Ayrton Senna’s tragic death at the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix at Imola shook the world of Formula 1.
Williams had just signed three-time world champion Ayrton Senna from McLaren after he missed out on a fourth title to his archrival Alain Prost.
There was a lot of excitement surrounding the move, with Williams proving to be serial drivers’ and constructors’ champions at the time, with Adrian Newey helping design the car in the background.
Damon Hill was Senna’s teammate at the time, while David Coulthard was Williams’ reserve and test driver.
RANKDRIVERTEAMPOINTS1Michael SchumacherBenetton922Damon HillWilliams913Gerhard BergerFerrari414Mika HakkinenMcLaren265Jean AlesiFerrari246Rubens BarrichelloJordan197Martin BrundleMcLaren168David CoulthardWilliams149Nigel MansellWilliams1310Jos VerstappenBenetton101994 Formula 1 drivers’ championship
Senna took pole position in each of the first three races but failed to finish any of them, spinning at Interlagos and being involved in a first corner collision with Mika Hakkinen at the Pacific Grand Prix.
The Brazilian started from the front at the race now known as the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix before his fatal accident on lap five.
Coulthard has now recalled the last message Senna sent him before his own race at Silverstone that weekend.
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Photo by Jean-Marc LOUBAT/Gamma-Rapho via Getty ImagesDavid Coulthard recalls the final message Ayrton Senna sent him before his fatal Imola crash
Senna’s accident forced a raft of safety changes from the FIA, with the weekend also seeing Rubens Barrichello suffer a huge accident in practice, and Roland Ratzenberger losing his life in qualifying.
Coulthard was taking part in a feature for the official Formula 1 website called Memory Box, and talking about that weekend and his relationship with Senna, he said: “He just came with this aura around him.
“I do recall spending time with him, testing the car and just being completely made up thinking this is as good as my career ever needs to be!
“For the majority of his career, Ayrton was just the complete package.
Grand Prix starts161Pole positions65Wins41Podiums80Fastest laps19Points610 (614)Championships3 (1988, 1990, 1991)Ayrton Senna’s Formula 1 record
“I was racing that weekend in Formula 3000 at Silverstone. That morning, before I went to Silverstone, I received a fax.
“Ian Cunningham, who worked with Williams at the time, had organised for them, I guess, to wish me luck for the Formula 3000 race.
“And Ayrton had written, ‘Very best to you’, and then later that day, sadly, he passed away and then that obviously started a period of speculation as to who would be in the car, and then ultimately, we know that I was given the seat for the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona.”
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Photo by Paul-Henri Cahier/Getty ImagesFrank Williams says Ayrton Senna was the quickest driver he had ever seen
Senna has been compared to Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen and a host of other modern drivers over the years, highlighting his legacy in the sport.
Coulthard went on to replace him for two years at Williams, with Nigel Mansell stepping in occasionally, before seeing out his career with McLaren and Red Bull.
In an interview with Autosport in 1996, team boss Frank Williams was asked what he looked for in a driver, and answered: “Essentially, you’re looking for speed.
“How quick is the guy? How quick do you think he is? Second, what are his results to date? Then, is his temperament right; is he lazy, tough, et cetera?”
Grand Prix starts246Pole positions12Wins13Podiums62Fastest laps18Points535Best championship result2nd (2001)David Coulthard’s Formula 1 career stats
When asked about who the quickest driver was that he had seen, he explained: “From ’69 onwards, Senna was probably the best.
“People will always say, what about Jim Clark, and [Juan Manuel] Fangio? But you can’t compare different eras.”
Williams named Senna, Jackie Stewart, Michael Schumacher and Nelson Piquet in his list of greats, but left out Mansell, who won his only drivers’ championship with the team in 1992.
He explained why and said: “Very talented. Erratic in his early years. Made all his own deals. Tough negotiator. Immensely well prepared. Wonderful. A formidable opponent.”