Michael Schumacher (pictured while driving for Ferrari), won his first title with Benetton.

Damon Hill finished as runner-up by a single point for Williams.

Gerhard Berger of Scuderia Ferrari finished the season ranked third (Pictured driving for McLaren).

The 1994 Formula One season was the 45th season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It featured the 1994 FIA Formula One World Championship which commenced on March 27, 1994, and ended on November 13 after sixteen races. The season is remembered as one of the most tragic and controversial seasons in the 1990s, if not in the sport's history. 1994 was one of the closest championships in history as Michael Schumacher won the Drivers' title by a single point from Damon Hill after the two controversially collided at the final round in Adelaide. British constructor Williams-Renault won the Constructors' Championship. However, the 1994 season will also be remembered for the deaths of three-time World Champion Ayrton Senna and the Austrian Roland Ratzenberger at the San Marino Grand Prix. Forty-six drivers competed in the 1994 World Championship, including fourteen rookies and numerous pay drivers.

Pre-season[link]

The big news in the paddock after the 1993 season was the retirement of defending World Champion Alain Prost after winning his fourth title, and his replacement at Williams by long-term rival Ayrton Senna. It was commonly thought that Senna's move to Williams was a factor behind Prost's retirement, which in a later interview was proved to be correct.

• Williams retained Damon Hill to partner Senna, and test driver David Coulthard would replace the Brazilian following his fatal accident.
• McLaren, having lost iconic driver Ayrton Senna, promoted Mika Häkkinen to team leader and brought in experienced Martin Brundle. Following a year with customer Ford power, the team had works Peugeot engines for 1994.
• Benetton kept Michael Schumacher on board, pairing him with JJ Lehto. The team's Dutch test-driver, Jos Verstappen, and Johnny Herbert also drove for the team during the season.
• Ferrari retained their 1993 driver line-up of Jean Alesi and Gerhard Berger.
• Sauber replaced JJ Lehto with debutant Heinz-Harald Frentzen to partner Karl Wendlinger, though the Finn would return after injury plagued his time at Benetton.
• Jordan retained their final line-up of 1993 with Rubens Barrichello and Eddie Irvine.
• Larrousse, now powered by Ford HB engines, signed Olivier Beretta to partner Érik Comas.
• Tyrrell retained Ukyo Katayama and replaced Andrea de Cesaris with Mark Blundell.
• Ligier signed returning Éric Bernard, who had been out of F1 racing since 1991 and the newcomer Olivier Panis, with both drivers from the previous year, Martin Brundle and Mark Blundell moving to McLaren and Tyrrell respectively.
• Footwork faced a difficult year, having lost the Footwork sponsorship and the Mugen-Honda engines. Driver line-up was also changed completely, as Christian Fittipaldi and Gianni Morbidelli joined the team to pilot the new Ford-powered cars.
• Lotus, despite obtaining the Mugen-Honda engines deal, was also facing a difficult future restricted by financial problems. Johnny Herbert and Portuguese driver Pedro Lamy started the season, but the Lotus cars would have 6 different drivers during the 1994 season, which would turn out to be the famous marque's last as a going concern.

1994 saw two teams making a debut. Simtek-Ford paired two rookie drivers; Australian David Brabham and Austrian Roland Ratzenberger. After the latter was killed at Imola, a number of other drivers took the second car. Pacific-Ilmor went for experience with Paul Belmondo and Bertrand Gachot.

Following a disastrous 1993, BMS Lola merged with Minardi, the team changing its name to BMS Minardi. Experienced Michele Alboreto and Pierluigi Martini were chosen as drivers.

Additionally, two of the top teams unveiled new colour schemes, reflecting new sponsorship deals after Camel withdrew from Formula One. Williams' new sponsorship from Rothmans saw them adopt navy and white with gold and red trim, while the Benetton team went from yellow to the pale blue and mint green of Mild Seven.

Technical changes[link]

In order to combat the spiralling costs of running a Formula One team, and to counteract criticism that over-reliance on technology was reducing the drivers to a secondary role, sweeping rule changes were introduced for 1994, most notably banning of all electronic "driver aids" such as active suspension, anti-lock brakes, traction control and launch control.

Ayrton Senna was among several observers who said that, with such features removed but no attempt to curtail the speed of the cars, 1994 would be "a season with a lot of accidents".

1994 also saw the reintroduction of refuelling during the race for the first time since 1983. After Ayrton Senna's crash at Imola, several rule changes were introduced to slow the cars. At the Spanish Grand Prix, front wing endplates and rear diffusers were reduced in size. From the next race in Canada, the effectiveness of the airbox was reduced (by cutting holes in it). From the German Grand Prix, a 10mm wooden plank was affixed to the underside of every car to reduce ground-effect advantages. Wear was permitted on the plank up to 1mm by the end of the race.

Race-by-Race[link]

Race One: Brazil[link]

The season started off in Brazil and all the native fans were supporting Senna. It was no surprise that Senna took pole ahead of Schumacher, Alesi, Hill, Frentzen and Gianni Morbidelli. At the start, Alesi took second from Schumacher while Wendlinger and Verstappen got ahead of Frentzen and Morbidelli. At the end of lap 1 Senna was leading Alesi, Schumacher, Hill, Wendlinger and Verstappen.

On lap 2, Schumacher took second from Alesi after a couple of unsuccessful earlier attempts. The Frenchman had been holding Schumacher up while Senna pulled out a 4 second lead. Senna and Schumacher pulled away from the rest of the pack, increasing their lead by over a second a lap. Both pitted on lap 21 but Schumacher was quicker and rejoined ahead. He pulled away to take a 10 second lead but then Senna began to reel him in. By lap 35, Verstappen, Brundle and Eddie Irvine had all got ahead of Wendlinger. As they came up to lap Éric Bernard, Verstappen tried to pass Irvine. Irvine pushed him onto the grass and Verstappen spun off, going over Irvine and tipping it into Bernard's car and then hitting Brundle, being launched into a series of barrel rolls. No-one was hurt, but Irvine was banned initially for one race, later extended to three races by the FIA after an unsuccessful appeal. By now, Alesi, who had stopped twice, was behind Hill who had only stopped once.

There was more action as both Ukyo Katayama and then Rubens Barrichello passed Wendlinger to get into the points. Both then stopped, with Barrichello getting ahead. Senna had reduced the gap to Schumacher to 5 seconds, but then spun off on lap 56, just pushing too hard. He was out. Schumacher won ahead of Hill, Alesi, Barrichello, Katayama and Wendlinger.

Race Two: Pacific[link]

Alesi had injured his back in a testing crash at Mugello and was replaced by Nicola Larini, while Aguri Suzuki would replace Irvine for the Jordan team. Round 2 was at the new Tanaka International circuit in Japan and Senna took pole ahead of Schumacher, Hill, Häkkinen, Berger and Brundle. At the start, Schumacher got ahead of Senna and Häkkinen got past Hill. Häkkinen tried to attack Senna but ran into the back of him. Senna spun and was hit by Larini, taking both out. Schumacher finished the lap leading Häkkinen, Hill, Berger, Barrichello and Brundle.

Hill was frustrated at seeing Schumacher pull away and attacked Häkkinen on lap 4. Hill messed up, spun and dropped back to ninth. He charged back up, passing Brundle on lap 12. It was time for the pit stops during which Hill got ahead of Barrichello. Häkkinen retired when his gearbox failed on lap 19.

While Schumacher pulled away, Hill closed in on Berger. During the second round of pit stops, Hill got by Berger and Brundle got by Barrichello. However, Hill retired on lap 50 when his transmission failed and Brundle also went out on lap 68 when his engine overheated. Schumacher made it two wins out of two ahead of Berger, Barrichello, Christian Fittipaldi, Frentzen and Érik Comas.

Race Three: San Marino[link]

Lehto was back for the San Marino Grand Prix and Andrea de Cesaris would be the second driver at Jordan. However, the weekend got off to a bad start as Rubens Barrichello had a major crash during practice and was knocked unconscious. Coming too fast into Variante Bassa, his car was launched into the air by the kerb. Less than a yard from that kerb was a tyre wall, which almost instantly stopped the car's forward motion. His car was flipped over and landed upside down. Barrichello had swallowed his tongue and his life was only saved by quick action from the medical team. He would be back at the circuit on the Saturday afternoon with a fractured nose, bandaged arm and cut lip. Barrichello has never been able to recall anything from the incident.

In qualifying, a front wing flap fell off Roland Ratzenberger's car, causing major suspension damage and worsened aerodynamics. On his next lap Ratzenberger lost control and crashed into the wall at the Villeneuve kink at over 180 mph. His Simtek S941 was severely damaged, and he suffered a basal skull fracture caused by the impact and was pronounced dead at Bologna's Maggiore Hospital shortly afterwards.

After qualifying re-commenced, Senna took pole ahead of Schumacher, Berger, Hill, Lehto and Larini. During the race morning's driver meeting, all the drivers were talking about Ratzenberger's crash and were determined to improve safety for drivers, resulting in the inauguration of the GPDA (Grand Prix Drivers Association). Senna offered to take the role of leader as he was the most senior driver.

At the start of the race, Lehto's Benetton B194 stalled and was hit by Pedro Lamy's Lotus. Debris from the crash, including Lamy's right front tyre, flew into the grandstand and injured four spectators and a policeman. Lamy was unhurt but Lehto received a light arm injury. The Safety Car was called out with Senna leading Schumacher, Berger, Larini and Häkkinen.

The race restarted at the end of lap 5. And Senna tried immediately to pull away from Schumacher, whilst Berger in 3rd was already 2.586 seconds behind and Hill in 4th was 5.535 seconds behind. At the start of the 7th lap, Senna lost control, for reasons that are still the subject of controversy, and his car went straight on at Tamburello into an unprotected concrete wall at 131 mph (210 km/h). The suspension of the Williams broke on impact, flying backwards and hitting Senna on the head, piercing his helmet and fracturing his skull. The car slid to a halt on the circuit, with Senna motionless. From the helicopter pictures, a slight movement of Senna's head gave a hint of hope. Doctor Sid Watkins was on the scene in less than two minutes. Senna was airlifted to hospital but nothing could be done and Senna was pronounced dead later that evening. After the race, a poignant detail was revealed when an Austrian flag was found in Senna's car; he had planned to dedicate the win to Ratzenberger had he won the race. The race was stopped after Senna's crash.

During the red flag period, the Larrousse team mistakenly released their driver Erik Comas from the Pit lane, and Comas was marshalled to a stop at Tamburello corner. At TV channel Eurosport (British version), former F1 driver John Watson described the Comas incident as the "most ridiculous incident I have seen at any time in my life, that a Grand Prix driver is allowed to exit the pits whilst the race is stopped". At the second restart, German Heinz-Harald Frentzen stopped in the Sauber and had to start from the pit lane.

When it restarted, Berger took the lead on track but Schumacher (who collided with Damon Hill, forcing the Briton in the Williams to stop for a new front wing) was still leading in the aggregate standings, with Berger, Häkkinen, Larini, Wendlinger and Katayama following. On the 12th Lap in total, Schumacher did take the lead on the circuit from Berger, but pitted immediately afterwards. When Berger stopped on lap 15, Häkkinen took the lead for McLaren. Berger retired on lap 17 with a suspension failure, whilst Häkkinen pitted a bit later, rejoining fourth. On Lap 21, Schumacher led (although driving behind Larini) on aggregate ahead of the Italian with Fittipaldi (who pitted on lap 23) in third, Häkkinen, Frentzen (who pitted a bit shorter as well) and Wendlinger making up the top six. From about lap 45 until lap 55, Damon Hill, Ukyo Katayama and Christian Fittipaldi battled for 5th, 6th and 7th, with first Fittipaldi and then Hill passing the Japanese in the Tyrrell on aggregate, Hill himself passed Fittipaldi on lap 49, only to lose the position two laps later. Fittipaldi did not finish the race; he retired with brake problems on lap 55. Damon Hill gained fifth, but lost it again to Katayama with two laps to go, and only kept a one second lead over Heinz-Harald Frentzen to score the last point in the San Marino Grand Prix.

