Senna to Ferrari?

[MigelNansell]

I saw this on the BBC website and read it looks interesting would Senna have been able to pull Ferrari out of the black hole it was in during the early 90's or would it have just damaged his reputation?




http://www.gocar.gr/races/f1/12562,Ayrton_Senna_at_Ferrari_A_deal_that_was_.html

[takagi_for_the_win]

I have to say, I was very much unaware of this. I knew that if Senna had survived he'd have moved to Ferrari at the end of 1996 (according to Julian Jakobi in Tom Rubython's book, The Life of Senna), but I doubt he would have realistically moved to Ferrari in '89. Quite simply, he was at McLaren, where all the ingredients were in place for several years of domination. In contrast, Ferrari at the time were a team with little direction and lots of political infighting; Senna was a highly competitive man and wouldn't have been placated by a larger wage, a lá Gerhard Berger. Ferrari seemingly had little chance of picking up titles, not since the early 80's were they competitive, and Senna had left Lotus mainly because he was fed up with being expected to transcend the car's abilities; pretty much what would've happened if he'd made the move to Ferrari. So no, Mr Fiorio had no chance of luring Senna in my opinion.

[Gerudo Dragon]

Thought that meant Bruno for a sec

[dr-baker]

Thought that meant Bruno for a sec

So did I, because of it being in the Paul Stoddart Forum rather than one of the others...

[FullMetalJack]

Thought that meant Bruno for a sec

So did I, because of it being in the Paul Stoddart Forum rather than one of the others...

That's what I was thinking. I know Kimi's underperformed, but Bruno Senna isn't the answer.

[Jocke1]

You all thought Bruno would be #2 driver.
I on the other hand went in here thinking Bruno had been made TP.

[GerhardTalger]

Prost was there, so it was absolutely ludicrous anyway to think he would see Senna going to Ferrari as an option. When Prost was gone, Senna had a renewed contract with Ferrari and they were very far off the pace.

If they would have wanted him, they should have bought off the contract Senna had with McLaren for the 1990 season. But I think he was at the right place at McLaren.. like Hamilton was.

[eytl]

I must say the whole thing is a bit of a surprise because there are several other "almost moves" from the period that are well-known (e.g. Alesi going to Williams in 1991) and there would have been no real reason to keep this a secret for 20-odd years. And some of these negotiations sound a bit too obvious not to generate speculation and rumour, even in the less media-saturated paddock of the time.

The other thing is, it seems to have been no more than a letter of intent for the 1991 and 1992 seasons. If contracts in F1 aren't worth the piece of paper they're written on, then letters of intent are worth the square root of diddly squat (Australian slang for "zero"). So I get the feeling that this story may be blown a little bit out of proportion.

I knew that if Senna had survived he'd have moved to Ferrari at the end of 1996 (according to Julian Jakobi in Tom Rubython's book, The Life of Senna)

I've never read that book. Did that mean that he was planning to go to Ferrari in 1997 or that he had signed a contract to do so (which I highly doubt)? For all of Senna's greatness, he would have been turning 37 and between 1994 and 1997 who knows what would have happened.

In contrast, Ferrari at the time were a team with little direction and lots of political infighting; Senna was a highly competitive man and wouldn't have been placated by a larger wage, a lá Gerhard Berger. Ferrari seemingly had little chance of picking up titles, not since the early 80's were they competitive, and Senna had left Lotus mainly because he was fed up with being expected to transcend the car's abilities; pretty much what would've happened if he'd made the move to Ferrari. So no, Mr Fiorio had no chance of luring Senna in my opinion.

Agree and disagree ... Ferrari was extremely competitive in 1990 and all the ingredients were there for a successful 1991. After all, that's what made Alesi choose Ferrari over Williams, which as it turned out was a monumental error. But if Senna had gone to Ferrari in 1991, I doubt he would have got much more out of the car than Prost did. I believe Prost is underestimated compared to Senna, and if Alain couldn't drag the 1991 Ferrari to any wins, neither could Senna. Ayrton was able - like all greats - to transcend the abilities of the car, but he was not a god either and to some extent the capability of the car would have remained a limiting factor. Consider his 1992 and 1993 in his McLaren against the might of the Williams.

