F1 | Vettel: “At Imola for Senna and to help draw inspiration from him”

Sebastian Vettel hasn’t raced in Formula 1 for a couple of years now, yet his influence is perceptible every time he appears on the circuit.

This time the 4-time world champion is in Imola, at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, because he will be called upon to take Ayrton Senna’s McLaren Mp4/8 onto the track. For this reason he did not miss the opportunity to commemorate the 3-time world champion, who passed away on May 1, 1994, and Roland Ratzenberger, who also died the day before due to fatal injuries sustained in a terrible accident at Villeneuve.

Yesterday afternoon the German and several F1, F2 and F3 drivers went to the monument dedicated to Ayrton Senna which is located in front of the Tamburello, but on the park side. Right there the former BMW, Toro Rosso, Red Bull, Ferrari and Aston Martin driver held a passionate speech for the colleagues who had gathered which we report in full.

“Thank you for coming. 30 years ago, on 1 May 1994, Ayrton Senna – a driver I think you’ve all heard of – lost his life following the accident he had right near here, at the Tamburello. At the time there was no it was this chicane, but a long, very fast left-hand bend that you took straight on.”

“After the Safety Car he lost control or his car broke down, it is still not 100% clear from that day, however he hit the wall and lost his life. I think he is an incredible driver, who has achieved incredible numbers in Formula 1 between victories, poles, fast laps, apart from his enormous qualities as a driver, he had many other exceptional things, he tried to do good for his people, he tried to fight the lack of education, fought poverty, a boy who, like us, had a gift, determination, desire to win”.

“Yet he understood that there was more to life than all that. Much more than sitting in a race car and going as fast as you could, faster than anyone else.”

Vettel explained the idea of ​​the race that many did yesterday at the Enzo e Dino Ferrari in Imola: “This race is to remember his legacy, but also that of Roland Ratzenberger, who died the day before Ayrton, on Saturday. Thus making the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix a dark moment in history. He stopped shortly after Ayrton, in turn 6 (the Villeneuve) where he had a terrible accident after losing part of the front wing of his car.”

“Thank you for coming. Their accidents paved the way for our cars to be safer and safer and from which we can benefit today. They put their lives at risk and lost them. So Let’s stop for a moment. I took these padlocks that have the same colors and let’s attach them to the net.”

“Let’s take a moment to remember them. I know many of us were not yet born when the two accidents occurred, but let’s think of these kids who lost their lives that weekend after putting it at risk. Let’s freeze our thoughts here, keep the key. But the idea is to fix our thoughts for them on the networks and pay them a tribute.

Sebastian Vettel makes a speech at the Ayrton Senna memorial

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images

At the end of the commemorations for Senna and Ratzenberger, Vettel lent himself to questions from the press, talking about various topics always linked to the initiative he had and, obviously, to his bond with Ayrton Senna.

“Certainly, as a driver, I was inspired above all by the success he had. I had the privilege of working with people who worked with him, taking inspiration from his way of being and what made him so special in the car, trying to understand it”.

“Numbers are one thing – how many victories, how many poles, how many races – but there is more, and I believe that man has something more than result and success. And especially the things off the track. The character that he was, the importance that he had in Brazil and for the Brazilian people at the time is probably unparalleled in Brazil. But it is also very rare that a sports figure not only grows so much in popularity, but he takes on this role and tries to inspire the country and the people to get better.”

Victor Martins (FRA, ART Grand Prix) at the Ayrton Senna memorial statue

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images

“If you look at the push for education, when it comes to children, and trying to fight poverty – I think there are many things you can take inspiration from and it is therefore even more tragic that its story has stopped on that horrible weekend, because I think there would have been a lot more on the track but also off the track.”

“I think, in the end, Ayrton stood up for so many causes and had such a great spirit. Probably many people were inspired by his time and his legacy and still draw inspiration from it today in situations like that (referring to the situation in Brazil) and pass it on to their children and teenagers to tell the story. That’s why we are here. That’s why I’m here.”

“It’s not about me at all. I’m just trying to tell the story and remember him and the colors of him, trying to inspire other pilots – current pilots – to remember him and be inspired by him”.

Vettel, as mentioned, will drive the Mp4/8 at Imola in memory of Senna: “Driving it 30 years after that dark weekend for Formula 1 means even more. If you look at the car, it is obviously beautiful, but it looks very different from modern cars. But it also shows how much Formula 1 has progressed.”

“Furthermore, thanks to that horrible weekend, strange as it may seem, we began to study the circuits to make them safer, to enlarge the tracks, to change the layout, to change the cars, to talk about the collision structures , to increase the resistance of the frames”.

“It was a very, very dark moment, but obviously I was one of the drivers who benefited firsthand from the implications that had on all subsequent cars.”

“It’s never fast enough. The speeds are high and therefore the danger is still present and it is still dangerous. But I think after that horrible weekend the drivers came together, stood up for themselves and Michael [Schumacher] pushed a lot for the GPDA to get together and push the FIA ​​and Formula 1 to make the tracks safer.”

“All the drivers who continued and will follow to this day benefited from that weekend, as funny as it sounds. But it was an important step in pushing standards and safety measures.”

“Before that weekend, Formula 1 had not lost a driver for over 10 years. In 2014 I found myself in a similar situation, where death – obviously, you are aware of the dangers of motorsport – but death is not there. was. Then there was the accident and Jules Bianchi paid with his life.”

“It raises a lot of questions, and obviously if you look at what happened and what was implemented after – it shouldn’t take these events to do that, so yeah, the delivery is never fast enough. But I think that’s good that after such dark moments we come together and try to speed things up, even if first we might think that things are as safe as possible.”