{"id":239184,"date":"2023-03-02T12:00:37","date_gmt":"2023-03-02T11:00:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rtrsports.com\/formula-1-best-drivers-ayrton-senna\/"},"modified":"2026-09-30T16:54:05","modified_gmt":"2026-09-30T14:54:05","slug":"formula-1-best-drivers-ayrton-senna","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rtrsports.com\/en\/blog\/formula-1-best-drivers-ayrton-senna\/","title":{"rendered":"Ayrton Senna: career, titles, Imola and the legacy of the king of speed"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ayrton Senna (S\u00e3o Paulo, 21 March 1960 – 1 May 1994) was a three-time Formula 1 world champion, in 1988, 1990 and 1991. In 161 Grands Prix he took 41 wins, 65 pole positions, 80 podiums and 19 fastest laps, and he holds the record of six wins at Monaco. He died at 34 in the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix, and his legacy lives on in the sport and in the Instituto Ayrton Senna.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Updated September 2026.<\/em><\/p>\n

Anyone who never had the chance to see him race still asks how good Ayrton Senna really was. The numbers answer part of the question: the rest lies in the way he drove, especially in the rain, and in the intensity with which he lived Formula 1, on and off the track. He was one of the figures who did the most for the popularity of Formula 1<\/a> around the world.<\/p>\n

The beginnings: karting and family<\/h2>\n

Ayrton Senna da Silva was born on 21 March 1960 in Santana, a district of S\u00e3o Paulo, Brazil. His parents were Milton Guirado da Silva, a landowner and factory owner, and Neide Joanna Senna da Silva. His father built his first kart with a lawnmower engine, and at 13 Ayrton started racing in earnest.<\/p>\n

In 1977 he won the South American kart championship, and in 1979 and 1980 he was runner-up in the world championship. The foundations of his style, from precise car control to reading racing lines, come from there. Another great Brazilian, Emerson Fittipaldi<\/a>, had preceded him in Formula 1 and had already opened the way for drivers from his country.<\/p>\n

From the junior formulae to Formula 1<\/h2>\n

In 1981 Senna moved to single-seaters in Europe and won the British Formula Ford 1600 championship, both the British title and the Townsend Thoresen. In 1982 he dominated Formula Ford 2000, winning the British and European championships and taking 15 of the 17 races in the British series. In 1983 he won the British Formula 3 championship after a close fight with Martin Brundle, and also took the Macau Grand Prix.<\/p>\n

In 1983 he tested for Williams at Donington Park: he completed 40 laps and was faster than the reigning world champion Keke Rosberg. A seat with a top team did not follow, though: McLaren and Brabham turned him down, and Senna signed for Toleman, a young team that used Pirelli tyres.<\/p>\n

\"Ayrton<\/p>\n

The Toleman debut and Monaco 1984<\/h2>\n

Senna made his Formula 1 debut in the 1984 Brazilian Grand Prix, where he retired on lap 8. At Monaco, in the same season, he started 13th and within a few laps climbed to second, passing Niki Lauda on lap 19. He was closing on Alain Prost when the race was stopped on lap 31 because of heavy rain. It was his first podium and a first proof of what he could do in the wet.<\/p>\n

Lotus: the first win at Estoril<\/h2>\n

In 1985 he moved to Lotus and at the Portuguese Grand Prix, at Estoril, he took his first pole position and his first win, in the rain and by more than a minute. He ended the season with seven pole positions. In 1986 he was fourth in the championship with 55 points and eight pole positions, and in 1987 third with 57 points and six podiums.<\/p>\n

\"Ayrton<\/p>\n

McLaren and the rivalry with Prost<\/h2>\n

In 1988 Senna moved to McLaren as team-mate to Alain Prost. The MP4\/4 won fifteen of the sixteen races of the season, eight of them with Senna, who took his first world title by three points over Prost.<\/p>\n

The rivalry between the two exploded in the following two years, both times at Suzuka. In 1989 they collided at the chicane on lap 46: Senna restarted and crossed the line first, but he was disqualified for cutting the chicane, and the title went to Prost. In 1990 Senna, on pole, was passed by Prost at the start and ran into him at the first corner, at around 270 km\/h, putting both out and winning the championship. In 1991 he admitted that the clash had been deliberate.<\/p>\n

\"Ayrton<\/p>\n

In all, Senna won three world titles (1988, 1990, 1991), was runner-up in 1989 and 1993, and won six times at Monaco, in 1987 and then from 1989 to 1993. He was feared and respected by the other drivers: for his speed, his dedication and his ability to push the car to the limit, especially on a wet track. To give an idea of his weight, Senna led for 2,987 laps in his career, 36.34% of those he raced.<\/p>\n

The masterpiece: Donington 1993<\/h2>\n

The European Grand Prix, run on 11 April 1993 at Donington Park in torrential rain, is considered one of the greatest driving performances in F1 history. Senna had a Ford-powered McLaren, less powerful than the Williams cars, and started fourth. On the first lap alone he passed Michael Schumacher, Karl Wendlinger, Damon Hill and Alain Prost and took the lead: a lap that went down in history as the “Lap of the Gods”.<\/p>\n

He won by more than 80 seconds over Hill, the only driver to finish on the lead lap; everyone else, including Prost in third, was lapped. After his sixth win at Monaco the same year, it was the victory that best tells the story of his talent in the wet.<\/p>\n

