven't read this book, you need to.
The one thing that sticks in my mind about Senna's early demise is how we were all robbed of the eventual on track episodes between him and Schumacher. I can only think they would have been epic battles.
ryanty22 wrote: I think its hard to find a successful racing driver that doesnt employ the tactics that those drivers used. Schumacher, Andretti, Prost, Mansell. All had examples of ruthless and aggressive driving which is a big part of why they were so successful. Nice guys finish last. Thats been part of Jeff Gordons problem for several years now he scaled back how aggressively he drove and hasnt been anywhere near as good as he had been
Richard Petty.
Disenting voice. Agreed that possibly never has the noodly appendage of the FSM come down and bestowed such divine natural talent on one driver. But on track the guy always was a tool. Cheating was his middle name and he had no problem risking his or others lives. I don't think he was ever as prepared as Schumacher either. When he first came to F1 he was seriously unfit and had to be lifted from the car, remember when he finally won in Brazil, he couldn't lift his arms above his head. Schumacher, while another tool on track was at least 110% fit all the time.
I didn't wish any harm on either of them, and while they both added a lot to F1, they could have added so much more if they had been better people on track and didn't both have a list of questionable and down right mean/dangerous/stupid tricks added to their record. Senna also prevented Derek Warwick from joining him at Lotus meaning he missed out on his best shot in a front running car. Instead the drive went to Johnny Dumfries (AKA John Crichton-Stuart, 7th Marquess of Bute) a nice but really outclassed guy who had done nothing in the Junior formula.
YEah, count me as NOT a fan, never was and never will be no matter how much revisionist history is out there.
aircooled wrote: Don't forget:
Heres a good article on Ratzenberger from B.R.
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2043512-roland-ratzenberger-the-tragedy-f1-forgot-after-ayrton-sennas-death
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