Another incident followed when Michele Alboreto's Minardi lost its right rear wheel while exiting the pits. Alboreto had already accelerated to a significant speed, and thus the wheel caused severe injuries to a member of the Ferrari pit crew. Alboreto's car came to a halt just outside the pits. The incident would lead to two major rule changes in Formula One:

• Firstly, a pit lane speed limit
• Secondly, pit crews would now have to remain inside their garage until needed

Both rules would already be imposed at the next race in Monaco and both are still in effect today.

Schumacher won ahead of Larini, Häkkinen, Wendlinger, Katayama and Hill but there were no celebrations on the podium and all the talk after the race centred on Senna and Ratzenberger.

Race Four: Monaco[link]

Alesi returned as the mourning F1 field moved to Monaco where there would be more bad news as Wendlinger crashed heavily into the Nouvelle Chicane wall at high speed during the first free practice session. Quick action from the marshals saved his life but he was in a coma for three weeks, and recuperation from his head injuries ruled him out for the remainder of the season. Frentzen's Sauber was withdrawn for the Monaco event in response as a mark of respect. Schumacher took his first ever pole ahead of Häkkinen, Berger, Hill, Alesi and Fittipaldi.

On Friday morning, Niki Lauda announced the reformation of Grand Prix Drivers´ Association (GPDA). The representatives elected were Niki Lauda, Michael Schumacher, Gerhard Berger and Christian Fittipaldi. Following the tragic accidents during the season the GPDA demanded the FIA improve the safety of Formula 1. The FIA responded quickly and introduced changes to the regulations as follows:^[1]

For next race, the Spanish Grand Prix,

• the size of diffusers would be reduced,
• the front wing end plates would be raised,
• the size of the front wing would be reduced.

Combined this would reduce the amount of downforce by about 15%.

For the race after that, the Canadian Grand Prix,

• the lateral protection of the drivers' heads would be improved by increasing the height of the sides of the cockpit,
• the minimum weight of a Formula 1 car would be increased by 25 kg (changed to 15 kg by Canadian GP),
• the front wishbones would be strengthened to reduce the possibility of a front wheel coming loose and striking the driver,
• the cockpit would be lengthened to prevent drivers striking their head on the front of the cockpit,
• the use of a fuel pump would be introduced,
• the airboxes from the engines would be removed to reduce the airflow to the engines and thus decrease the power available.

At the start, with the first two grid positions left empty and painted with the Brazilian and Austrian flags, out of respect for Senna and Ratzenberger, Hill got ahead of Berger and attacked Häkkinen into the first corner. There was contact and both spun off into the escape road and were out. Schumacher was leading ahead of Berger, Alesi, Fittipaldi, Brundle and Katayama. Schumacher pulled away while Brundle used a good strategy during the stops, pitting earlier than the others to get ahead of Fittipaldi and Alesi.

Katayama went out on lap 39 with gearbox failure and sixth place went to his teammate Mark Blundell. However, Blundell's engine failed two laps later, spreading oil across the track. Schumacher slid and nearly hit a wall while Berger went down an escape road and dropped behind Brundle. Fittipaldi retired on lap 48 with a gearbox failure. During the second stops, Andrea de Cesaris was able to get ahead of an exhausted Alesi who was struggling with neck pain. Schumacher won ahead of Brundle, Berger, de Cesaris, Alesi and Michele Alboreto.

Between the Monaco GP and the Spanish GP, Williams announced they had brought David Coulthard in to replace Senna, with Nigel Mansell deputising at those races which did not overlap with his IndyCar commitments. Alessandro Zanardi was also in at Lotus alongside Johnny Herbert as Pedro Lamy had suffered a massive testing accident at Silverstone which resulted in him sustaining two dislocated legs and a broken wrist. He would be out for the majority of the season.

Race Five: Spain[link]

Eddie Irvine returned to Jordan after serving his 3 race ban. Sauber fielded only one car for Frentzen. A temporary tyre chicane was installed at the "Nissan" corner to reduce speeds before the "La Caixa" hairpin.

In Saturday morning's free practice session Andrea Montermini, who had replaced Ratzenberger in the Simtek, had a huge crash exiting the high-speed final corner. In light of recent events, the paddock breathed a sigh of relief when it was announced Montermini had escaped with only a broken ankle and chipped heel. Schumacher took pole ahead of Hill, Häkkinen, Lehto, Barrichello and Alesi. As Simtek and Sauber both fielded only 1 car for the race, both Pacific cars were able to qualify for the race by default as they did in Monaco.

At the start, Alesi got ahead of both Barrichello and Lehto with Coulthard getting ahead of Barrichello as well. Schumacher led Hill, Häkkinen, Alesi, Lehto and Coulthard into lap 2. Schumacher pulled away until he began to have gear selection problems and was stuck in fifth gear. During the stops, Schumacher amazingly was able to pull away without stalling. Behind, there was action in the pits as Coulthard stalled and Alesi had troubles, dropping down four places. Schumacher, still in the lead, was struggling and was passed by Hill. During the second round of pit stops, Barrichello spun off near the pit entry and Schumacher was once again able to make a pitstop and not stall the car. Häkkinen was right with him but did not have a chance to attack as his engine failed on lap 49. Lehto took up third, but his engine failed as well five laps later. Brundle took the place, but his transmission failed spectacularly with six laps to go. Hill won from Schumacher who was a superb second in the circumstances, Blundell, Alesi, Pierluigi Martini and Irvine.

Race Six: Canada[link]

The new regulations introduced during the Monaco weekend to modify amongst other things the airboxes of the cars were now in effect and were visibly shown as teams had to cut holes in the engine covers. Another temporary chicane was installed prior to the flat-out left-right kink leading to the start-finish straight to slow the cars down. Benetton introduced a revised rear wing assembly and Ferrari had new side pods for their cars. Andrea de Cesaris was back in action, now with Sauber, and celebrated his 200th Grand Prix start.

Qualifying in Canada saw Schumacher on pole ahead of Alesi, Berger, Hill, Coulthard and Barrichello. At the start, Coulthard surprised Hill and Häkkinen got ahead of Barrichello. Schumacher led from Alesi, Berger, Coulthard, Hill and Häkkinen. Hill passed Coulthard on lap 4 but Coulthard retook the place on the outside. Coulthard waved Hill through on lap 9. Hill now set off after Berger, passing him on lap 15.

During the stops, Hill got by Alesi with Häkkinen getting ahead of Coulthard. Häkkinen closed up on Berger but was unable to pass. Although it began to rain on lap 40, still there were no major changes at the top, with the top 6 remaining unaltered. On lap 62, Häkkinen's engine blew up, putting him out. On the last lap, Barrichello and Blundell were fighting for sixth when they collided, with Blundell beached in the gravel trap and Barrichello dropping behind Fittipaldi and Lehto. Fittipaldi was, however, disqualified for an underweight car, giving sixth to Lehto. Schumacher won ahead of Hill, Alesi, Berger, Coulthard and Lehto.

The Canadian GP was the last time in 1994 that the Pacific team qualified for a race. Bertrand Gachot retired after 47 laps with oil pressure problems. For the rest of the season the woefully slow cars would fail to even make the grid.

Race Seven: France[link]

France was the venue for the next grand prix and Mansell was going to race for Williams as it would not interfere with his CART racing. Benetton had relegated Lehto to the third driver and given the second seat behind Schumacher to Verstappen. Frenchman Jean-Marc Gounon took the second Simtek seat alongside David Brabham. The Williams team took a 1-2 in qualifying with Hill on pole ahead of Mansell, Schumacher, Alesi, Berger and Irvine. At the start, Schumacher showed class to slice between both Williams' to take the lead while Barrichello got ahead of Irvine. Schumacher led ahead of Hill, Mansell, Alesi, Berger and Barrichello.

Schumacher pulled away as usual with Hill unable to keep up. During the stops, Alesi got ahead of Mansell and Berger got by Barrichello. Berger then passed Mansell on lap 24. The order settled down at Schumacher, Hill, Alesi, Berger, Mansell and Barrichello. Alesi soon pitted, dropping to fifth. He then spun on lap 42, and was hit by Barrichello as he tried to rejoin, taking both out.

Mansell was planning only to stop twice and took third when Berger pitted but retired on lap 46 when his transmission failed. Häkkinen, now fourth, retired two laps later with a blown engine. There were no changes in the third round of stops although Katayama spun off from fifth soon after, on lap 54. Schumacher won once again from Hill, Berger, Frentzen, Martini and de Cesaris.

Race Eight: Great Britain[link]

Hill took pole position in front of his home crowd in Britain ahead of Schumacher, Berger, Alesi, Häkkinen and Barrichello. There was controversy as Schumacher passed Hill on the parade lap, not permitted under the regulations, and then let him resume first position before they came back to the grid to form up. The first start was aborted when Coulthard (returning to the Williams team) stalled on the grid and was forced to start from the back. Irvine retired on the second parade lap with engine problems and at the second start, Brundle's engine blew in a spectacular ball of fire. At the start, Barrichello was the man on the move, getting by Alesi and Häkkinen. Hill led Schumacher, Berger, Barrichello, Alesi and Häkkinen.

Hill and Schumacher stayed together, separated by two seconds until on lap 14, where Schumacher was given a five-second time penalty for passing Hill on the parade lap. However, the team refused to accept the decision and appealed the process. Schumacher was then give a 5 second stop go penalty for passing on the parade lap and for the team agruing the penalty. The team told him to ignore this as they were appealing the decision. Schumacher stayed out beyond the three laps required to adhere to the penalty, which was imposed. Schumacher was then shown the black flag meaning he was excluded from the race and from that point would have to return to the pits and retire. However Benetton continued to negotiate and appeal the decision. Schumacher did return to the pits on lap 26, but only for the 5 second stop-go penalty now served and re-joining the race in third behind Burger and Hill.

On lap 33, Berger went out with an engine failure. Hill won with Schumacher second, but Schumacher was disqualified for ignoring the black flag and was banned for two races. Thus meaning Schumacher was punished 4 times for one offence, which in the grand scheme of things could be considered harsh for such an insignificant offence. (A side point to this is that this regulation was banned for the following year and that Mika Häkkinen did the same thing without punishment.) This meant that Hill kept his win ahead of Alesi, Häkkinen, Barrichello, Coulthard, and Katayama. Häkkinen and Barrichello received a 1 race suspended ban for a collision between the two on the final lap of the race.

Thus, at the halfway stage of the championship, Schumacher was well ahead of the field with 66 points. Hill was a distant second with 39, Alesi third with 19, Berger fourth with 17, Barrichello fifth with 10, Häkkinen sixth with 8, Brundle seventh with 6 and Larini eighth with 6. In the Constructors Championship, Benetton were comfortably ahead with 67 points, 24 points ahead of Williams on 43. Ferrari were also right there, just a single point behind on 42, with McLaren fourth on 14.

Benetton had appealed against Schumacher's ban and he was able to race while the decision was pending.

Race Nine: Germany[link]

The second half of the season started in Germany but the Schumacher fans went home disappointed as the Ferraris locked out the front row in qualifying. Berger took pole ahead of Alesi, Hill, Schumacher down in fourth, Katayama and Coulthard. At the start Katayama got ahead of Hill and Schumacher and then Schumacher got by Hill. There was mayhem behind as Häkkinen hit Brundle and spun off, taking out Frentzen, Barrichello and Irvine, as well as knocking Coulthard's front wing out of place. Brundle braked to avoid the mess but was hit by Herbert, taking Herbert out. Behind, there was a collision between Martini and Alex Zanardi, taking out de Cesaris and Alboreto in the process. A total of 10 cars were out by the first corner. Surprisingly, the race was not red-flagged.

