Vettel brings F1 drivers together to remember Senna and Ratzenberger.
Formula 1 drivers and other paddock members marked the 30th anniversary of the deaths of Ayrton Senna and Roland Ratzenberger ahead of the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix.
16th May 2024, 20:33
Written by Keith Collantine
RaceFans

Four-times world champion Sebastian Vettel led the event which began on the pit straight at the Imola circuit where the pair lost their lives during the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix weekend. The event included running a lap of the circuit and stopping to pay tribute to the two drivers at the scenes of their crashes. Despite heavy rainfall later in the afternoon the drivers assembled at the statue of three-times world champion Senna by Tamburello corner before going on to complete their laps of the track.

The drivers who T-shirts bearing Senna’s helmet colours and the message ‘Forever Senna’, and wristbands carrying tributes to Ratzenberger, who was making his third appearance at a grand prix weekend when he crashed. “Thirty years ago, people here at this place lived through a horrible set of events,” said Vettel in a video on social media. “We had an incredibly bad accident on Friday with Rubens Barrichello that, luckily, was only mildly injured. On Saturday Roland Ratzenberger – which the wristband is for – from Austria, lost his life crashing out in qualifying. And on Sunday, we lost a true legend of our sport, Ayrton Senna.”

“Ayrton was a special man. Inside the car his achievements were, probably to this day, unparalleled. Look at the amount of pole positions and wins in that short amount of time, the cars that he wrestled around the track, the conditions he propelled and beat the opposition. Many reasons to be a Senna fan, even if he’s not your favourite driver, he was an incredible person in the car, but also outside the car. For the Brazilian people, the importance, the role that he played for the people in that generation for that time.”

‘Remember Senna and Ratzenberger’;

https://www.racefans.net/2024/05/16/...-ratzenberger/


Formula 1 and Vettel pay tribute to Senna and Ratzenberger
18:53 Thu, 16 May 2024.
F1i.com

The Formula 1 community and its drivers came together on the grid on Thursday afternoon at Imola to pay a heartfelt tribute to the sport’s fallen heroes, Ayrton Senna and Roland Ratzenberger, to mark the 30th anniversary of their passing.

The commemorative event was held at the behest of four-time F1 world champion Sebastian Vettel and was followed by a track run of the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari. The tribute run was also organized by Vettel who handed out yellow Senna-themed T-shirts to F1’s class of 2023, with each shirt emblazoned with each driver’s race number.

After the run, Vettel walked out to Tamburello to visit the bronze statue of the great Brazilian driver overlooking the track near the very spot where he met his fate on May 1, 1994. On Sunday, ahead of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, Vettel will take to the track to offer fans a few laps onboard Senna’s race winning McLaren Mp4/8.

‘The commemorative event was held at the behest of four-time F1 world champion Sebastian Vettel’;

https://f1i.com/images/507838-formul...zenberger.html


Sebastian Vettel leads Ayrton Senna tribute with entire F1 grid at Imola.
Four-time F1 world champion Sebastian Vettel led a track run of the Imola circuit on Thursday to commemorate the 30th anniversary deaths of Ayrton Senna and Roland Ratzenberger.
16 May 2024
Connor McDonagh
Crash.Net

Sebastian Vettel led a touching tribute at Imola on Thursday with the entire F1 grid present. F1 drivers, including Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton, were present with a number of F2/F3 drivers, team principals, and various media personnel.

The majority of them were pictured in Senna-themed t-shirts, 30 years on from his tragic death at the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix. As well as the start-finish straight photo, Vettel led a run of the famous Imola track in rainy weather conditions. The personnel involved were then involved in a further moment of commemoration at Tamburello, where Senna famously crashed in 1994.

Out of the current grid, Pierre Gasly will sport a Senna-inspired helmet for this weekend’s race. This comes after the 2020 Italian Grand Prix winner had the opportunity to drive Senna’s first ever F1 car - the 1984 Toleman. Speaking in the FIA press conference, Gasly said: “I've always admired him since I was a child. Obviously, in France, I grew up hearing a lot about Alain Prost, who is the most successful French F1 driver of all time.”

