Drivers Pay Unusual Tribute to Ayrton Senna at F1 Brazilian Grand Prix

In Brazil, where the the county and its racing fans still revere Ayrton Senna with murals, sculptures and the highway from the airport named after him, there were commemorations throughout this past weekend in Sao Paulo to mark 30 years since his death.

Senna died on May 1, 1994 in a crash at Imola, Italy.

Four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel, who retired in 2022, collaborated with local artists to produce a giant replica helmet comprising recycled material and garbage, which was unveiled at the Senna S complex on Thursday afternoon. The majority of the grid attended, alongside Vettel, and posed for photos inside the giant helmet.

On Sunday morning, ahead of the Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton took Senna’s title-winning McLaren from 1990 for a few demonstration laps of Interlagos, and picked up a Brazilian flag for the final tour of the circuit. The crowd chanted for Senna during the run and the famous victory music—played on Brazilian TV when Senna won a race—was also played out over the track speakers.

“It's very, very, very emotional, naturally,” Hamilton said. “I was just revisiting my childhood, as I was watching Ayrton race here as a kid and, and hearing that sound and watching him drive here and winning in that race. I just couldn't believe that I just had that chance to do that.

"And it was really the greatest honor of my career to do it here in front of this beautiful crowd here in Brazil who stood out in the rain all day yesterday. This probably will never ever happen again. So I'll definitely cherish the moment. That's why I didn't stop. I did one or two more laps more than I was supposed to.”