On the run down to the first chicane Alesi slowed with an electrical problem and retired in the pits, but also blocked Katayama, allowing both Schumacher and Hill to attack. Schumacher went through but Hill hit Katayama, damaging his front wing. Coulthard had to go on with a damaged car for an extra lap while the team put a new wing on Hill's car and sent him away. Brundle and Coulthard also rejoined after repairs as Berger was leading from Schumacher, Katayama, Olivier Panis, Bernard and Fittipaldi. Katayama retired on lap 7 with throttle troubles as Verstappen passed Fittipaldi. It was time for the stops and Verstappen retired with a spectacular fire as fuel spilled on to the bodywork of the car. He managed to escape relatively uninjured but the car was reduced to a smoldering wreck. The incident served to highlight the dangers of refuelling now it had been re-introduced to the sport, and paved the way for future safety measures. Schumacher retired on lap 20 with an engine failure.

With most of the major players out or far down the order after incidents, Berger took an emotional win which he dedicated to his friend Senna. A race of attrition saw some unfamiliar faces in the top six. Both Ligiers of Panis and Bernard finished on the podium, Fittipaldi and Morbidelli collected valuable points for Footwork and Comas picked up the final point for Larrousse.

Race Ten: Hungary[link]

The news before Hungary was that Häkkinen had been banned for one race for causing the pile-up in Germany and was replaced by Philippe Alliot. Schumacher was on pole ahead of Hill, Coulthard, Berger, Katayama and Brundle. At the start Irvine and Barrichello were quick and got ahead of Brundle and Katayama.

However, they collided into the second corner and took off Katayama as well. Schumacher led Hill, Coulthard, Berger, Brundle and Panis. Early on, Alesi passed Panis for sixth. Nothing changed as the order settled down, with the first round of stops leaving the same order. Finally, there was action behind as Berger stalled during the second round of pit stops and dropped behind Brundle, Alesi and Verstappen.

Both Ferrari engines then failed; Alesi's on lap 59 and Berger's on lap 73. Alesi's engine left oil on the track, and Coulthard spun on it into the wall. On the last lap, Brundle stopped with an electrical failure. Schumacher won from Hill, Verstappen, Brundle, Blundell and Panis.

Controversy surrounded Benetton following the Verstappen pit-fire at Hockenheim. The team was summoned to appear before the World Motorsport council on 19 October 1994, to explain why a filter had been removed from the refuelling rig. If found guilty, the team would be excluded from the championship, but they were acquitted. McLaren were also in the dock over the use of a fully automatic upchange device. They were also acquitted.

Race Eleven: Belgium[link]

The most notable aspect of this race was the alteration of the famous Eau Rouge corner into a slow chicane, due to safety fears after the Senna/Ratzenberger accidents. This was achieved simply by painting new boundary lines onto the track, with the original layout restored for 1995.

Häkkinen was back in Belgium after the ban, Philippe Adams replaced Zanardi at Lotus and Philippe Alliot moved from McLaren duties to replace Beretta at Larrousse. Rain in qualifying resulting in a scrambled grid order with Barrichello on pole from Schumacher, Hill, Irvine, Alesi and Verstappen. At the start Alesi was on the move, quickly getting ahead of Irvine and Hill. Schumacher took the lead on the run up the hill with Alesi following him to second soon after and Verstappen then passing Irvine. Schumacher led Alesi, Barrichello, Hill, Verstappen and Irvine.

Hill passed Barrichello for third and this became second when Alesi's engine failed on the next lap. Soon Häkkinen passed Irvine but Coulthard dropped back while trying to follow him through. Barrichello was passed by Verstappen and then Häkkinen attacked him. Barrichello cracked under the pressure and spun off on lap 20 into the wall, ending his race. On the next lap, Schumacher had a 360 degree spin at Pouhon, and his lead was significantly reduced when he rejoined. He kept a five second lead during the stops in which Häkkinen got ahead of Verstappen.

On lap 35, Coulthard passed Irvine, who then retired on lap 41 with three laps to go, with an alternator failure. Schumacher took the chequered flag, but was disqualified after the race because the wooden stepped flat bottom on Schumacher's car had been excessively worn away, more than the permitted 10% wear. Hill was reclassified as the winner ahead of Häkkinen, Verstappen, Coulthard, Blundell and Morbidelli.

Schumacher's ban (handed down after the British Grand Prix) stood after appeal and he would miss Italy and Portugal. He was replaced by Lehto.

Race Twelve: Italy[link]

Driver swapping continued as Zanardi got his seat back from Adams for Monza and Yannick Dalmas was back after almost 4 years absence, now partnering Comas at Larrousse. In Italy, the Ferrari fans were sent wild as their drivers took another 1-2 in qualifying, Alesi on pole ahead of Berger and Hill. Johnny Herbert qualified an impressive fourth in the new Lotus 109 and was followed by Coulthard and Panis. At the start, Herbert and Irvine got ahead of the Williamses but Irvine hit Herbert and Herbert spun, causing mayhem behind and a red flag. The second start was uneventful with Coulthard getting ahead of Herbert and Häkkinen getting ahead of Panis. Alesi led Berger, Hill, Coulthard, Herbert and Häkkinen.

While the Ferraris pulled away (Alesi pulling away from Berger), Häkkinen passed Herbert (in the spare Lotus, an older car) who retired on lap 13 when his alternator failed. Alesi then pitted but his car refused to engage a gear when he tried to rejoin resulting in his retirement. During Berger's stop, he was blocked by another car which was going into the pit. In his frustration, he accidentally stalled the car exiting his stop and lost over 10 seconds, dropping back to third. Coulthard also got ahead of Hill during the stops, however Hill passed Coulthard on lap 29 to take the lead.

Berger was closing in on them both, however the Williamses held him off and looked set to finish 1-2 until Coulthard slowed dramatically, as he ran out of fuel on the last lap. Hill won from Berger, Häkkinen, Barrichello, Brundle and Coulthard, who was classified sixth.

Eddie Irvine was given a one-race ban suspended for three races for his behaviour in the first corner incident at the first start.

With three-quarters of the season gone, Schumacher who had served one race of his two-race ban led the championship with 76 points, but Hill, second with 65 points was just 11 points behind. Berger was third with 33, Alesi fourth with 19, Häkkinen fifth with 18, Barrichello sixth with 13, Brundle seventh with 11 and Verstappen eighth with 8. In the Constructors Championship, Benetton led with 85 points but Williams were hot on their heels with 73. Ferrari were not too far behind on 58 with McLaren fourth on 29.

Race Thirteen: Portugal[link]

Schumacher was still banned as the field went to Portugal. Philippe Adams had another go in the financially struggling Lotus. In qualifying, Berger took pole ahead of Hill, Coulthard, Häkkinen, Alesi and Katayama. At the start, Coulthard got ahead of Hill and Alesi was ahead of Häkkinen. Berger was leading Coulthard, Hill, Alesi, Häkkinen and Katayama. Berger only lasted until lap 8 when his gearbox failed, promoting Barrichello to the points. Just before the stops, Katayama's gearbox also failed, on lap 27.

The stops did not change the order, with Coulthard leading ahead of Hill, Alesi, Häkkinen, Barrichello and Brundle. Coulthard went wide while lapping a backmarker on lap 33, and Hill edged ahead. On lap 39, when Alesi was coming up to lap David Brabham, they collided and both were out. Soon afterwards, Verstappen passed Brundle to take fifth. The second round of stops did not change anything. Hill won with Coulthard second, giving Williams a 1-2 and the lead in the Constructors Championship, ahead of Häkkinen, Barrichello, Verstappen and Brundle.

Race Fourteen: Europe[link]

To the new race in Jerez and there was major news. Schumacher was back after his ban, and with the CART season finished, Mansell replaced Coulthard for the remainder of the season in order to help Williams in the Constructors battle. Johnny Herbert was moved to from Lotus to Ligier in place of Eric Bernard, who travelled the opposite way to partner Zanardi. Two new faces arrived at the back of the grid, as Hideki Noda joined Larrousse and Domenico "Mimmo" Schiattarella replaced Jean-Marc Gounon at Simtek. Schumacher took pole ahead of Hill, Mansell, Frentzen, Berger and Barrichello. At the start, Hill took the lead from Schumacher while Mansell went backwards, losing three places with Barrichello getting ahead of Berger. Hill led from Schumacher, Frentzen, Barrichello, Berger and Mansell.

Mansell quickly passed Berger and then Barrichello to get up to fourth. During the stops, Hill messed up and the team, afraid that he would lose the lead, sent him back out too quickly without giving him enough fuel. Schumacher however was already ahead and Hill had to stop again for fuel. When he rejoined, he was over 20 seconds behind. Mansell too was slow and Barrichello was ahead of him. Mansell tried to pass him and there was contact. Both had to pit, with Mansell dropping to seventh and Barrichello going well down.

The result was the same when Berger attacked Frentzen but damage was minor. They rejoined in sixth and seventh, behind Häkkinen, Irvine and Mansell, with Berger ahead. Mansell, now fifth, spun off on lap 48 into retirement while trying to close the gap to Irvine. Schumacher won ahead of Hill, Häkkinen, Irvine, Berger and Frentzen.

With just two more races to go, there was a major battle for the Drivers Championship. Schumacher led the championship with 86 points, but Hill was right behind with 81. Berger was third with 35, Häkkinen fourth with 26, Alesi fifth with 19, Barrichello sixth with 16, Coulthard seventh with 14 and Brundle eighth with 12. The Constructors Championship was even closer as Benetton led with 97 points and Williams a mere 2 points behind on 95. Ferrari were third with 60, while McLaren were fourth with 38.

Race Fifteen: Japan[link]

More driver roulette followed before Japan. Benetton signed up Herbert from Ligier, in order to help them in the Constructors battle. This left Verstappen out of a drive for the last two races. JJ Lehto landed the Sauber seat for the remaining two races, vacated by Andrea de Cesaris who retired from the sport. Finn Mika Salo joined Lotus for the remainder of the season, Frenchman Franck Lagorce was promoted from Ligier test duties to race alongside Panis and Japanese driver Taki Inoue replaced Schiattarella for his home race. Mercedes-Benz ended months of speculation and confirmed their return to Formula 1 as an engine supplier for McLaren. Eddie Jordan immediately picked up a Peugeot works engine deal for his team for 1995.

Schumacher took pole ahead of Hill, Frentzen, Mansell, Herbert and Irvine. At the start the track was wet and it was raining heavily. Mansell went backwards again with Alesi getting ahead of Irvine. Schumacher was leading Hill, Frentzen, Herbert, Alesi and Irvine. Herbert spun off on lap 4 and retired, while Mansell soon passed Irvine.

On lap 14, Morbidelli crashed, and Brundle crashed off shortly after at the same point whilst the marshalls were still dealing with Morbidelli's car. Although no-one was hit by the car, one marshall was hit by debris and suffered a broken leg; the race was stopped. The race restarted after some time behind the Safety Car and Frentzen ran wide into the first corner, dropping down three places. Schumacher, who was just ahead on track but 6 seconds ahead on aggregate pitted early on lap 19. He took on fresh tyres and a fuel load that was insufficient to last to the end of the race. He rejoined 17 seconds behind Hill on aggregate but got caught in traffic and soon the gap was up to 30 seconds before it stabilized. This meant that Hill rejoined 7 seconds ahead on lap 25 when he pitted and fueled to the end of the race, but only 3 of his tyres were changed due to a sticking wheel nut. This, coupled with Hill's heavy fuel load appeared to hinder him and Schumacher began to close in.

