Ayrton Senna’s dazzling genius endures – but where’s the next Brazilian F1 star?

For a career as distinguished as three-time Formula One world champion Ayrton Senna’s, his record at his home race was peculiarly underwhelming. Having made his debut in 1984 and tasted disqualification while leading in 1988, Sao Paulo’s favourite son only claimed his first victory at Interlagos in 1991. And, like much in the Brazilian’s enthralling time in F1, it was no easy ride.

Starting on pole, Senna’s path to victory seemed nailed on until a late gearbox issue forced him to complete the final laps solely in sixth gear. With the heavens having opened too, a stall or a spin seemed excruciatingly inevitable but somehow, in a manner which would have been described as miraculous if it wasn’t Ayrton Senna’s doing, he inched home by two seconds. Physically and mentally exhausted, the hometown hero needed assistance exiting his McLaren cockpit. Broken, but not beaten.

His devastating death three years later robbed the sport of more glorious years of Senna’s influence, on and off the racetrack. You need only look at the immediate aftermath of his fatal crash at Imola to witness the emotional hold he had on his country and the world. Three days of national mourning; 3 million people lined the streets of Sao Paulo on the day of his funeral; Brazil’s triumphant 1994 World Cup team dedicated their win to Senna.