26 replies to this topic

[Indian Chief]

Somebody asked for this interview to be posted a few months back.
Suzuka 1990.

[BRG]

I posted something in Readers Comments yesterday to the effect that I used to despise Senna for his lack of sportsmanship but that now I saw his career more objectively.

But reading this brought it all flooding back. The man was a brilliant driver but was not a very admirable human being because he had no moral or ethical understanding at all. A deeply flawed individual.

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BRG

"all the time, maximum attack"

[Ray Bell]

So what's Schumacher?

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Life and love are mixed with pain...

[MattC]

It's kind of interesting that this is posted in the Nostalgia Forum when it clearly has so much relevance to some of today's drivers.



The good thing about this is that it has boosted Stewart hugely in my eyes.
Weren't people recently attacking him for never speaking his mind?

[Ray Bell]

Dead right...

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Life and love are mixed with pain...

[Duane]

Richard Williams' book "The Death of Ayrton Senna" examines the effect Senna had on F1. Today's drivers are in amny ways a product of Senna's tactics. Just look at the MS crash and swerve incidents (Australia, Jerez and Belgium 95); Damon Hills multiple rear enders and high speed swerves (Britain 95, Italy 95, Europe 96, Canada 98; JV's risky maneuvers (Belgium, Jerez, Autralia - several ignored yellows) and high speed swerving (Japan 97) and crashes (Belhgium), Hakinen and DC in several coming togethers over the years (Germany 94 (MH and half the grid), Portugal 96, Austria and Belgium last year). These guys, and many more, all seem to feel that contact is not beyond the sport and don't necassarily give a fig about the other guy, no matter what they say in public. I think Moss was right, they all feel too safe these days; but I think the bucks have something to with it as well.

[Todd]

I see parallels between some of Schumacher's conduct and Senna's, but nothing like the degree that made me loathe Senna. Could anyone imagine Senna apologizing to Frentzen after Canada '98? Senna would have blamed Frentzen to anyone who would listen. After Jerez '97, Senna would have denied involvement for a year and a half before admitting it was his fault. In Australia '94, Senna would have run over Damon Hill on the grid. He would not have let an undeserving driver be his rival because of FIA hijinx. He would have hospitalized Hill and said it was justified under the circumstances.

[Ray Bell]

Irrespective of who is or was the worst, it is all uncalled for and reprehensible. No driver who conducts his racing in that manner should be awarded any titles.

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Life and love are mixed with pain...

[Art]

I don't care if Senna and Schumacher were personally the biggest Arse Holes in the world. They could drive like no others and were a joy to watch driving a race car. And as for MR Moss if the cars in his day were as high tec as today none of them would still be alive. With the speed of todays cars things had to be made safer. Ask Nikki Lauda.

Art

[Todd]

I'm with Art, to a degree. I never managed to get past Senna's character to appreciate his craft as much as others, but he provided an important ingredient for an era of pretty exciting and/ or complete drivers. I liked Piquet, Lauda, Prost, and Mansell and it was nice of Senna to provide me with someone I didn't have to root for. How would I choose between a Mansell or Prost victory?

[luisfelipetrigo]

TO: Indian Chief

THANKS a lot.
I am the one who asked about this interview after reading an article in ATLASF1. In Mexico, where I live this interview was never published, now I understand why since this whole country was (is) very much for Senna.
I personally think JYS is the best 'all around' F1 champion and reading the interview just confirms that feeling.

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Saludos
Luis Felipe

[Keir]

Senna was the prime intimidator, I think Stewart was bothered by Senna because he reminds him of Rindt.
Senna, to me, was an introverted Rindt.
Only Gerhard Berger could lighten up Senna's mood.
Jackie Stewart, for his part in the safety campaign, created what has become today's drivers.

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"I Was Born Ready"

[Ray Bell]

Luis - how could you ignore Fearless John, for among other things he was the only Champion ever crowned in your country...

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Life and love are mixed with pain...

