To paint a picture, Ayrton Senna arrived at Suzuka in 1989 as the reigning world champion very much on the back foot. Alain Prost, his McLaren teammate at the time, was also his biggest title rival. Prost held an almost unassailable lead of 16 points with two races to go. Senna knew he would have to win in Japan and also try and win in Australia if he had any hope of defending his title.
Senna took pole with Prost in P2 and battled through the majority of the race before finding himself wheel-to-wheel with the Frenchman on lap 46. What happened next is something that lives in infamy in F1.
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While Prost decided to emerge from the cockpit of his stricken McLaren, Senna used the help of the marshals to try and rejoin the circuit before cutting through the field like a hot knife through butter.
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Senna would go on to retake the lead and cross the line in P1 to keep his championship hopes alive, or so it seemed.
Despite Suzuka masterclass, Ayrton Senna was disqualified from 1989 Japanese Grand Prix
Ayrton Senna’s grit and grind at the wheel of his McLaren after the collision showed us the Brazilian’s elite mentality in the face of adversity. Unfortunately for him and his many fans, it was all in vain.
In his attempt to rejoin the circuit after his entanglement with Prost, Senna accidentally cut a chicane. While he did overtake everyone else and cross the line to take the checkered flag first, the Brazilian was disqualified on a technicality. His exclusion from the race also guaranteed the title for Frenchman Prost.
After the race, Prost was made aware of chatter amongst the press that he would be intimidated by Senna’s driving on track. The Frenchman said:
Senna also commented on the entire episode by saying:
A year later, both Senna and Prost arrived in Japan in similar circumstances with the tables turned. The Brazilian held a nine-point lead over Prost, who was now at Ferrari. The Frenchman had left McLaren after saying it was ‘impossible’ to work with Ayrton Senna in the team.
This time, both title protagonists crashed into the first corner of the first lap in spectacular fashion, before giving the world perhaps one of Ayrton Senna’s most memorable quotes:
Senna’s career would end prematurely with a fatal crash at Imola in 1994 after having won three world titles. His final race win came at the 1993 Australian Grand Prix with Alain Prost on the podium as the four-time world champion who retired at the end of the season.
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