Yahoo Autos Why Did Ayrton Senna Crash at Monaco In 1988?
This year's Monaco Grand Prix will go down in history as being one of the most boring Formula 1 events in recent memory, proven by the fact that Ricciardo could win it despite missing his two top gears, thus giving up nearly 2.5 seconds per lap in pace. Thirty years earlier, that wouldn't have been possible.
In 1988, 28-year-old Ayrton Senna was driving the McLaren MP4/4, the second car designed by Steve Nichols and Gordon Murray for Ron Dennis' team.
It was the first year McLaren switched from TAG-Porsche power to Honda, and Senna did the Senna thing by qualifying 1.4 seconds faster than the rest of the field. Unfortunately, due to the lack of broadcasting at the time, we don't have video of that. But that couldn't stop McLaren, which has teamed up with the legendary Murray Walker to recreate Senna's astonishing Saturday using some video game footage.
You have to cook with what you have. Unfortunately, that Sunday, Senna crashed out after leading for 67 laps. And the team had three theories about what happened at the Portier corner: He either understeered wide, clipped the inside barrier, or had a slow puncture. One is more likely than the other two, but looking back, the true reason hardly mattered, since the rest of Senna's season worked out just fine, ending with him winning his first championship.
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