Fifteen years without Ayrton

Juan Manuel Fangio, Niki Lauda, Jackie Stewart, Nelson Piquet, Alain Prost…Ayrton. There's no need for last name. Each sport has its legends. To recall only a few, Pelé and Maradona in football, Ruth and DiMaggio in baseball, Nicklaus and Woods in golf, Sampras and Navratilova in tennis, you name the sport.

Ayrton Senna was more than an idol, at the same speed that he lived and drove, he died. His determination, his ambition, his competitive spirit, his arrogance on track, took him to be, for many, the greatest driver automotive history has ever witnessed. A whole country found hope in him, a complete nation followed him lap after lap. Many F1 fans can remember those years in which fierce rivalry between Prost and Ayrton were everyday news. Many remember the epic battles between the two during the 1988, 89 and 90 seasons as McLaren teammates. The final score: 2-1. The Paulista won 1988 and 1990 driver's championships, not before leaving enough controversy for generations of fans to come, while the Gallic won in 89 . Memorable Japanese GP's in 1989 and 1990 described their style and daring. Two polemic incidents with his french rival marked these two seasons and this rivalry story. A third world championship came in 1991, clearly beating Prost throughout the season, and closely beating british Nigel Mansell.

At 34, in 1994, he finally joined Williams Renault, after failing to join in 1993 because Alain Prost, who drove for Williams, had a clause in his contract to avoid having Senna as teammate. The season was supposed to have a happy ending, having Ayrton crowned as Champion on November 13, 1994, in the best car of the season. But his life's stopwatch stopped on May 1st, 1994 at 2:17 PM San Marino local time. Only God knows why his car went straight to hit infamous Tamburello turn's concrete wall at over 200km/h. His life blacked out in a tenth of a second, the same tenth that had probably granted him so many victories in the previous years.

His funeral was massive. Motorsports world mourned his departure, a whole Brazilian nation paid tribute to their hero. Never before had a sport other than football in Brazil aroused such feelings, never before had a single figure inspired nationalism and pride as Ayrton did.

Fifteen years later, the world can say that as 1994 saw death pass by Formula One, it also left the birth of, for many others, the greatest driver of all times: Michael Schumacher and his first Driver's Championship. No matter what happens, how sport changes, how many years pass, Ayrton will never need a last name to be remembered. He'll continue to take the checkered flag from eternity.