On lap 36, Schumacher took the lead on aggregate, though he was still behind on the track. He pulled away rapidly, but he needed to pit again whereas Hill did not. On lap 40 Schumacher made his second stop, rejoining 15 seconds behind Hill on aggregate. Renowned for his ability in the wet and on fresher tyres, Schumacher closed in on Hill at a rate of over a second a lap, but ran out of time to catch him. Hill won by 3.3s to reduce his deficit in the Drivers Championship to 1 point, as well as giving Williams a 5 point lead in the Constructors Championship going into the last race, ahead of Schumacher, Alesi, Mansell, Irvine and Frentzen.

Race Sixteen: Australia[link]

For the final race of the season Jean-Denis Délétraz replaced Erik Comas at Larrousse and Schiattarella was back with Simtek after Taki Inoue's one-off deal at Suzuka. Peter Sauber confirmed a deal with a Ford engine for 1995.

Both Championships were going to be decided in Australia and Mansell took pole ahead of Schumacher, Hill, Häkkinen, Barrichello and Irvine. At the start, Mansell dropped backwards as was proving usual, with Irvine getting ahead of Barrichello, leaving the front six as Schumacher, Hill, Häkkinen, Irvine, Mansell and Barrichello. Schumacher and Hill, separated by a second pulled away at an astonishing rate from the field.

Mansell took fourth from Irvine on lap 10 and six laps later, Irvine spun off into the wall and retired. It did not take long for Mansell to pass Häkkinen but even then he was lapping over a second slower than Schumacher and Hill. During the stops, Schumacher and Hill stayed just over a second apart, while, behind, Berger got ahead of Alesi and both got ahead of Barrichello. Soon Berger passed Häkkinen, with Alesi following him through three laps later.

On lap 35, Schumacher went wide at the East Terrace corner and brushed the wall. He lost time but at the time, it was unclear whether his car was damaged or not. Hill was suddenly right behind him and saw his chance to pass, taking the inside line into the next corner. As Hill's Williams drew alongside the Benetton, Schumacher appeared to turn in aggressively and there was contact between the two rival cars. The Benetton was then momentarily flung into the air and was damaged badly enough to mean immediate retirement for the German. Hill's car initially appeared to be undamaged but it was soon apparent the Briton's front left wishbone was broken. Hill toured back slowly to the pits and after some time trying to repair the damage, retired. Whether this accident had been deliberately caused by Schumacher - in the knowledge he had damaged his car in running wide at the East Terrace Corner - remains a matter of some debate, however it handed Michael Schumacher the first of his FIA Formula One World Championships.

Mansell and the two Ferraris fought for the lead, but Alesi lost a full lap and dropped down to eighth during the second round of stops because of trouble fixing a tyre and then stalling his car while trying to leave. Behind, Brundle got ahead of Barrichello. On lap 77, Häkkinen's brakes failed, sending him into the wall and into retirement. Mansell took his 31st career win ahead of Berger, Brundle, Barrichello, Panis and Alesi.

Thus, at the end of the season, Schumacher with 92 points pipped Hill on 91 by just one point. Controversy and speculation was abound about this result, however the FIA took no action as Williams, who were still dealing with Senna's death, did not protest. Berger came third with 41, Häkkinen fourth with 26, Alesi fifth with 24, Barrichello sixth with 19, Brundle seventh with 16 and Coulthard eighth with 14. In the Constructors Championship, Williams with 118 points beat Benetton on 103. Ferrari were third with 71 and McLaren were fourth with 42.

Drivers and constructors[link]

The following teams and drivers competed in the 1994 FIA Formula One World Championship.

Entrant	Constructor	Chassis	Engine	Tyre	No	Driver	Rounds	Test driver(s)
Rothmans Williams Renault	Williams-Renault	FW16 FW16B	Renault RS6 3.5 V10	G	0	Damon Hill	All	David Coulthard
					2	Ayrton Senna	1-3
						David Coulthard	5-6, 8-13
						Nigel Mansell	7, 14-16
Tyrrell Racing Organisation	Tyrrell-Yamaha	022	Yamaha OX10B 3.5 V10	G	3	Ukyo Katayama	All	n/a
					4	Mark Blundell	All
Mild Seven Benetton Ford	Benetton-Ford	B194	Ford ECA Zetec-R 3.5 V8	G	5	Michael Schumacher	1-11, 14-16	Jos Verstappen Paul Tracy
						JJ Lehto	12-13
					6	Jos Verstappen	1-2, 7-14
						JJ Lehto	3-6
						Johnny Herbert	15-16
Marlboro McLaren Peugeot	McLaren-Peugeot	MP4/9	Peugeot A6 3.5 V10	G	7	Mika Häkkinen	1-9, 11-16	Philippe Alliot
						Philippe Alliot	10
					8	Martin Brundle	All
Footwork Ford	Footwork-Ford	FA15	Ford HBE7/8 3.5 V8	G	9	Christian Fittipaldi	All	n/a
					10	Gianni Morbidelli	All
Team Lotus	Lotus-Mugen-Honda	107C 109	Mugen Honda MF-351 HC 3.5 V10 Mugen Honda MF-351 HD 3.5 V10	G	11	Pedro Lamy	1-4	n/a
						Alessandro Zanardi	5-10, 12
						Philippe Adams	11, 13
						Éric Bernard	14
						Mika Salo	15-16
					12	Johnny Herbert	1-13
						Alessandro Zanardi	14-16
Sasol Jordan	Jordan-Hart	194	Hart 1035 3.5 V10	G	14	Rubens Barrichello	All	n/a
					15	Eddie Irvine	1, 5-16
						Aguri Suzuki	2
						Andrea de Cesaris	3-4
Tourtel Larrousse F1	Larrousse-Ford	LH94	Ford HBF7/8 3.5 V8	G	19	Olivier Beretta	1-10	n/a
						Philippe Alliot	11
						Yannick Dalmas	12-13
						Hideki Noda	14-16
					20	Érik Comas	1-15
						Jean-Denis Délétraz	16
Minardi Scuderia Italia	Minardi-Ford	M193B M194	Ford HBC7/8 3.5 V8	G	23	Pierluigi Martini	All	Luca Badoer
					24	Michele Alboreto	All
Ligier Gitanes Blondes	Ligier-Renault	JS39B	Renault RS6 3.5 V10	G	25	Éric Bernard	1-13	Franck Lagorce
						Johnny Herbert	14
						Franck Lagorce	15-16
					26	Olivier Panis	All
Scuderia Ferrari	Ferrari	412T1 412T1B	Ferrari 043 3.5 V12	G	27	Jean Alesi	1, 4-16	Nicola Larini
						Nicola Larini	2-3
					28	Gerhard Berger	All
Broker Sauber Mercedes Sauber Mercedes	Sauber-Mercedes-Benz	C13	Mercedes-Benz 2175B 3.5 V10	G	29	Karl Wendlinger	1-4	n/a
						Andrea de Cesaris	6-14
						JJ Lehto	15-16
					30	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	All
MTV Simtek Ford	Simtek-Ford	S941	Ford HBD6 3.5 V8	G	31	David Brabham	All	Andrea Montermini
					32	Roland Ratzenberger	1-3
						Andrea Montermini	5
						Jean-Marc Gounon	7-13
						Domenico Schiattarella	14, 16
						Taki Inoue	15
Pacific Grand Prix	Pacific-Ilmor	PR01	Ilmor 2175A 3.5 V10	G	33	Paul Belmondo	All	Giovanni Lavaggi Oliver Gavin
					34	Bertrand Gachot	All

• With the retirement of reigning champion Alain Prost, the car number 1 was not assigned and Hill ran with number 0.

Formula One 1994 race schedule[link]

Round	Race Title	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	Grande Prêmio do Brasil	Brazilian GP	Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo	27 March
2	Pacific Grand Prix	Pacific GP	TI Circuit, Aida	17 April
3	Gran Premio di San Marino	San Marino GP	Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, Imola	1 May
4	Grand Prix de Monaco	Monaco GP	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	15 May
5	Gran Premio Marlboro de España	Spanish GP	Circuit de Catalunya, Barcelona	29 May
6	Grand Prix Molson du Canada	Canadian GP	Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Montreal	12 June
7	Grand Prix de France	French GP	Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours	3 July
8	British Grand Prix	British GP	Silverstone Circuit	10 July
9	Großer Mobil 1 Preis von Deutschland	German GP	Hockenheimring	31 July
10	Marlboro Magyar Nagydíj	Hungarian GP	Hungaroring, Budapest	14 August
11	Belgian Grand Prix	Belgian GP	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Spa	28 August
12	Pioneer Gran Premio d'Italia	Italian GP	Autodromo Nazionale Monza	11 September
13	Grande Prémio de Portugal	Portuguese GP	Autódromo do Estoril	25 September
14	Gran Premio de Europa	European GP	Circuito Permanente de Jerez	16 October
15	Fuji Television Japanese Grand Prix	Japanese GP	Suzuka Circuit	6 November
16	Adelaide Australian Grand Prix	Australian GP	Adelaide Street Circuit	13 November

• An Argentine Grand Prix had been set on the schedule for October 16, but it was aborted as the track, which was being modernized since 1991, was not finished with the project. The race was moved to Jerez to become the European Grand Prix^[2]

Season review[link]

Grands Prix[link]

Round	Grand Prix	Pole Position	Fastest Lap	Winning Driver	Winning Constructor	Report
1	Brazilian Grand Prix	Ayrton Senna	Michael Schumacher	Michael Schumacher	Benetton-Ford	Report
2	Pacific Grand Prix	Ayrton Senna	Michael Schumacher	Michael Schumacher	Benetton-Ford	Report
3	San Marino Grand Prix	Ayrton Senna	Damon Hill	Michael Schumacher	Benetton-Ford	Report
4	Monaco Grand Prix	Michael Schumacher	Michael Schumacher	Michael Schumacher	Benetton-Ford	Report
5	Spanish Grand Prix	Michael Schumacher	Michael Schumacher	Damon Hill	Williams-Renault	Report
6	Canadian Grand Prix	Michael Schumacher	Michael Schumacher	Michael Schumacher	Benetton-Ford	Report
7	French Grand Prix	Damon Hill	Damon Hill	Michael Schumacher	Benetton-Ford	Report
8	British Grand Prix	Damon Hill	Damon Hill	Damon Hill	Williams-Renault	Report
9	German Grand Prix	Gerhard Berger	David Coulthard	Gerhard Berger	Ferrari	Report
10	Hungarian Grand Prix	Michael Schumacher	Michael Schumacher	Michael Schumacher	Benetton-Ford	Report
11	Belgian Grand Prix	Rubens Barrichello	Damon Hill	Damon Hill	Williams-Renault	Report
12	Italian Grand Prix	Jean Alesi	Damon Hill	Damon Hill	Williams-Renault	Report
13	Portuguese Grand Prix	Gerhard Berger	David Coulthard	Damon Hill	Williams-Renault	Report
14	European Grand Prix	Michael Schumacher	Michael Schumacher	Michael Schumacher	Benetton-Ford	Report
15	Japanese Grand Prix	Michael Schumacher	Damon Hill	Damon Hill	Williams-Renault	Report
16	Australian Grand Prix	Nigel Mansell	Michael Schumacher	Nigel Mansell	Williams-Renault	Report

Drivers[link]

