Ayrton Senna – Last Memory

Ayrton Senna da Silva, (March 21, 1960 – May 1, 1994) was a Brazilian racing driver and triple
Formula One world champion. He was killed while leading the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix and
remains the last Grand Prix driver to die at the wheel of Formula One car.

Senna entered karting competition at the age of 13. In 1977 he won the South American
Kart Championship. He contested the Karting World Championship each year from 1978
to 1982, finishing runner-up in 1979 and 1980.
In 1981 Senna moved to England to begin single-seater racing, winning the RAC and
Townsend-Thoreson Formula Ford 1600 Championships that year. As da Silva is a very
common Brazilian name, he adopted his mother’s maiden name, Senna, and went on to
win the 1982 British and European Formula Ford 2000 championships under that surname.

Senna attracted the attention of Formula One teams Williams, McLaren, Brabham and
Toleman, all of whom he tested for. Neither Williams nor McLaren had a vacancy for the
1984 season and Brabham’s main driver, Nelson Piquet (1983 World Champion), opposed
Senna joining the team. His only option was to join Toleman, a relatively new team,
replacing Derek Warwick.

In 1988, thanks to the relationship he had built up with Honda throughout the 1987 season
with Lotus, and with the approval of McLaren’s number one driver and then-double world
champion, Alain Prost, Senna joined the McLaren team. The foundation for a fierce
competition between Senna and Prost was laid, culminating in a number of dramatic
race incidents between the two over the next 5 years.

Place of accident, the third race of the season, The San Marino Grand Prix at Imola
May 1, 1994

Ayrton Senna da Silva died at the age of thirty-three with 41 victories, three World
championships, 65 pole positions and 19 fastest lap in 161 races. The greatest driver
of Formula One rests in peace at the Morumbi.