[Don Capps]

I have toyed with the idea of just ignoring or avoiding this thread, but finally decided to make a comment:

Ayrton Senna da Silva was a very quick driver and -- like all of us -- a person with some flaws in his makeup. Love him or hate him, for good or bad, Senna changed the face of F1 racing. As someone who was not much of a Senna fan, re-reading the article reminded me why I almost completely dropped out of the F1 scene for several years.

However, Life Goes On....Ohbahdee, ohbahdaa...

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Yr fthfl & hmbl srvnt,

Don Capps

Semper Gumbi: If this was easy, we’d have the solution already…

[Barry Lake]

I ahve always kept my opinions of Senna's driving pretty much to myself because I thought everyone worshipped him.
I am pleased to see that many others were appalled by some of his driving.
As I have said before, I was disappointed that Prost allowed Senna to draw him into this feud/duel - but then I suppose it was inevitable.
With Schumacher, as with Senna, I can appreciate their incredible skills, but am shocked by the things their obsession with being number one can bring them to do.
Having said that, I once had a very long interview with Senna - by invitation from him - at Spa, with just two journalists and a listener and Senna in the team motor home.
He couldn't have been more pleasant or helpful.
I think - without the obsession - he was basically a very nice person. I always looked forward to meeting him in retirement, when he'd done it all and, presumably, had learned to live with himself.

[Ray Bell]

He certainly had that tangibly compassionate side to him (relating to the kids in Sao Paulo), but he was wierd as well.
Why would he come to believe God was with him when he raced? It's as irrational as armies being blessed by the bishops as they trot off to war, or the Iraqis being told at the commencement of the Kuwait invasion that they would go straight to heaven if they died in the battle.
So what happens if two drivers have God with them in the same race? If two opposing armies are blessed before the battle?
Here was another area in which Senna stretched the envelope of credibility.

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Life and love are mixed with pain...

[Art]

Prost Senna feud.

Seeing both incidents live on TV I seem to remember PROST knocking Senna off of the track. Knocking the front wing off of Senna's car. Senna pitted for a new wing and nearly a lap down went on to win the race in the rain. Then was dis qualified for not entering the track where he left it. It was taken to court and the Judge ruled in favor of Prost. To me Senna will always of won 4 WDC's in a row. The next year Senna admited that the seecond time that he deliberately put Prost out to win his third Title. Anyone else see it this way?

Art

[Art]

Senna believed God rode with him in his race car is irrational? This has to be the #1 stupid statement that I have ever read on any board! I thought I was bad but I look like the Pope after this one.

Art

[Duane]

Suzuka 89 is all perspective I think, and the similarities to Jerez 97 are never truly rationally discussed, especially on the Readers Comments board. Senna always gets the blame for Suzuka 89, while Schumacher always gets the blame for Jerez 97. In both cases, the challenging driver came from behind in a very late braking move (JV & AS)and expected the defending driver (MS & AP)to give way, and in both instances the defending driver driver did not avoid but actually invited contact.
It's funny that on both occasions, the new champion was cleared of blame while the second place guy took all the blame. The Prost-Senna battle traces it's roots to Imola and Estoril 88, while the JV-MS thing didn't really start until Suzuks 97 when JV made the high speed swerve at Scumacher in the first corner. However, in both instances the challenging driver had previously made it clear that dangerous driving and possible contact were not beyond them.
Both were complex instances, but where blame was quickly laid with one driver while the other was hailed as the true and deserving sqeaky clean champion - and F1 quickly moved on...

The funny thing about Jerez, is that the incidents on the track concealed the most disturbing thing about the event (to me anyway!) the fact the Williams and McLaren consired and proceeded to fix the race. Have two teams ever fixed a WC event between themselves before that race?

[CVAndrw]

Originally posted by Ray Bell:
He certainly had that tangibly compassionate side to him (relating to the kids in Sao Paulo), but he was wierd as well.
Why would he come to believe God was with him when he raced? It's as irrational as armies being blessed by the bishops as they trot off to war, or the Iraqis being told at the commencement of the Kuwait invasion that they would go straight to heaven if they died in the battle.
So what happens if two drivers have God with them in the same race? If two opposing armies are blessed before the battle?
Here was another area in which Senna stretched the envelope of credibility.

