The black day of Formula 1: 25 years ago, three-time world champion Ayrton Senna died in an accident

Exactly 25 years ago, the most terrible tragedy in the history of Formula 1 occurred. At the Enzo and Dino Ferrari circuit in Imola, Ayrton Senna, a three-time world champion, the idol of many fans and the national hero of Brazil, was killed during the Grand Prix race of San Marino. May 1, 1994 for all fans of "royal racing" became a black day.

In the entire history of Formula 1, fatal accidents have been quite a few - 32 pilots died from injuries received directly during the races, qualifications and free rides. And this number still does not include numerous spectators, marshals and rescuers, also injured during accidents, as well as the American Carl Scarborough, who died after a race from overheating of the body.

Some deaths have already been forgotten, some are still striking in their tragedy. For example, Jochen Rindt, who died in 1970, soon became a world champion - no one was able to beat him in the overall standings. In 1982, Gilles Villeneuve passed away, whose son later became the world champion instead of his father. But the tragedy of Ayrton Senna stands alone.

The 1994 season of Senna started in the Williams team, the strongest in those years. The Brazilian replaced it with his main rival Alain Prost, who has just completed a career in the status of world champion. Senna, already considered one of the best pilots in history, got a great chance to win his fourth title.

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• © Eric Feferberg

But the new rally World Championship Senna did not ask. Although he won the pole position at the Grand Prix of Brazil and the Pacific, he could not finish in both races. On the same days, the pilot and his family discussed the possibility of creating a fund to support low-income residents of Brazil - this idea was realized a few months later when the athlete had already found peace in the cemetery in São Paulo.

The third race of the season was the Grand Prix of San Marino - nowadays it is no longer called anything but “Black Weekend”. Trouble in those days began with the very first Friday qualifying session. A few minutes later, Senna’s young compatriot Rubens Barrichello, who was a friend and sponsored three-time world champion, fell into a serious accident. Barrichello in his Jordan hit the side of the corner, soared at great speed into the air, broke through a tire barrier and turned over several times after hitting the ground. At the same time, the pilot got off with fairly light injuries - broken nose and ribs.

Senna immediately went to the hospital, but the entrance for outsiders was closed, and he had to climb over the barrier. When Barrichello awoke, the first thing he saw were tears on the Brazilian face. At that moment, Senna thought that it was time to increase the safety in Formula 1, and it was he who, as the most respected pilot and the unofficial leader of the peloton, needed to raise this question.

The next day there was another terrible incident, but now with a fatal outcome. This time the victim was the Austrian Roland Ratzenberger, who participated only in his third Grand Prix. On a long straight, he lost a damaged front wing, and his car Simtek lost the necessary downforce before the turn. Ratzenberger at a speed of 314 km / h crashed into a concrete wall and died a few minutes after a fracture of the skull base. It was the first death in Formula 1 racing in 12 years.

These two accidents made a strong impression on Senna. Having learned about the tragedy, he got into the car for the staff without permission and ordered the driver to go to the scene. By that time, the dead Ratzenberger had already been taken to the hospital, and Senna was only able to examine his damaged helmet. After that, the Brazilian again went to the medical center and for the second time in a row broke the rules to go inside.

There Senna met the medical director of the International Automobile Federation Sid Watkins (FIA). He, seeing how depressed the pilot was, suggested that he withdraw from the race and go fishing together. The driver replied that this was out of the question, although on that day he no longer sat behind the car to complete the qualification.

Senna eventually became the owner of the pole position for the 65th time in his career, the last time improving his record. To date, the victories in qualifying it only went around Michael Schumacher, who celebrated his first championship in 1994, and Lewis Hamilton. After Saturday's races Senna did not appear at the press conference, which was a violation of the rules, and the stewards considered the possibility of punishing him, but did not do this, taking into account the prevailing circumstances.

Returning to the hotel, Senna still allowed himself the opportunity to skip the race. He called his girlfriend Adriana Galisteu in Lisbon, where she made a transfer on the way to Senna's Portuguese estate in Quinte-do-Lago, to tell about her experiences. But when in the evening they phoned again, the pilot still said that he had decided to start. He said that he would take the Austrian flag with him in order to unfold it in case of victory. Senna knew Ratzenberger a little, he was introduced to him by personal masseur Josef Leberer, whose birthday coincided with the death of the rider.

Senna and Galisteu agreed that in the evening after the race he would immediately fly to Portugal with her, so that they could see for the first time in a month. The girl promised to cook him a favorite dish - grilled chicken with steamed vegetables. She also said that she started running, and on Monday they planned a joint run. Finally, Senna said that this conversation helped him to get rid of heavy thoughts and improved his mood.