‘Ayrton Senna tribute’;

https://www.crash.net/f1/news/104851...-f1-grid-imola


Vettel leads F1 drivers' Senna tribute run
16 May 2024, 22:55
Balazs Szabo
F1 Technical

Teaming up with the Senna Foundation, the four-time world champion has organized several activities for this weekend's Emilia Romagna Grand Prix to commemorate Ayrton Senna's legacy at Imola where the Brazilian suffered a fatal crash 30 years ago. As a first activity, Vettel invited the current drivers on the grid to a track walk today.

The pack met at the start-finish line and stopped near Senna's monument at the Tamburello corner, where he crashed, for a minute's silence. This was then followed by the track run led by Vettel. Several drivers, including Williams duo of Alexander Albon and Logan Sargeant, Kick Sauber racers Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu. Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc and soon-to-be Ferrari racer Lewis Hamilton also joined the pack that incorporated a few hundred people.

Under the motto "Forever Senna," Vettel also had T-shirts produced in memory of the three-time world champion from Brazil. The German was also wearing an Austrian sweatband in honour of Roland Ratzenberger who sadly lost is life at the track on the same weekend in 1994.

‘Teaming up with the Senna Foundation’;

https://www.f1technical.net/news/24575


‘Great addition’: Eddie Jordan says Ayrton Senna was the ‘main reason’ he signed 11-win Formula 1 driver
Thu 16 May 2024 08:00
Ben Evans
F1 Oversteer

Eddie Jordan and Ayrton Senna had a brilliant relationship in Formula 1 and the Brazilian icon played a role in helping him sign one of his most successful drivers. Jordan has previously shared that he offered half of his F1 team to Ayrton Senna for free such is the respect he had for the triple world champion.

Jordan has admitted that it was Ayrton Senna who convinced him he should sign Rubens Barrichello. The Brazilian joined the grid in 1993 before his 21st birthday but went on to be one of the longest-serving drivers in the sport. Ayrton Senna told Eddie Jordan to sign Rubens Barrichello. Talking about how hiring Barrichello came about, Jordan said:

“Ayrton [Senna] was the main reason I signed Rubens [Barrichello]. He was a 19-year-old and as you well know David [Coulthard], you probably know him because he’s not far removed from your vintage of when you were around at the time. Ayrton pointed out to me and said, ‘Look, yes go, take a chance, you will really not regret it.’ No one had really heard about him at this stage and I took the chance and he was right. Rubens was a great addition to the Jordan team.”

‘Look, yes go, take a chance, you will really not regret it’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/edd...mula-1-driver/


Silverstone to mark 30th anniversary of Ayrton Senna's death with special tribute
Thursday, 16 May 2024
Raúl Daffunchio Picazo
insidethegames.biz

The Silverstone F1 circuit, where the Brazilian legend won the most Grand Prix races of his illustrious career, will pay tribute to the driver who died in 1994 with a display of his cars over the weekend of 23-25 August. Senna made his Grand Prix debut 40 years ago in 1984 in the historic Toleman TG183B, in which he scored his first World Championship points. The Toleman will be one of many iconic machines on display over the Bank Holiday weekend (23-25 August).

During his illustrious career, Senna won more races at Silverstone than any other circuit, and in honour of his extraordinary achievements, the Silverstone Festival will showcase many of those illustrious winners. Gasly's laps in the Toleman were filmed by Sky F1 as part of a moving tribute to Senna's incredible legacy that will be broadcast during the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix on 19 May, 30 years after the tragic accident at the same Imola circuit.

The history of the small and ambitious Toleman team, with whom Senna made his F1 debut, is also significant, as it was later acquired by Benetton and then Renault, before evolving into the Alpine F1 organisation for which Gasly currently races. This summer, visitors to the Silverstone Festival will be able to enjoy displays from both ends of the spectrum. The iconic Toleman will be one of the main attractions in the unique Star Car exhibition paying tribute to the great Ayrton Senna, an event which has the blessing of the Senna family.

‘Silverstone to mark 30th anniversary’;

https://www.insidethegames.biz/artic...y-ayrton-senna