Lewis Hamilton, Michael Schumacher, Juan Miguel Fangio, Alain Prost and Sebastian Vettal may have won more Formula 1 World Championships, but they’re not the most famous or best driver. That accolade is reserved to the driver who took the world of Formula 1 by storm between his debut in 1984 and ended so tragically on Sunday 1st May 1994 at the San Marino Grand Prix at the now infamous Tumburello corner. Ayrton Senna.
Ayrton Senna was more than just a racing driver, he was an enigma, a maverick, someone who always went out to win, whatever the risks, whatever the circumstances, whatever the cost, he wanted victory. Senna was a deeply spiritual person who believed god was with him and guiding him to his destiny. Senna gave away millions to poverty charities in his homeland of Brazil and was loved by the people, but he never seemed to be at ease with himself and always seemed to be distant and unknown even though he was the one of the most famous sportsman in the world.
Senna explores Senna, his life on the track, off the track and his worries on the track for himself and others, which ultimately came true, but the action and reliving those classic Senna moments make this film come alive and take you back in a time and for a moment, just a moment your reliving the 1984 Monaco Grand Prix, Portugal 1985, the Senna/Prost battles and Monaco 92 against Mansell and those crazy final laps.
You relive time starting with Karting, moving on to Formula 3 and then Formula 1 and being catapulted to Monaco and reliving the Monaco 1984 Grand Prix in which Senna announces himself to the world. Driving a Toleman, he takes on the might of Prost and McLaren in the rain and something magical happens, the race is stopped, but not before he shows his talent in the wet outpacing superior cars and risking everything as would become his trait in the following years.
A move to Lotus for the 1985 season soon results in his 1st victory in Estoril, Portugal. It seems inevitable that he would become World Champion and this is achieved in 1988 after moving to McLaren. The famous rivalry with Alain Prost is born here and forms a significant part of the film and you relive that tension and root for Senna to overcome Prost. Following championships arrive in 1990 and 1991, but clouds are on the horizon at McLaren. Senna is driving an inferior car, he is still challenging, but Williams and Benetton are the place to be. Senna transfers at the start of the 1994 season to Williams, but things do not go to plan. The rules that allowed electronic aids in the 1993 season have gone and Senna is faced with a car that is not right and for all the efforts of the engineers and Senna the car just isn’t right and pushing for that drive, the performance, getting back into the championship race leads to Senna paying the ultimate price. Formula 1 was dangerous and didn’t have the safety procotols that you have now. That infamous weekend back in 1994 saw a shocking crash on the Friday involving fellow Brazilian Rubens Barrichello, the death of Roland Ratzenberger on the Saturday following another shocking crash and the death of Senna on the Sunday. Why was this race allowed to happen after Ratzenberger’s death? Would it happen today? It’s highly unlikely in this day and age that it would, but this was another era. The man leading the change and wanting a safer environment for himself and others was Senna, the emotion and sorrow are clear after the Barrichello crash and Ratzenberger’s death. Ultimately it’s his own death brings the change and results in the safer Formula 1 we see now.
Senna finishes leaving you wanting more, what happens next, but that is it, it’s over. There is no return, no coming out of retirement, no sequel, this is the end. The footage of Senna sitting in his car motionless still leaves you feeling numb and wanting the end to be so different. The helicopter flying off the track brings a tear to your eye and to me it takes me back to being a 12 year old standing in my front room with my dad watching history even though I didn’t know it at the time.
Speculation of what happened and why belongs to documentaries this is about the thrills, the spills, nostalgia, reliving the classic days of Formula 1 and wanting and praying the end as we know it doesn’t happen and he miraculously comes out of the infamous Tamberello corner and lives. You can’t help but feel sad and emotional at the end of this experience, but its worth it. A fantastic reflection of the life of Senna on the track and off the track is delivered and attempt to understand the man off the track is made, we will ever know the real Ayrton and that makes him misunderstood and a myth, but my god he was a bloody good driver.
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