On the morning of May 1, Senna flew by helicopter to the circuit and showed the best time to warm up. At this time, in the pits Williams went Alain Prost. The Brazilian on the radio said to him: “Hi, my friend. I missed you". Returning to the pits, Senna ordered not to touch the car, as he was finally satisfied with the settings. He again met with Prost, and they talked for half an hour, including security issues. The French rider agreed that the requirements for the machines should be tightened. Before the race, a general meeting of pilots and organizers took place, right after which Senna spoke separately with several colleagues. They agreed that next Friday, before the Monaco Grand Prix, there will be a big meeting with all the pilots on safety.

During the day, the pilots drove onto the track and lined up for the starting reception. Usually, Senna already 15 minutes before the start, put on a helmet and set himself up for the first turn. But that day he remained without equipment for a long time and watched the spectators and racers behind him. Ferrari pilot Gerhard Berger later recalled that then he saw the Brazilian smile facing him.

At two o'clock in the afternoon the race started, but almost immediately the stewards put up yellow flags prescribing the drivers to slow down. There was a third major accident over the weekend - Pedro Lamy crashed into Jurka Yarhilehto’s stalled car. Debris from their cars were injured several spectators. A safety car drove onto the track, followed by the pilots, until the stewards removed all the debris that had formed. This went on for five laps, and only in the sixth race resumed.

Senna on cold tires and with a full tank of fuel drove the sixth lap incredibly fast. By the end of the race, only Michael Schumacher and Senna's partner Damon Hill managed to improve that time. Schumacher, who started the second, immediately fell behind at a fairly decent distance. When on the seventh lap Senna had to go through the Tamburello turn, he unexpectedly left the track and crashed into a concrete wall. The Brazilian at that moment was driving at a speed of 310 km / h. Departing from the canvas, he managed to slow it down only to 218 km / h.

On the air, which was watched by 200 million viewers, the collision was not shown. Soon the race was stopped by red flags, and the cameras switched to the crash site. Fans saw the ruined car of Senna and himself, sitting in the cockpit. Many people noticed how the Brazilian moved his head and decided that he was fine. However, in reality it was a muscle spasm - a sign of severe brain injury. Galisteu, who was watching the race, later recalled that her first reaction to the accident was joy - Senna could now fly early from Italy. However, this did not happen.

A medical team led by Watkins arrived at the scene. He immediately realized that Senna received a severe head injury. When, together with his assistants, the doctor took off his helmet, a lot of blood flowed from there. The rider's head was fragmented over his right eye, he was unconscious and did not breathe, his heart stopped periodically. Within ten minutes, the doctors tried to stop the bleeding, and then sent him by helicopter to the hospital. Senna was connected to life support systems, but it was obvious that they only delayed the inevitable. According to Italian law, doctors were required to maintain life for 12 hours.

When Senna was loaded into a helicopter, Watkins contacted Formula One head Bernie Ecclestone and press spokesperson Martin Whitaker to report that the pilot had a serious head injury. At that moment Senna was still alive, and therefore it was decided to resume the race. At the same time, Ecclestone, Whitaker and Senna's younger brother Leonardo da Silva, who was with them, mistakenly heard that the driver had already died. 37 minutes after the accident, the race started anew. Schumacher won a third victory for the season, about which he said that he did not feel any satisfaction from her, or joy.

Senna's brain has long been dead, but the doctors continued to artificially support life in it, as the law required. A paradoxical situation arose - the inevitability of death was obvious, but it was impossible to officially confirm it. Finally, when Senna's heart stopped once again, Dr. Maria Teresa Fiandri took the responsibility to report the pilot's death. It happened at 18:40, although officially then his death began to be counted from 14:17, when the accident occurred.

In Brazil, a three-day mourning for Senna was declared. He was given a state funeral. The procession through the streets of Sao Paulo was observed by about three million people. Many pilots arrived at the mourning ceremony, including Prost, Barrichello, Berger. The Senna family did not allow Ecclestone to the procession, and the head of the FIA, Max Mosley did not come to her, to attend the funeral of Ratzenberger at the same time.

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• © Mauricio LIMA

Many assumptions have been made about the causes of the accident - a puncture in the tire, a poor track, and loss of control. A few months later, it was determined that Senna flew off the track due to a broken steering column. However, this version also has opponents - the column, which was lengthened at the request of Senna, cracked along the welded seam, so that it could break even at the time of the accident, and not before it.

After the death of Senna, the Italian police opened criminal cases against six people - three judges on the track in Imola, as well as the owner of Williams Frank Williams, technical director Patrick Head and car designer Adrian Newey. They were threatened with punishment in the form of conditional imprisonment, however, the court did not find anyone to blame for the death of the triple world champion.