Prost was there, so it was absolutely ludicrous anyway to think he would see Senna going to Ferrari as an option.

Interesting how that would have played out. I can actually believe it if Senna was happy to have Prost as a team-mate. Although in 1986 he had vetoed Lotus signing Warwick, I think the stories that have emerged since Ayrton's death was that Prost was not only his rival and nemesis, but also Ayrton's driving force. He needed someone super-competitive to bring the best out of him. In that sense he was quite unique because I don't think Prost (for all that I admire him) would have been that brave. (Or maybe it's not a matter of bravery and courage but it's just a function of two champions being differently wired and what brought the best out of them.) Think of the situation in 1992 when both Prost and Senna wanted the Williams drive for 1993. Renault wanted Prost, Williams went along because they knew that Mansell wouldn't want Prost and they wanted to get rid of Mansell, Senna offered to drive for nothing because he didn't mind having Prost as team-mate, Prost (AFAIK) vetoed that.

I suggest that if Fiorio's story is true and he'd got his way, Prost would have left Ferrari, but instead the power plays at Maranello meant that Fiorio was removed instead.

[RonDenisDeletraz]

I knew that if Senna had survived he'd have moved to Ferrari at the end of 1996 (according to Julian Jakobi in Tom Rubython's book, The Life of Senna)

I have never believed this for a second, as by 1996 the team would have been much better off with a younger and hungrier Schumi than Senna, who realistically would have only had a couple of years left in F1. Besides, why would Senna sign such a big contrast with Williams if he was going to leave for another team after only two years.

[tommykl]

Now, Fiorio states that Senna didn't ask for a specific team mate, yet Thierry Boutsen stated that Senna intended for him to drive the second Ferrari...

[Paul Hayes]

When I spoke to Dennis Rushen (Senna's Formula Ford boss in 1982) earlier this year, he told me that Senna had told him after he made it to F1 that he wanted to drive for Ferrari at some point before the end of his Grand Prix career.

[dr-baker]

The old cliche on this forum is, "Autosport or it didn't happen." Well...

[The Dutch Bear]

The old cliche on this forum is, "Autosport or it didn't happen." Well...

I remember reading an interview with di Montezemolo in the Dutch version of Top Gear Magazine (mostly translated articles from the British version) about five years ago, in which he stated exactly the same things as in the Autosport article.
It is an old story brought as 'news', solely because they needed something of a scoop with Senna now being in the news because of the twentieth anniversary of his passing.

[RonDenisDeletraz]

I find the notion that Senna already wanted out at Williams after two races patently ridiculous. Typical sensationalism

[Salamander]

I find the notion that Senna already wanted out at Williams after two races patently ridiculous. Typical sensationalism

He wanted to go to Williams because they had the best car. Then he got there and suddenly Benetton had the better car. I can see him being a bit peeved at the situation.

[The Dutch Bear]

I find the notion that Senna already wanted out at Williams after two races patently ridiculous. Typical sensationalism

He wanted to go to Williams because they had the best car. Then he got there and suddenly Benetton had the better car. I can see him being a bit peeved at the situation.

I like Senna a lot, beside Michael Schumacher, my childhood hero, he is my most favourite driver. Senna was a guy that wanted to win at all costs and so long as he would get away with it, he would do it.
If Senna wasn't a true F1 lover, he won't have gone to England and sacrified his marriage to reach Formula One. I think that Senna would have gone to Ferrari (not the best team in the mid-nineties) once he felt his goals had been achieved or he had a chance to become a world champion for another year. If Senna went to Ferrari it wouldn't have been earlier than 1996 and as Schumacher showed he had a chance from 1997 forwards.