Pos Driver BRA PAC SMR MON ESP CAN FRA GBR GER HUN BEL ITA POR EUR JPN AUS Points 1 Michael Schumacher 1 1 1 1 2 1 1 DSQ Ret 1 DSQ EX EX 1 2 Ret 92 2 Damon Hill 2 Ret 6 Ret 1 2 2 1 8 2 1 1 1 2 1 Ret 91 3 Gerhard Berger Ret 2 Ret 3 Ret 4 3 Ret 1 12† Ret 2 Ret 5 Ret 2 41 4 Mika Häkkinen Ret Ret 3 Ret Ret Ret Ret 3 Ret 2 3 3 3 7 12† 26 5 Jean Alesi 3 5 4 3 Ret 2 Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret 10 3 6 24 6 Rubens Barrichello 4 3 DNQ Ret Ret 7 Ret 4 Ret Ret Ret 4 4 12 Ret 4 19 7 Martin Brundle Ret Ret 8 2 11† Ret Ret Ret Ret 4† Ret 5 6 Ret Ret 3 16 8 David Coulthard Ret 5 5 Ret Ret 4 6† 2 14 9 Nigel Mansell Ret Ret 4 1 13 10 Jos Verstappen Ret Ret Ret 8 Ret 3 3 Ret 5 Ret 10 11 Olivier Panis 11 9 11 9 7 12 Ret 12 2 6 7 10 DSQ 9 11 5 9 12 Mark Blundell Ret Ret 9 Ret 3 10† 10 Ret Ret 5 5 Ret Ret 13 Ret Ret 8 13 Heinz-Harald Frentzen Ret 5 7 DNS Ret Ret 4 7 Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret 6 6 7 7 14 Nicola Larini Ret 2 6 15 Christian Fittipaldi Ret 4 13† Ret Ret DSQ 8 9 4 14† Ret Ret 8 17 8 8 6 16 Eddie Irvine Ret EX EX EX 6 Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret 13† Ret 7 4 5 Ret 6 17 Ukyo Katayama 5 Ret 5 Ret Ret Ret Ret 6 Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret 7 Ret Ret 5 18 Éric Bernard Ret 10 12 Ret 8 13 Ret 13 3 10 10 7 10 18 4 19 Karl Wendlinger 6 Ret 4 DNS 4 20 Andrea de Cesaris Ret 4 Ret 6 Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret 4 21 Pierluigi Martini 8 Ret Ret Ret 5 9 5 10 Ret Ret 8 Ret 12 15 Ret 9 4 22 Gianni Morbidelli Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret 5 Ret 6 Ret 9 11 Ret Ret 3 23 Érik Comas 9 6 Ret 10 Ret Ret 11† Ret 6 8 Ret 8 Ret Ret 9 2 24 JJ Lehto Ret 7 Ret 6 9 Ret Ret 10 1 25 Michele Alboreto Ret Ret Ret 6 Ret 11 Ret Ret Ret 7 9 Ret 13 14 Ret Ret 1 — Johnny Herbert 7 7 10 Ret Ret 8 7 11 Ret Ret 12 Ret 11 8 Ret Ret 0 — Olivier Beretta Ret Ret Ret 8 Ret Ret Ret 14 7 9 0 — Pedro Lamy 10 8 Ret 11 0 — Jean-Marc Gounon 9 16 Ret Ret 11 Ret 15 0 — Alessandro Zanardi 9 15 Ret Ret Ret 13 Ret 16 13 Ret 0 — David Brabham 12 Ret Ret Ret 10 14 Ret 15 Ret 11 Ret Ret Ret Ret 12 Ret 0 — Mika Salo 10 Ret 0 — Franck Lagorce Ret 11 0 — Roland Ratzenberger DNQ 11 DNS1 0 — Yannick Dalmas Ret 14 0 — Philippe Adams Ret 16 0 — Domenico Schiattarella 19 Ret 0 — Bertrand Gachot Ret DNQ Ret Ret Ret Ret DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ 0 — Ayrton Senna Ret Ret Ret2 0 — Hideki Noda Ret Ret Ret 0 — Paul Belmondo DNQ DNQ DNQ Ret Ret DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ 0 — Philippe Alliot Ret Ret 0 — Aguri Suzuki Ret 0 — Taki Inoue Ret 0 — Jean-Denis Délétraz Ret 0 — Andrea Montermini DNQ 0 Pos Driver BRA PAC SMR MON ESP CAN FRA GBR GER HUN BEL ITA POR EUR JPN AUS Points

Key Colour Result Gold Winner Silver 2nd place Bronze 3rd place Green Points finish Blue Non-points finish Non-classified finish (NC) Purple Did not finish (Ret) Red Did not qualify (DNQ) Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ) Black Disqualified (DSQ) White Did not start (DNS) Race cancelled (C) Light blue Practiced only (PO) Friday test driver (TD) (from 2003 onwards) Blank Did not practice (DNP) Excluded (EX) Did not arrive (DNA) Withdrew entry before the event (WD) Bold – Pole Italics – Fastest lap

^† Drivers did not finish the Grand Prix, but were classified as they completed over 90% of the race distance.

Notes[link]

¹ Roland Ratzenberger died in a crash during qualifying for the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix. He was 33 years old.
² Ayrton Senna died in a crash at Tamburello corner while leading the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix. He was 34 years old.

Constructors[link]

Williams Renault won the 1994 Constructors Championship

Bennetton Ford placed 2nd

Ferrari placed 3rd

McLaren Peugeot placed 4th

Pos	Constructor	Car no.	BRA	PAC	SMR	MON	ESP	CAN	FRA	GBR	GER	HUN	BEL	ITA	POR	EUR	JPN	AUS	Points
1	Williams-Renault	0	2	Ret	6	Ret	1	2	2	1	8	2	1	1	1	2	1	Ret	118
		2	Ret	Ret	Ret		Ret	5	Ret	5	Ret	Ret	4	6†	2	Ret	4	1
2	Benetton-Ford	5	1	1	1	1	2	1	1	DSQ	Ret	1	DSQ	9	Ret	1	2	Ret	103
		6	Ret	Ret	Ret	7	Ret	6	Ret	8	Ret	3	3	Ret	5	Ret	Ret	Ret
3	Ferrari	27	3	Ret	2	5	4	3	Ret	2	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	10	3	6	71
		28	Ret	2	Ret	3	Ret	4	3	Ret	1	12†	Ret	2	Ret	5	Ret	2
4	McLaren-Peugeot	7	Ret	Ret	3	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	3	Ret	Ret	2	3	3	3	7	12†	42
		8	Ret	Ret	8	2	11†	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	4†	Ret	5	6	Ret	Ret	3
5	Jordan-Hart	14	4	3	DNQ	Ret	Ret	7	Ret	4	Ret	Ret	Ret	4	4	12	Ret	4	28
		15	Ret	Ret	Ret	4	6	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	13†	Ret	7	4	5	Ret
6	Ligier-Renault	25	Ret	10	12	Ret	8	13	Ret	13	3	10	10	7	10	8	Ret	11	13
		26	11	9	11	9	7	12	Ret	12	2	6	7	10	DSQ	9	11	5
7	Tyrrell-Yamaha	3	5	Ret	5	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	6	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	7	Ret	Ret	13
		4	Ret	Ret	9	Ret	3	10†	10	Ret	Ret	5	5	Ret	Ret	13	Ret	Ret
8	Sauber-Mercedes	29	6	Ret	4	DNS		Ret	6	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	10	12
		30	Ret	5	7	DNS	Ret	Ret	4	7	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	6	6	7
9	Footwork-Ford	9	Ret	4	13†	Ret	Ret	DSQ	8	9	4	14†	Ret	Ret	8	17	8	8	9
		10	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	5	Ret	6	Ret	9	11	Ret	Ret
10	Minardi-Ford	23	8	Ret	Ret	Ret	5	9	5	10	Ret	Ret	8	Ret	12	15	Ret	9	5
		24	Ret	Ret	Ret	6	Ret	11	Ret	Ret	Ret	7	9	Ret	13	14	Ret	Ret
11	Larrousse-Ford	19	9	6	Ret	10	Ret	Ret	11†	Ret	6	8	Ret	8	Ret	Ret	9	Ret	2
		20	Ret	Ret	Ret	8	Ret	Ret	Ret	14	7	9	Ret	Ret	14	Ret	Ret	Ret
—	Lotus-Mugen-Honda	11	10	8	Ret	11	9	15	Ret	Ret	Ret	13	Ret	Ret	16	16	13	Ret	0
		12	7	7	10	Ret	Ret	8	7	11	Ret	Ret	12	Ret	11	18	10	Ret
—	Simtek-Ford	31	12	Ret	Ret	Ret	10	14	Ret	15	Ret	11	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	12	Ret	0
		32	DNQ	11	DNS		DNQ		9	16	Ret	Ret	11	Ret	15	19	Ret	Ret
—	Pacific-Ilmor	33	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	Ret	Ret	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	0
		34	Ret	DNQ	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ
Pos	Constructor	Car no.	BRA	PAC	SMR	MON	ESP	CAN	FRA	GBR	GER	HUN	BEL	ITA	POR	EUR	JPN	AUS	Points

See also[link]

• 1994 Formula One cheating controversy
• Death of Ayrton Senna

References[link]

External links[link]

• formula1.com – 1994 official driver standings
• formula1.com – 1994 official team standings

Ayrton Senna

Senna at the 1989 San Marino Grand Prix
Born	(1960-03-21)21 March 1960 São Paulo, Brazil
Died	1 May 1994(1994-05-01) (aged 34) Bologna, Italy
Formula One World Championship career
Nationality	Brazilian
Active years	1984–1994
Teams	Toleman, Lotus, McLaren, Williams
Races	162 (161 starts)
Championships	3 (1988, 1990, 1991)
Wins	41
Podiums	80
Career points	610 (614)[1]
Pole positions	65
Fastest laps	19
First race	1984 Brazilian Grand Prix
First win	1985 Portuguese Grand Prix
Last win	1993 Australian Grand Prix
Last race	1994 San Marino Grand Prix

Ayrton Senna's signature

Ayrton Senna da Silva (pronounced [aˈiɾtõ ˈsenɐ da ˈsiwvɐ] ( listen); 21 March 1960 – 1 May 1994) was a Brazilian racing driver. Senna was a three-time Formula One world champion and is widely regarded as one of the greatest F1 drivers of all time.^{[2][3][4][5][6][7]} He died in a crash at Tamburello corner while leading the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix and is the most recent driver to die at the wheel of a Formula One car.

Senna began his motorsport career in karting, moving up to open-wheel racing in 1981, and winning the British Formula 3 championship in 1983. He made his Formula One debut with Toleman-Hart in 1984 before moving to Lotus-Renault the following year and winning six Grands Prix over the next three seasons. In 1988, he joined Frenchman Alain Prost at McLaren-Honda. Between them, they won all but one of the 16 Grands Prix that year and Senna his first World Championship. Prost claimed the championship in 1989, and Senna his second and third championships in 1990 and 1991. In 1992, the Williams-Renault combination began to dominate Formula One. Senna nonetheless managed to finish the 1993 season as runner-up, winning five races and negotiating a move to Williams in 1994.

Senna was recognised for his qualifying speed over one lap and from 1989 until 2006 held the record for most pole positions. He was especially quick in wet conditions, as shown by his performances in the 1984 Monaco Grand Prix, the 1985 Portuguese Grand Prix, and the 1993 European Grand Prix. He also holds the record for most victories at the prestigious Monaco Grand Prix – six – and is the third most successful driver of all time in terms of race wins. Senna courted controversy throughout his career, particularly during his turbulent rivalry with Alain Prost. Both the 1989 Championship won by Prost and the 1990 Championship won by Senna were decided by collisions between them at those years' Japanese Grands Prix.

Early life and career[link]

Senna was born in Santana, a neighbourhood of São Paulo city,^[8] the son of wealthy Brazilian landowner and factory owner Milton da Silva and his wife Neide Senna da Silva (whose family is of Italian lineage). He was highly athletic, excelling in gymnastics and other sports, and developed an interest in cars and motor racing at the age of four.

Senna's first kart was a small 1 HP go-kart, built by his father using a lawnmower engine. Senna entered karting competition at the age of 13^[9] and, in 1977, 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.^[10]

In 1981, Senna moved to England to begin single-seater racing, winning the RAC and Townsend-Thoreson Formula Ford 1600 Championships that year with the Van Diemen team. Despite this, Senna initially did not believe he would continue in motorsport. At the end of the season, under pressure from his parents to take up a role in the family business, he returned to Brazil.^[11] Before leaving England, however, Senna was offered a drive with a Formula Ford 2000 team for £10,000. Back in Brazil, he decided to take up this offer and returned to live in England. As Silva is a very common Brazilian name, he adopted his mother's maiden name, Senna.^[12] Senna went on to win the 1982 British and European Formula Ford 2000 championships under that surname.

