IMOLA. Who’s back. There is also an old friend from Ferrari and Formula 1 here in Imola. Sebastian Vettel, 36 years old, four-time world champion with Red Bull, who retired at the end of the 2022 season, returned to Italy to lead the celebrations in memory of Ayrton Senna, on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the death of the Brazilian phenomenon. The crash at Tamburello on 1 May 1994 was fatal, the day after the other tragedy that had affected the Austrian Roland Ratzenberger in the blackest weekend in the history of Formula 1. Vettel, who on Sunday before the Made in Italy Grand Prix and the ‘Emilia-Romagna will drive Ayrton’s last McLaren, the 1993 MP4/8, owned by him, has gathered his former colleagues – dressed in the celebratory t-shirt like the F1 boss, Stefano Domenicali – for a touching tribute to Senna on the asphalt that saw him as a protagonist for the last time.
The doubts of five years ago
Sebastian has dismissed the rumors of his possible return to the wheel (“No, no, no”), someone in recent weeks has compared him to Mercedes for the post-Hamilton, even if the test with the Porsche of the WEC – in perspective then missed doing the 24 Hours of Le Mans – he makes it clear that racing is still in his heart. Rather, the Imola event was an opportunity to talk about safety. Vettel revealed an unpublished background story, dating back to 31 August 2019, when Frenchman Anthoine Hubert, a promising F2 talent, lost his life in Spa. «I asked myself what reason there was for racing – recalls the German who was driving Ferrari at the time and had fought for the title in the previous two seasons –, what sense it had. I remember the phone calls with my wife very well, but in the end I decided to continue because it’s what I love.”
Schumacher’s commitment
Going back to 1994, «I believe that after that horrible weekend – said Sebastian – the riders united to make their voices heard. Michael pushed hard with the federation to make the single-seaters and the circuits safer.” The progress was immediately evident: «All the drivers who continued to race and those who arrived later benefited from that damned weekend – argues Vettel -. It’s strange to say, but an important step followed regarding safety standards.” Before the ceremony, Vettel wanted to dedicate a letter to Senna on social media: «I was only 7 years old when the accident occurred – he wrote -, through my father I learned how great Ayrton was, he was a big fan of his and he gave me a “Senna doll” and her toy car.” «The closest thing I had to Ayrton – he continues – was watching a practice session from the stands at Hockenheim. Unfortunately I never had the chance to meet him, later I learned many things about him from the people in and around the paddock. What I would have appreciated most, years later, is that he was not only one of the greatest drivers ever, but he always had attention for the social problems and poverty that affected his Brazil. This support continues today thanks to the Senna Foundation, this is the legacy of a truly great sportsman.”
The tragedy of Jules Bianchi
In the most dangerous sport in the world, unfortunately, risk can never be completely eliminated and death remains lurking. «A similar situation occurred 20 years later, in 2014 – recalls the German -. Of course we were aware of the danger, but nothing serious had happened for a long time and there was Jules Bianchi’s accident at Suzuka, which cost him his life. In these cases we ask ourselves a lot of questions, but we shouldn’t wait for events like this to take action. Progress, in terms of safety, is never fast enough but it is positive that we can learn from mistakes.” Bianchi’s death gave the definitive push to the development and subsequent introduction of the Halo, the titanium ring that has protected the riders’ heads since 2018 and has already avoided several tragedies: Charles Leclerc at Spa in 2019, Romain Grosjean in Bahrain in 2020 and Lewis Hamilton in Monza in 2021. You never stop learning.
