We continue our magnificent duel between the legendary Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost . Finally, we arrive at the 1989 Suzuka Grand Prix , the penultimate race of the season. Senna arrived with more wins (6), but suffered several retirements (5), while Prost was much more consistent, with 4 victories, 6 second-place finishes, and only one retirement. Therefore, the McLaren drivers held a 16-point lead in favor of Prost (76), and Senna (60) was obliged to win if he wanted to remain in contention for the title. Ayrton had secured pole position in dominant fashion (1,7 seconds ahead), and Prost qualified second. Everything pointed to Senna being uncatchable at Suzuka. But, as we discussed yesterday, history offered us one of the most controversial moments in the sport.
Despite expectations, Prost got a better start and overtook Senna, gaining a slight advantage. Senna then followed his teammate, fighting to snatch the position. And Senna succeeded; on lap 47, six laps from the end, Senna went all out and tried to overtake Prost under braking before the Casio chicane, causing a collision between the two, leaving both cars stopped in the run-off area of ​​the chicane. Prost protected his position and didn't open the door, while Senna took a huge risk by squeezing into the gap left by the Frenchman. Prost got out of his car; at that moment, he was the virtual champion for that year. However, Senna decided to continue and, thanks to the marshals who pushed him out of the run-off area, he was able to restart his McLaren and rejoin the race.
Senna launched a spectacular pursuit of Nannini (Benetton), who had overtaken him while he was in the pits replacing his front wing, which had been damaged in the accident. And he succeeded; at the same corner where the incident had occurred, Senna passed Nannini with just two laps to go and won the Grand Prix. It was an apotheosis for Senna, however, his joy was short-lived, as the FIA ​​disqualified Ayrton for cutting the chicane. The 1989 World Championship was definitively awarded to Prost.
The FIA ​​president at the time, Frenchman Jean-Marie Balestre, was very harsh with Senna; in addition to disqualification, he imposed a significant financial penalty and suspended his F1 super license for six months. It was a devastating blow for the Brazilian , who tried to appeal the decision to recover those valuable points, but this only resulted in further severe punishment.
1990 Season
There were some changes for this season. Prost, faced with the untenable situation at McLaren, decided to leave for Ferrari. That year McLaren continued to perform at a high level, and Senna also did a great job, achieving 6 victories. But the Ferrari of that year proved competitive, especially in the hands of Prost, who managed to secure 5 wins. These were the results up to the Suzuka Grand Prix, as, once again, the penultimate event of the season was going to be quite eventful…
This time, the roles were reversed, and it was Prost (68 points) who had to win the race at all costs to remain in contention for the World Championship. Senna (78 points), as usual, secured pole position, followed by Prost. Once again, controversy arose: the pole position was on the dirty side of the track. Senna spoke with the race stewards, and it seemed the pole would finally be moved to the clean side, but Balestre (the highest authority) wouldn't budge, and the pole remained where it was. At the start of the race, Prost took the lead, and Senna leapt after him like a shot. As they approached the first corner, Prost began to take it, leaving a small gap, and Senna squeezed inside, filling a gap that was about to disappear… Once again, the two collided, ending up stranded in the gravel. The 1990 World Championship title went to Senna in yet another controversial finish.
As Senna would later declare, the disqualification in Suzuka in '89 and starting on the dirty side in '90 were decisions by Balestre that hurt him a lot and, on that occasion, he was not willing to lose the Title, under any circumstances.
last seasons
From 1990 onwards, the rivalry continued, but with less intensity, mainly due to the circumstances . In 1991, Senna's McLaren remained competitive, but Prost's Ferrari was a major failure. Prost even declared that it would be easier to drive a truck… Faced with Prost's constant complaints, Ferrari sacked the French driver, who did not compete in the final race of the season. That year, Senna's rival was Nigel Mansell, who drove an increasingly competitive Williams-Renault. Ultimately, Senna became champion, taking his third World Championship title.
1992 was a triumphant year for Williams-Renault . The gap to the other cars was enormous, mainly due to the inclusion of "active suspension." This type of suspension was controlled by an electronic control unit, so the car always maintained the same ride height, resulting in vastly superior cornering speed. Prost took a sabbatical year, and Senna had to settle for following in the Williams' wake. That year, as expected, Mansell won decisively. Even so, Senna's victory in Monaco is remembered , stoically withstanding Mansell's continuous attempts to overtake him during the final laps.
In 1993, Williams was still the team to beat. That year, Prost replaced Mansell. Senna tried everything to join Williams, even offering Frank Williams (the team principal) to race for the team without pay in order to get a car that would have allowed him to recapture his former glory, but it wasn't possible. Prost included a clause in his Williams contract that prohibited Senna from being his teammate. Senna even called Prost a coward for not wanting to share a team, but Prost didn't want to let the title slip away again.
The predictions came true, and Prost won his fourth World Championship with a car far superior to his rivals. However, Senna, despite the obvious inferiority of his McLaren, managed to have a great season, finishing second ahead of Hill's Williams (Prost's teammate). He won five races, one of them, the European Grand Prix (held at Donington Park), being one of his most epic victories. On the first lap, running fourth, he overtook everyone. It was a rainy Grand Prix, and Senna gave another masterclass in the wet conditions, lapping every driver except Hill.
By 1994, everything had changed. Prost had retired the previous year, and the FIA ​​had eliminated all electronic driver aids. Senna finally signed with Williams, but the car didn't live up to expectations; it was very fast, but also unpredictable and difficult to drive. Senna seemed demotivated, out of sorts… his great rival, Prost, had retired.
"A special hello to my... to our dear friend Alain. We all miss you, Alain." That beautiful phrase was what Senna dedicated to Prost while on a practice lap at the Imola circuit (San Marino). Days later, Senna's fatal accident occurred at that same circuit during the race (San Marino Grand Prix), when his Williams crashed brutally at over 200 km/h into the wall at the Tamburello corner. That weekend was one of the darkest in F1 history . The day before, driver Roland Ratzenberger had also lost his life during Saturday's qualifying session. Prost later stated that a part of him died when Senna left us on that fateful day.
More Information – Clash of Titans: Ayrton Senna vs Alain Prost, let the show begin… , Clash of Titans: James Hunt vs Niki Lauda, ​​the start of a spectacular battle for the 1976 World Championship