In 1983, Senna drove in the British Formula Three Championship with the West Surrey Racing team. He dominated the first half of the season until Martin Brundle, driving a similar car for Eddie Jordan Racing, closed the gap in the second part of the championship. Senna won the title at the final round after a closely fought and, at times, acrimonious battle.^[13] In November that year, he triumphed at the inaugural Macau Formula 3 Grand Prix with Teddy Yip's Toyota powered Theodore Racing Team.^[14][15]

Formula One career[link]

1984: Toleman[link]

Senna's Toleman TG184 from 1984 on display in the Donington Grand Prix Collection

Senna tested for Formula One teams Williams, McLaren, Brabham and Toleman. Peter Warr of Lotus, Ron Dennis of McLaren, and Bernie Ecclestone of Brabham made offers for testing in 1984 and presented long-term contracts that tied Senna to driving later on. At his test for Williams at Donington Park, Senna completed 40 laps and was quicker than the other drivers inculding Keke Rosberg.^[16] Neither Williams nor McLaren had a vacancy for the 1984 season.^[16] Warr actually wanted to replace Nigel Mansell with Senna at Lotus, but the title sponsor, Imperial Tobacco, wanted a British driver. Senna, however, was determined to drive that season and certainly on his own terms. Senna was also linked to Brabham's second seat, but the lead driver, Nelson Piquet, preferred Roberto Moreno.^[17] Consequently, he joined Toleman, a relatively new team, using less competitive Pirelli tyres.^[18][19] Venezuelan Johnny Cecotto was his team mate.

Senna made his debut at the Brazilian Grand Prix in Rio de Janeiro. He scored his first World Championship point in his second race at the South African Grand Prix with severe muscle spasms, replicating that result two weeks later at the Belgian Grand Prix. A combination of tyre issues and a fuel pressure problem resulted in his failure to qualify for the San Marino Grand Prix, the only time this happened during his career.^[20] Senna's best result of the season came at the Monaco Grand Prix, the first wet weather race of the season. Qualifying 13th on the grid, he made steady progress in climbing through the field, passing Niki Lauda for second on lap 19. He quickly began to cut the gap to race leader Alain Prost, but before he could attack Prost the race was stopped on lap 31 for safety reasons, as the rain had grown even heavier. At the time the race was stopped Senna was catching Prost at 4 seconds per lap.^[21] Senna finally passed Prost during the 32nd lap at the end of which the red flag was shown. However according to the rules, the positions counted were those from the last lap completed by every driver, lap 31, at which point Prost was still leading.^[22] Senna's second place was his first podium in Formula One.

Still in 1984, Senna took two more podium finishes that year—third at the British and Portuguese Grands Prix—and placed 9th in the Drivers Championship with 13 points overall. He did not take part in the Italian Grand Prix after he was suspended by Toleman for being in breach of his contract by signing for Lotus for 1985 without informing the Toleman team first.^[23]

Senna also raced in two high-profile non-Formula One races in 1984: The ADAC 1000 km Nürburgring where, alongside Henri Pescarolo and Stefan Johansson, he co-drove a Joest Racing Porsche 956 to finish 8th, as well as an exhibition race to celebrate the opening of the new Nürburgring, which was attended by several Formula 1 drivers, each driving identical Mercedes 190E 2.3–16. Senna won from Niki Lauda and Carlos Reutemann.^[24][25] After the race Senna was quoted as saying, "Now I know I can do it."^[26]

1985–1987: Lotus[link]

1985

Senna was partnered in his first year at Lotus-Renault by Italian driver Elio de Angelis. At the second round of the season, the Portuguese Grand Prix, Senna took the first pole position of his Formula 1 career. He converted it into his first victory in the race, which was held in very wet conditions, winning by over a minute from Michele Alboreto.^[27] He would not finish in the points again until coming second at the Austrian Grand Prix, despite taking pole three more times in the intervening period. (His determination to take pole at the Monaco Grand Prix had infuriated Alboreto and Niki Lauda; Senna had set a fast time early and was accused of deliberately baulking the other drivers by running more laps than necessary, a charge he rejected.)^[28] Two more podiums followed in the Netherlands and Italy, before Senna added his second victory, again in wet conditions, at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium.^[29] Senna's relationship with De Angelis soured over the season, as both drivers demanded top driver status within Lotus and, after spending six years at the team, De Angelis departed for Brabham at the end of the year, convinced that Lotus were becoming focused around the Brazilian.^[30] Senna and De Angelis finished the season 4th and 5th respectively in the driver rankings, separated by five points in the quick but unreliable 97T. In terms of qualifying, however, Senna had begun to establish himself as the quickest in the field: his tally of seven poles that season was far more than that of any of the other drivers.

1986

Senna driving for Lotus at the 1986 British Grand Prix

De Angelis was replaced at Lotus by Scot Johnny Dumfries after Senna vetoed Derek Warwick from joining the team, saying that Lotus were not able to run competitive cars for two top drivers at the same time. Senna later admitted "It was bad, bad. Until then I had a good relationship with Derek."^[31] Senna started the season well, coming second in Brazil and winning the Spanish Grand Prix by just 0.014s from Nigel Mansell—one of the closest finishes in Formula One history—to find himself leading the World Championship after two races.^[32] However, poor reliability, particularly in the second half of the season, saw him drift behind the Williams pairing of Mansell and Piquet, as well as eventual champion, Alain Prost. Nonetheless, Senna was once more the top qualifier, with eight poles, and he took a further six podium finishes that season, including another victory at the Detroit Grand Prix, and finished the season fourth in the driver's standings again, with 55 points.

After winning the Detroit Grand Prix, two days after Brazil was eliminated from the 1986 FIFA World Cup, Senna asked a supporter for the Brazilian flag and drove one lap waving the flag. Thereafter, he repeated this ritual every time he won a race.

1987

Lotus had a new engine deal in 1987, running the same Honda engines as Williams had used to win the previous year's Constructors' Championship, and with them came a new team-mate, 34 year-old Japanese driver, Satoru Nakajima. Senna started the season with mixed fortunes: a podium at the San Marino Grand Prix was tempered by controversy at the following race at Spa-Francorchamps, where he collided with Mansell and was confronted by the angered Englishman in the pits afterwards.^[33] Senna then won two races in a row: the ensuing Monaco Grand Prix (the first of his record six victories at the Principality) and the Detroit Grand Prix, his second victory in two years at the Michigan street circuit, to take the lead in the World Championship. As the championship wore on however, it became evident that the Williams cars had the advantage over the rest of the field, the gap between the Honda-engined teams made most obvious at the British Grand Prix, where Mansell and Piquet lapped the Lotuses of Senna and Nakajima. Senna became dissatisfied with his chances at Lotus and at Monza it was announced that he would be joining McLaren for 1988.^[34] Senna finished the season strongly, coming second in the final two races in Japan and Australia, however post-race scrutineering at the final race found the brake ducts of his Lotus to be wider than permitted by the rules and he was disqualified, bringing his last and most successful season with Lotus to a sour end.^[35] Senna was classified third in the final standings, with 57 points, one pole position and six podium finishes. This season marked a turning point in Senna's career as, throughout the year, he built a deep relationship with Honda, one which would pay big dividends, as McLaren had secured Williams' supply of Honda's V6 turbo engines for 1988.^[36]

1988–1993: McLaren[link]

1988

Senna won his first World Championship in 1988 driving the McLaren MP4/4.

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.^[37] 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 five years.^[38] At the 1988 Portuguese Grand Prix, Prost made a slightly faster start than Senna but the Brazilian dived into the first corner ahead. Prost responded and went to pass Senna at the end of the first lap. Senna swerved to block Prost, forcing the Frenchman to nearly run into the pitwall at 180 mph (290 km/h). Prost kept his foot down and soon edged Senna into the first corner and started pulling away. Though Prost was angered by Senna's manoeuvre, the Brazilian got away with a warning from the FIA. Senna would later apologize to Prost for the incident. Ultimately, the pair won 15 of 16 races in the McLaren MP4/4 in 1988 with Senna coming out on top, winning his first Formula One world championship title by taking eight wins to Prost's seven (Prost had scored more points over the season, but had to drop three second places as only the 11 best scores counted).^[39]

1989

Senna driving the McLaren MP4/5 in 1989

The following year, the rivalry between Senna and Prost intensified into numerous battles on the track and a psychological war off it.^[40] Tension and mistrust between the two drivers increased when Senna overtook Prost at the restart of the San Marino Grand Prix, a move which Prost claimed violated a pre-race agreement. Senna took an early lead in the championship with victories in San Marino, Monaco, and Mexico. However, unreliability in Phoenix, Canada, France, Britain and Italy, together with collisions in Brazil and Portugal, swung the title in Prost's favour.

Senna talking to the press in Imola during the 1989 San Marino Grand Prix

Prost took the 1989 world title after a collision with Senna at the Suzuka Circuit in Japan, the penultimate race of the season, which Senna needed to win to remain in contention for the title. Senna had attempted an inside pass on Prost who turned into the corner and cut him off, with the two McLarens finishing up with their wheels interlocked in the Suzuka chicane escape road. Senna then got a push-start from marshals, pitted to replace the damaged nose of his car, and rejoined the race. He took the lead from the Benetton of Alessandro Nannini and went on to finish first, only to be disqualified by the FIA (at the insistence of Prost^{[citation needed]} who ran into the race marshals' office after seeing Senna rejoin the race) for cutting the chicane after the collision, and for crossing into the pit lane entry (not part of the track).^[41] A large fine and temporary suspension of his Super License followed in the winter of 1989, and an irate Senna engaged in a bitter war of words with the FIA and its then President Jean-Marie Balestre.^[42] Senna finished the season second with six wins and one second place. Prost left McLaren for rivals Ferrari for the following year.

1990

In 1990, Senna took a commanding lead in the championship with six wins, two second places and three thirds. His most memorable victories were at the opening round in Phoenix, in which he diced for the lead for several laps with a then-unknown Jean Alesi before coming out on top, and at Germany where he fought Benetton driver Alessandro Nannini throughout the race for the win. As the season reached its final quarter however, Alain Prost in his Ferrari rose to the challenge with five wins, including a crucial victory in Spain where he and teammate Nigel Mansell finished 1–2 for the Scuderia. Senna had gone out with a damaged radiator and the gap between Senna and Prost was now reduced to 11 points with two races remaining.

At the penultimate round of the Championship in Japan at Suzuka (the same circuit where Senna and Prost had their collision a year before), Senna took pole ahead of Prost. The pole position in Suzuka was universally known to be on the left-hand, racing-line of the track. However, at FIA President Balestre's direction (no-one else has the power to make this order) Prost was given the racing-line start position and Senna was placed on the right-hand, dirty side of the track. As a result, Ferrari made a better start and pulled ahead of Senna's McLaren. At the first turn Senna aggressively kept his inside line, while Prost turned in and the McLaren ploughed into the rear wheel of Prost's Ferrari at about 270 km/h (170 mph), putting both cars off the track, this time making Senna the Formula 1 world champion.^[43] A year later, after taking his third world championship, Senna explained to the press his actions of the previous year in Suzuka. He maintained that prior to qualifying fastest, he had sought and received assurances from race officials that pole position would be changed to the left-hand, clean side of the track, only to find this decision reversed by Jean-Marie Balestre after he had taken pole.^[44] Explaining the collision with Prost, Senna said that what he had wanted was to make it clear that he was not going to accept the unquestionably unfair decision-making by Balestre, including his 1989 disqualification and the incorrect pole position in 1990.^[45] Senna also testified that no matter what happened he would not yield the corner and that Prost taking his normal racing line (to which the leading driver is entitled) would result in an accident. Prost would later go on record slamming Senna's actions as "disgusting" and that he seriously considered retiring from the sport after that incident.^[37]

1991

Senna won the 1991 United States Grand Prix in his McLaren MP4/6.