The nightmare of Imola<\/h2>\n

The 1994 San Marino Grand Prix at Imola was a tragic weekend even before the race. On Friday Rubens Barrichello had a serious crash in his Jordan in the first free practice, and came out of it alive by a miracle. On Saturday, in qualifying, Roland Ratzenberger died at the wheel of his Simtek after the front wing failed.<\/p>\n

On Sunday 1 May, at the start, J.J. Lehto’s Benetton stalled on the grid and was hit by Pedro Lamy’s Lotus: debris flew over the safety fences and lightly injured a police officer and eight spectators. The safety car led the field until the restart, at the end of lap five. On lap seven Senna’s Williams, leading with Michael Schumacher behind, left the track at the Tamburello corner at about 305 km\/h and hit the wall at 211 km\/h. Senna died at 34.<\/p>\n

Senna’s death, after Ratzenberger’s, led to deep changes in Formula 1 safety: Tamburello was turned from a very fast corner into a chicane, the drivers’ association (GPDA) was re-established and the FIA introduced new safety rules, which forced the teams to redesign their 1995 cars.<\/p>\n

Senna’s legacy<\/h2>\n

Senna left his mark away from the track too. The Instituto Ayrton Senna, founded in 1994 by his sister Viviane Senna, works to improve education in Brazil, with training programmes for teachers and local institutions. It is one of the reasons his name, more than thirty years after his death, still means something even to those who have never watched a Formula 1 race.<\/p>\n

The impact of Ayrton Senna on Formula 1 is hard to measure: a rare talent who pushed himself and the car to the absolute limit in pursuit of victory. To me Senna was the most talented driver I have ever seen on a track. If you are interested in other great drivers, also read the profile of Ronnie Peterson<\/a> and that of Mario Andretti<\/a>.<\/p>\n

<\/p>
Want to bring your brand to Formula 1?<\/strong>
RTR Sports Marketing has been building motorsport sponsorships since 1995.<\/div>

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Images, from top: Ayrton Senna’s Lotus 99T used in the 1987 season (Dima Moroz, Creative Commons Attribution 2.0); Ayrton Senna in 1988 (Instituto Ayrton Senna, Creative Commons Attribution 2.0); Ayrton Senna’s Lotus 97T used in the 1985 season (Dima Moroz, Creative Commons Attribution 2.0).<\/em><\/p>\n

Sources<\/strong>: Wikipedia, Ayrton Senna<\/a>; Formula 1, Vital Statistics: Ayrton Senna<\/a>; Wikipedia, 1994 San Marino Grand Prix<\/a>; Wikipedia, 1993 European Grand Prix<\/a>; Motor Sport Magazine, Lap of the Gods<\/a>; McLaren, Opening lap Donington<\/a>; Motor Sport Magazine, 1989 championship<\/a>; GPOne, Senna and Prost at Suzuka<\/a>; Ayrton Senna Net, Instituto Ayrton Senna<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\r\n\r\n

Frequently asked questions<\/b><\/h2>\r\n \r\n <\/p>\n
\r\n\r\n

\r\n How many Formula 1 world titles did Ayrton Senna win?<\/b>\r\n <\/h3>\r\n\r\n
\r\n
\r\n

\nThree: in 1988, 1990 and 1991, all with McLaren. He was runner-up in 1989 and 1993, both times behind Alain Prost.<\/p>\n <\/div>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \n

\r\n\r\n

\r\n How many wins and pole positions did Senna take?<\/b>\r\n <\/h3>\r\n\r\n
\r\n
\r\n

\nIn 161 Grands Prix Senna took 41 wins, 65 pole positions, 80 podiums and 19 fastest laps. He won six times at Monaco, a record.<\/p>\n <\/div>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \n

\r\n\r\n

\r\n When and how did Ayrton Senna die?<\/b>\r\n <\/h3>\r\n\r\n
\r\n
\r\n

\nOn 1 May 1994, aged 34, in the San Marino Grand Prix at Imola. He was leading in his Williams when, on lap seven, he left the track at the Tamburello corner at about 305 km\/h and hit the wall at 211 km\/h.<\/p>\n <\/div>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \n

\r\n\r\n

\r\n Why is the 1993 Donington race so famous?<\/b>\r\n <\/h3>\r\n\r\n
\r\n
\r\n

\nBecause on the first lap, in the rain, starting fourth in a less powerful McLaren, Senna passed Schumacher, Wendlinger, Hill and Prost and took the lead. He won by more than 80 seconds over Hill, the only driver to finish on the lead lap.<\/p>\n <\/div>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \n

\r\n\r\n

\r\n What was the rivalry between Senna and Prost like?<\/b>\r\n <\/h3>\r\n\r\n
\r\n
\r\n

\nIt was one of the fiercest in F1 history. The two were team-mates at McLaren in 1988 and clashed at Suzuka in 1989 (title to Prost) and 1990 (title to Senna, who the following year admitted the crash had been deliberate).<\/p>\n <\/div>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \n

\r\n <\/div>\r\n \n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ayrton Senna (S\u00e3o Paulo, 21 March 1960 – 1 May 1994) was a three-time Formula 1 world champion, in 1988, 1990 and 1991. In 161 Grands Prix he took 41 wins, 65 pole positions, 80 podiums and 19 fastest laps, and he holds the record of six wins at Monaco. He died at 34 in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":159430,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[20123],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-239184","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-formula-1-en"],"acf":[],"contentshake_article_id":"","yoast_head":"\nAyrton Senna: Career, Titles and Death (2026)<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Ayrton Senna: 3 world titles, 41 wins, 65 poles, Donington 1993 and the Imola tragedy. 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