Weird indeed, but absolutely true. He at one point claimed to have had a vision of Christ during Monaco qualifying! And yet at other times he seemed rational, self-analytical and well aware of his own mortality- I recommend his astonishing interview with Jenks in the 90-91 Autocourse.

His belief in his own destiny always seemed to me similar to that of the Scots runner Eric Liddell in the film Chariots of Fire. Remember? "God made me fast."

But his expressed conviction that God both anointed and protected him was no secret. Said Alain Prost: "If he really believes that, he's crazy."

And Nelson Piquet: "That guy is going to find a very hard wall someday." And in fact, he did- the very same wall that Piquet hit in 1987, the accident which transformed Nelson's career, life and awarness of his own mortality. Eerie.

[Ray Bell]

Just for you Art, so you can converse with the pope (if he will listen):
The wisest man who ever lived wrote: "Again I looked and saw that the swiftest person does not always win the race, nor the strongest man the battle, and that wise men are often poor, and skilfull men are not necessarily famous; but it is all by chance, by happening to be at the right place at the right time. A man never knows when he is going to run into bad luck. He is like a fish caught in a net, or a bird caught in a snare."
So how can opposing troops be guided by the same God? How can a driver call on God's help in a race? Visions of Christ in qualifying? Prost said it all!
Senna never knew these things, he was deluded or deceived. His driving was magnificent, his planning outstanding, but it built a record flawed with his eccentricities.... Which God did he blame when Rosberg Brake Tested him at Adelaide? Driver against driver, was it God against God? And when he rammed Nigel in the same spot a number of years later, was he not afraid that Nigel had his God with him too?
So I return to my original comment - his compassion for the poor of Brazil was touching, but it was not consistent with the rest of his behaviour.

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Life and love are mixed with pain...

[Keir]

This thread is getting a bit silly, so let me tell you all a tale to set things straight.

It was 1993, the place, somewhere in the great beyond. Jim Clark and Graham Hill were having their usual battle at the 'Ring. Things were going well, when on the approach to the home straight, a black blur flew past them and off into the distance. They had only a brief look at the driver's helmet. It looked to be bright yellow with a green stripe. Back in the pits, Jimmy and Graham inquired why they hadn't been notified of Senna's passing, they were after all, the
CEO's of the BRDC, (Beyond Racing Drivers
Club). Bandini came over at that point and set them straight. "That's not Senna, that's God, and he always dresses up as his favorite driver."

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"I Was Born Ready"

[Art]

Ray I don't need a page to say that anyone who critisizes a driver for wanting God with him on his dangerous journeys isn't playing with a full deck. Man you need help bad.

Art

[404KF2]

Sorry Art,

Ray is right. And you're missing his point.

Senna didn't only think that God was with him in his races, he actually thought that it gave him a competitive advantage over the others on the track, many of whom were demonstrably better humans than himself. That is twisted, my friend.

This is the same sort of tripe that spews forth from so many (especially US) professional sportsmen when interviewed after the BIG Game. They thank their Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ for allowing them to physically beat the **** out of their opponents. That is SO bent. These guys are Christians? Very, very sad, really.

[Ray Bell]

Actually, he makes an Art of missing the point...
That is what I was getting at. The same applies to armies in war.... 'By this you will know my disciples, that they have love...' - and they point their bazooka at some bloke who kneeled down in the same make of church they go to!
But one thing Art said made sense, I didn't need to use a page to say it - Prost simply said '..he's crazy.'
Just more proof that:

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Life and love are mixed with pain...

[Keir]

No wonder I became a pagan!!!

Hey guys, I just spoke to god, at least he said he was god, and he said that Senna was still his favorite driver and that if Prost wasn't such a big wimp, his team would be doing much better.

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"I Was Born Ready"

[Art]

Prost is a real authority on Senna! Prost didn't have the balls to race Senna one on one at Williams! He had to have Damon Hill a test driver as number two. Senna never quit a race in the rain and was never told to stay away from a race by the team. Yes sir Prost is really cool.

Art