Senna captured his third title in 1991, taking seven wins and staying largely clear of controversy. Prost, because of the downturn in performance at Ferrari, was no longer a serious competitor. Senna won the first four races. By mid-season, Mansell in the more advanced Williams was able to put up a challenge. There were some memorable moments, such as at the Spanish Grand Prix when Senna and Mansell went wheel to wheel with only centimetres to spare, at over 320 km/h (200 mph) down the main straight, a race that the Briton eventually won. Quite a different spectacle was offered following Mansell's victory in the British Grand Prix at Silverstone. Senna's car had come to a halt on the final lap but he was not left stranded out on the circuit, as Mansell pulled over on his parade lap and allowed the Brazilian to ride on the Williams side-pod back to the pits. Though Senna's consistency and the Williams's unreliability at the beginning of the season gave him an early advantage, Senna insisted that Honda step up their engine development program and demanded further improvements to the car before it was too late. These modifications enabled him to make a late season push and he managed to win three more races to secure the championship, which was settled for good in Japan (yet again) when Mansell (who needed to win), went off at the first corner while running third and beached his Williams-Renault into the gravel trap. Senna finished second, handing the victory to teammate Gerhard Berger at the last corner as a thank-you gesture for his support over the season. Senna was planning to move to the Williams team for the 1992 season, but Honda's CEO, Nobuhiko Kawamoto, personally requested that he remain at McLaren-Honda, which Senna did out of a sense of loyalty.^[46]

1992

Ayrton Senna driving the McLaren MP4/7A at Monte-Carlo

In 1992, Senna's determination to win manifested itself in dismay at McLaren's inability to challenge Williams's all-conquering FW14B car.^[47] McLaren's new car for the season had several shortcomings. There was delay in getting the new model running (it debuted in the third race of the season, the Brazilian Grand Prix) and in addition to lacking active suspension, the new car suffered from reliability issues, was unpredictable in fast corners, while its Honda V12 engine was no longer the most powerful on the circuit.^[48] Senna scored wins in Monaco, Hungary, and Italy that year. During qualifying for the Belgian Grand Prix, French driver Érik Comas crashed heavily and Senna was the first to arrive at the scene. He got out of his car and ran across the track to help the Frenchman, disregarding his own safety in an effort to aid a fellow driver. He later went to visit Comas in hospital. Senna finished fourth overall in the championship, behind the Williams duo of Mansell and Patrese, and Benetton's Michael Schumacher.^[49][50]

1993

Senna came from the back of the field to finish fourth at the 1993 German Grand Prix at Hockenheim.

Questions about Senna's intentions for 1993 lingered throughout 1992, as he did not have a contract with any team by the end of the year. He felt the McLaren cars were less competitive than in previous years (especially after Honda bowed out of Formula 1 at the end of the 1992 season and preseason testing with a Lamborghini V12 unit proved fruitless). Joining Williams alongside Prost (who had secured a drive for the team for 1993) became impossible, since Prost had a clause on his contract vetoing Senna as a team-mate, even though the Brazilian offered to drive for free. An infuriated Senna called Prost a coward in a press conference in Estoril.^[51][52] In December, Senna went to Phoenix, Arizona and tested Emerson Fittipaldi's Penske IndyCar.^[53] McLaren boss Ron Dennis meanwhile was trying to secure a supply of the dominant Renault V10 engine for 1993.^[54] When this deal fell through, McLaren was forced to take a customer supply of Ford V8 engines which were two specifications behind that of Ford's factory team, Benetton.^[55] McLaren hoped to make up for the inferior horsepower with mechanical sophistication, including an effective active suspension system.^[56] Dennis then finally persuaded Senna to return to McLaren. The Brazilian, however, agreed only to sign up for the first race in South Africa, where he would assess whether McLaren's equipment was competitive enough for him to put in a good season. After driving McLaren's 1993 car, Senna concluded that the new car had a surprising potential, albeit the engine was still down on power and would be no match for Prost's Williams Renault.^[57] Senna declined to sign a one-year contract but agreed to drive on a race-by-race basis, eventually staying for the year.^[58]

After finishing second in the opening race in South Africa,^[59] Senna won in changing conditions in Brazil and Donington. The latter has often been regarded as one of Senna's greatest victories.^[60] He was fifth at the first corner and led the race at the end of the first lap going on to lap all but 2nd place in a race where up to seven pit stops were required by some drivers for rain or slick tyres.^[61][62] Senna then scored a second-place finish in Spain and a record-breaking sixth win at Monaco.^[63] After Monaco, the sixth race of the season, Senna unexpectedly led the championship from Prost in the Williams-Renault.^[64] As the season progressed, Prost and Damon Hill asserted the superiority of the Williams-Renault car, with Prost securing the drivers' championship while Hill moved up to second in the standings. Senna concluded the season and his McLaren career with two wins in Japan and Australia, finishing second overall in the championship.^[56][65] The penultimate race was noted for an incident where Jordan's rookie Eddie Irvine unlapped himself against Senna. The incensed Brazilian later appeared at Jordan's garage and after a lengthy and heated discussion, punched the Irishman in the face.^[66] For the 1994 season, Senna had offers from McLaren, WIlliams, Benetton, and Ferrari, the team he believed was the soul of Formula 1, and to which he planned to move to in 1996 before retiring in 2000. According to his manager, Julian Jakobi, a deal was in the works with Ferrari who had already offered Senna, the most sought after driver, a groundbreaking $22 million a year.^[67]

1994: Williams[link]

For 1994, Senna finally signed with the Williams-Renault team after Prost had reluctantly decided to end his career. Prost's contract clause forbidding Senna from joining Williams did not extend to 1994 and Prost retired with one year left on his contract, rather than face the prospect of a repeat of the animosities of 1989 and 1990.^[68] Pre-season testing showed that the new Williams FW16 car had speed, but it was extremely difficult to control. Senna himself had made numerous diplomatic comments that the FW16 had some quirks which needed to be ironed out due to the fact that, contractually, he was forbidden from outright criticising the car. It was obvious that the FW16, after the regulation changes banning active suspension, traction control, power brakes, and ABS, exhibited none of the superiority of the FW15C and FW14B cars that had preceded it. It was also the first season that Williams used power steering, a system which had been problematic. Furthermore, the cockpit was too tight for Senna's frame, and several adjustments were subsequently made, including the lengthening of the steering column by 12 millimetres. The surprise of testing was the Benetton team, whose car was more nimble than the Williams although less powerful. Senna prophetically commented, "It's going to be a season with lots of accidents, and I'll risk saying that we'll be lucky if something really serious doesn't happen.”^{[citation needed]}

The first race of the season was in Brazil, where Senna took pole. In the race Senna took an early lead but Schumacher's Benetton was never far behind. Schumacher took the race lead for good after passing Senna in the pits. Senna refused to settle for second. While trying for a win, he pushed too hard and spun the car coming out of Junção on lap 56, stalling it and retiring from the race. The second race was the Pacific Grand Prix at Aida where Senna again placed the car on pole. However, after being beaten to the first corner by second qualifier Schumacher, he was hit from behind in the first corner by Mika Häkkinen and his race came to a definitive end when a Ferrari driven by Nicola Larini also crashed into his Williams. Hill also retired with transmission problems, while Schumacher took victory again.

It was Senna's worst start to an F1 season, failing to finish or score points in the first two races, despite taking pole both times. Schumacher was leading Senna in the drivers' championship by twenty points.^[69] Senna and others that year then began suspecting that Benetton's performance was enhanced by the illegal use of traction control, which fuelled a media controversy, but never materialised into a formal complaint to the FIA.

Death[link]

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (June 2011)

Senna's third and final race of the 1994 season, the San Marino Grand Prix, was held on the "Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari" circuit located in Imola, Italy. Imola had traditionally been considered the beginning of the F1 season proper, on European soil.

Senna, who did not finish the two opening races of the season, declared that this was where his season would start, with fourteen races, as opposed to sixteen, in which to win the title.^[70] Senna placed the car on pole for a then-record 65th and final time, but he was upset by events unfolding that race weekend. That weekend, Senna's feedback about the FW16 included comments about the car switching between oversteering and understeering and that the car's performance was generally worse instead of better after the engineers' latest adjustments.^[71]

During the afternoon qualifying session, Senna's compatriot and protégé Rubens Barrichello was involved in a serious accident when his Jordan became airborne at the Variante Bassa chicane (the last of the circuit) violently slamming into the tyres and fence. In the impact, Barrichello suffered a broken nose and arm; injuries that prevented him from competing in the race. Barrichello indicated that Senna was the first person he saw upon regaining consciousness.^[72]

The next day, Saturday, Austrian rookie driver Roland Ratzenberger was killed during qualifying in a devastating accident when the front wing broke on his Simtek-Ford while going flat out at the fast Villeneuve right-hander bend and into the concrete wall. A distraught Senna requested a track marshall to take him to the site of Ratzenberger's fatal crash. Senna was met by FIA's Medical Chief Professor Sid Watkins, who recalled that Senna was tearful, despite having only just met Ratzenberger the previous day. Professor Watkins suggested to Senna on that occasion to stop racing and go fishing (a hobby they both shared), to which Senna said he could not stop racing.

To obtain information about his injured colleagues that weekend, Senna climbed the fence of the Medical Centre after he inspected the crash site. Senna had commandeered an official's car to visit that site, yet the FIA chose not to take any formal disciplinary actions against Senna.

Senna spent his final morning making time to meet with fellow drivers to discuss the re-establishment of a drivers' group (i.e. Grand Prix Drivers' Association) in an attempt to increase safety in Formula One, because of that weekend's tragic events. As the most senior driver, Senna offered to take the role of leader, starting from the next race event in Monaco.

During the drivers' briefing, complaints were raised about the commercial gimmick of a Porsche 911 lead car for the warm-up lap. As this lap neared, Senna again queried the closeness of the Porsche and was jokingly told by his team's chief engineer, Patrick Head, that the 911 would remain close by, as per the preceding races. Instead, the Porsche was ordered to leave earlier, to Senna's content.

At the start of the Grand Prix race, Senna retained the lead from Schumacher but proceedings soon became interrupted by a huge accident on the start line, caused by JJ Lehto's Benetton-Ford stalling, and an unsighted Pedro Lamy ramming him in his Lotus-Mugen Honda at nearly full speed. A wheel was torn off the car and landed in the main grandstand, injuring eight fans and a police officer. The safety car – which was a sporty version of the Opel Vectra medium family sedan – was deployed and the drivers followed it for several laps. The Vectra's slow pace was later questioned because of the consequential drop in tyre pressures on the Formula One cars. In fact, under those safety car conditions, video footage shows Senna pulling alongside the Vectra, gesticulating to the Vectra driver, Max Angelelli, to increase his speed.^[73] On the restart (lap 6), Senna immediately set a quick pace with the third quickest lap of the race, followed by Schumacher. As Senna entered the high-speed Tamburello corner on lap 7, the car left the track at around 205 mph (330 km/h), hitting the concrete retaining wall at around 135 mph (217 km/h), after what telemetry showed to be an application of the brakes for around 2 seconds. The red flag was shown as a consequence of the accident. Within two minutes of crashing, Senna was extracted from his race car by Professor Sid Watkins and his medical team. Initial treatment took place by the side of the car, with Senna having a weak heartbeat and significant blood loss (approximately 4.5 liters). Because of Senna's poor neurological condition, Professor Watkins performed an on site tracheotomy and requested the immediate airlifting of Senna to Bologna's Maggiore Hospital, where he was declared dead hours later. Watkins later said that as soon as he saw Senna's fully dilated pupils, he knew that his brainstem was inactive and that he would not survive.^[74]

It is believed that the right suspension frame was sent stabbing back into the cockpit, striking Senna on the right side of his helmet, forcing his head back against the headrest and causing fatal skull fractures and brain injury. A piece of the upright attached to the wheel partially penetrated his helmet causing trauma to his forehead. In addition, it appeared that a jagged piece of the upright assembly, most likely a tie rod, penetrated the Bell helmet visor, which was a new, thinner version, above his right eye. Senna also suffered a burst temporal artery.^[75]

It was later revealed that, as medical staff examined Senna, a furled Austrian flag was found in his car—a flag that he had intended to raise in honour of Ratzenberger after the race.^[76]

Photographs of Ayrton Senna after the accident were taken by Senna's friend and Autosprint's picture editor, Angelo Orsi. Out of respect, those photographs have never been sold to interested parties.

Funeral

Senna's grave, with the inscription "Nothing can separate me from the love of God"

Senna's death was considered by many of his Brazilian fans to be a national tragedy, and the Brazilian government declared three days of national mourning. The Italian Air Force offered to fly the coffin back to Brazil, but the Senna family wished that it return home in a Brazilian plane. Contrary to airline policy and out of respect, Senna's coffin was allowed to be flown back to his home country not as cargo but in the passenger cabin of Varig's McDonnel-Douglas MD-11 commercial jetliner (registration PP-VOQ (cn 48435/478)), accompanied by his distraught younger brother, Leonardo, and close friends. The plane was escorted by fighter jets into São Paulo-Guarulhos International Airport, where it was met by São Paulo's mayor, Paulo Maluf, and state governor, Luís Antônio Fleury. The coffin was carried by soldiers from the Policia da Aeronautical to a fire engine, where eight cadets from the Military Police Academy mounted guard as it carried the coffin on the 20-mile journey into the city. Leading the motorcade were seventeen police motorbikes, and 2,500 policemen lined the route to keep the crowds at bay.^[77]

An estimated three million people flocked to the streets of Senna's hometown of São Paulo to offer him their salute. This is widely accepted as the largest recorded gathering of mourners in modern times.^{[citation needed]} Over 200,000 people filed past as his body lay in state at the Legislative Assembly building in Ibirapuera Park. After the public viewing, a 21-gun salute was fired by the 2nd Artillery Brigade and seven jets of the Brazilian Air Force flew in a diamond formation as the funeral procession made its way to Morumbi Cemetery. Many prominent motor racing figures attended Senna's state funeral, such as team managers Ken Tyrrell, Peter Collins, Ron Dennis, and Frank Williams, and driver Jackie Stewart. The pallbearers included drivers Gerhard Berger, Michele Alboreto, Alain Prost, Thierry Boutsen, Damon Hill, Rubens Barrichello, Roberto Moreno, Derek Warwick, Mauricio Gugelmin, Hans Stuck, Johnny Herbert, Pedro Lamy, Maurizio Sala, Raul Boesel, Emerson Fittipaldi, Wilson Fittipaldi, and Christian Fittipaldi. Neither Sid Watkins nor Jo Ramirez, the McLaren team coordinator, could bear to attend because they were so grief-stricken. Senna's family did not allow FOM president Bernie Ecclestone, a friend of Senna's, to attend the ceremony, after an altercation between Ecclestone and Senna's brother Leonardo at Imola regarding Ecclestone's misconstrued reaction to the news of Ayrton's death and the fact that the race had not been abandoned after his accident.^[78] FIA President Max Mosley instead attended the funeral of Ratzenberger which took place on 7 May 1994, in Salzburg, Austria.^[79] Mosley said in a press conference ten years later, "I went to his funeral because everyone went to Senna's. I thought it was important that somebody went to his."^[80] Senna's grave bears the epitaph "Nada pode me separar do amor de Deus," which means "Nothing can separate me from the love of God" (a reference to Romans 8:38-39^[81]).

A testament to the adulation he inspired among fans worldwide was the scene at the Tokyo headquarters of Honda where the McLaren cars were typically displayed after each race. Upon his death, so many floral tributes were received that it overwhelmed the large exhibition lobby.^[82] This despite the fact Senna no longer drove for McLaren and that McLaren in the preceding seasons did not use Honda power. Senna had a special relationship with company founder Soichiro Honda^{[citation needed]} and was beloved in Japan, where he achieved a near mythic status. For the next race at Monaco, the FIA decided to leave the first two grid positions empty and painted them with the colours of the Brazilian and the Austrian flags, to honour Senna and Ratzenberger.

Trial

The cause of the accident has been identified as a steering column failure. Italian law demands that any unusual incident be investigated. Many court cases followed immediately afterwards and the judgment went on for years, with Williams being investigated for manslaughter. The last word from the Italian Court of Appeal was on 13 April 2007. In verdict no. 15050, the Court ruled thus: "It has been determined that the accident was caused by a steering column failure. This failure was caused by badly designed and badly executed modifications. The responsibility of this falls on Patrick Head, culpable of omitted control". Patrick Head was not arrested; in Italy the statute of limitation for manslaughter is 7 years and 6 months, and the final verdict was pronounced 13 years after the accident.^[83] Despite Formula One regulations, the Williams-Renault team was allowed to extract Senna's black boxes from the wreck of his FW16 once it returned in the pitlane, only for them to be returned completely bereft of any telemetry, despite no external damage. Had Senna's death been declared immediately, under Italian Law, the wreckage would have had to have been immediately impounded and the race event suspended. Instead, the Imola Grand Prix proceeded, with drivers being advised of Senna's condition only at the end of the race.^{[citation needed]}

Personal life[link]

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (May 2012)

Senna was a devout Catholic, once saying "Just because I believe in God, just because I have faith in God, it doesn't mean that I'm immune. It doesn't mean that I'm immortal" (1989).^[84] He often read the Bible on long flights from São Paulo to Europe.^[85][86] In Senna, a documentary about his racing career that was released in 2010, Ayrton's sister, Viviane, revealed that following, first the accident of his friend Rubens Barrichello followed the next day by the death of Roland Ratzenberger during the San Marino Grand Prix of 1994, Senna had sought strength from the Bible. "Faced with a night of turmoil, of conflict, no one knew what his decision would be on Sunday morning, on race day ...'On that final morning, he woke and opened his bible and read a text,' explained Viviane 'that he would receive the greatest gift of all, which was God himself.'" ^[84]

As his profile rose, Senna expressed concern over the widespread poverty in Brazil. After his death it was discovered that he had quietly donated an extremely large portion of his personal fortune (estimated at around $400 million) to help poor children.^[87] Shortly before his death, he created the framework for an organisation dedicated to Brazilian children, which later became Instituto Ayrton Senna.^[88]

Senna, renowned for his intensity and almost mystic qualities, was often quoted using driving as a means for self-discovery and racing as a metaphor for life: "The harder I push, the more I find within myself. I am always looking for the next step, a different world to go into, areas where I have not been before. It's lonely driving a Grand Prix car, but very absorbing. I have experienced new sensations, and I want more. That is my excitement, my motivation."^[89]

Towards the end of his career, Senna became increasingly preoccupied with the dangers of his profession. On the morning of his death he initiated the re-formation of the GPDA safety organisation, with which he had intended to work to improve the safety of his sport.

In the late 1980s, to take advantage of the close relationship Honda had formed with Senna, the Japanese company asked him to help fine-tune the Honda NSX's suspension setting during its final development stages. The tests were conducted at Suzuka Circuit with chief NSX engineer Shigeru Uehara and his engineering team present to gather Senna's direct input. Senna found the prototype NSX initially lacked chassis stiffness to the level he was accustomed to, so the final production version was further reinforced to his satisfaction.

Senna was also instrumental in bringing Audi cars into his native country, both as an import and manufacturing business. Audi entered Brazil in 1994 via Ayrton Senna's company, Senna Import, founded in 1993. Sales began in April that year, just a month before his untimely death. In 1999, Audi Senna was created as a joint venture of Audi with Senna Import.^[90] Senna's personal car in 1994 was an Audi S4.^[91]

Planning a retirement in 2000 with Ferrari,^{[citation needed]} Senna exercised his strong entrepreneurial spirit in the early 1990s by developing his own logo, the double S, after his full surname, "Senna da Silva".^[92] This logo is meant to represent an S chicane on a racing circuit. The Senna brand was on apparel, watches (TAG Heuer), bicycles (Carraro), and boats. TAG Heuer and Hublot have created limited edition watches to honor Senna, both during his lifetime and after his death.

Senna owned several properties, including an organic farm in Tatuí, Brazil, a beach house in Angra dos Reis, Brazil, an apartment in São Paulo, an apartment in Monaco, and a house in Algarve, Portugal.

Ayrton enjoyed a range of physical activities including running, waterskiing, jet skiing, and paddleboarding. He also had several hobbies, such as flying real and model planes and helicopters, boating, fishing and riding his favourite Ducati motorbikes. His private jet was a British Aerospace 125 (BAe HS125), and he also piloted his own helicopter between his residences in Brazil. He was left-handed.

His nickname from childhood was "Beco", and the Japanese Honda engineers would call him "Harry" because they had difficulty pronouncing "Ayrton".

Senna was close friends with McLaren teammate Gerhard Berger, and the two were always playing practical jokes on each other.^[93] Berger is quoted as saying "He taught me a lot about our sport, I taught him to laugh." He calls their three seasons together (1990 to 1992) "the James Bond years" since, as biographer Tom Rubython notes, "money, success, and girls littered every corner of their lives."^[94] In the documentary film The Right to Win, made in 2004 as a tribute to Senna, Frank Williams notably recalls that as good a driver as Senna was, ultimately "he was an even greater man outside of the car than he was in it."

Senna was married to Lilian de Vasconcelos Souza, whom he had known since childhood, from 1981 until 1982. The marriage ended due to the fact that Lilian was used to an easy life with servants in Brazil and could not handle the freezing cold of England and the comparatively spartan and isolated lifestyle that her husband's racing demanded. Senna, who did not have much of an income early in his racing career, insisted on supporting his wife with no help from his father out of a sense of pride.^{[citation needed]} After his marriage to Vasconcelos ended, Senna dated several women including model Marjorie Andrade. He subsequently courted Adriane Yamin, daughter of an entrepreneur from São Paulo, who was 15 years old when they began the relationship in 1985 and often chaperoned by her mother during meetings with Senna. They were briefly engaged, but the relationship was broken off by Senna in late 1988.^[95] Senna dated Brazilian TV star Xuxa from late 1988 until 1990. He then dated Christine Ferracciu, who lived with him at his homes in Monaco and Portugal, on and off between 1990 and 1991. By the time of his death, Senna had been dating Brazilian model Adriane Galisteu for a year and a half.^[96]

Ayrton was the uncle of Formula One driver Bruno Senna (Viviane's son), of whom he said in 1993: "If you think I'm fast, just wait until you see my nephew Bruno."^[97]

Legacy[link]

Memorial at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, where Senna was killed

Many safety improvements were made in the sport following Senna's and Ratzenberger's deaths. These include improved crash barriers, redesigned tracks, higher crash safety standards (such as larger sills along the driver cockpit) and major cuts to engine power. Ironically, these knee-jerk measures resulted in further major crashes that year (e.g., at the Spanish Grand Prix). Also ironically, entry to the fatal Tamburello corner and other chicanes on the Imola circuit had been significantly altered for 1995. This was despite calls for action in 1989, after a serious high-speed crash that saw Senna's best friend, Gerhard Berger, suffering burns to his hand. No action took place after that crash because, following an inspection by Senna and Berger, they ended up siding with officials who had, for years, claimed that the wall could not be moved further back due to a river nearby.

Soon after his death in 1994, the Brazilian football World Cup winning team dedicated their win to the great racer in order to recognise his contributions to Formula 1.^[98][99]