OfLorenzo Pastuglia
The champion’s crash on May 1st 1994, Davide Tinarelli and his wife met him on April 30th at their wedding: «Someone shouted: “There’s Senna in the hall”. He was kind and for me he was a legend. The next day he was no longer there.”
«We chose the Castello hotel to celebrate our wedding because we liked it, beyond the fact that the drivers stayed there during the F1 weekends in Imola. Fate wanted us to meet Ayrton Senna before I died, it was a special moment that I remember perfectly, even if it is now distant 30 years». The images in the mind of Davide Tinarelli61 years old, are still clear when he talks about his marriage to his wife, the 63-year-old Teresa Capra, that April 30, 1994. Precisely that day the F1 GP qualifications were held in Imola and Senna, returning to the hotel at 8.30pm after his dinner at the “Romagnola” restaurant in Castel San Pietro, stopped for a couple of minutes with the newlyweds to take some photo. A special moment retraced by the 61-year-old, now retired, on that sad last evening of the Brazilian’s life, who died the following day in the race at the Tamburello curve.
Tinarelli, a lot of time has passed since that time…
«Thirty years is not a few years. Today in my home in via Berlinguer (in Castel San Pietro, Bologna, ed.) I am enjoying my retirement, after going there in 2019 and having worked as a metalworker for a lifetime in the construction of oil-dynamic distributors. My wife Teresa also enjoys it, in her lifetime she was an administrative employee of Apicoltura Piana, here in the area. However, I often think about meeting Senna on my wedding day.”
Why the Castello hotel to celebrate your and your wife’s wedding?
«In that place, at the time, weddings were very popular. Then we always liked it, beyond the fact that during the F1 weekends in Imola the drivers stayed there, such as Mika Häkkinen. Fate wanted us to meet Ayrton before he died, it was a special moment that I remember perfectly even though it was now 30 years away. Unfortunately, however, the joy of that evening turned into sorrow the following day (due to Senna’s death).”
Can you tell us how that day began?
«After four years of engagement, Teresa and I decided to get married and we prepared for that April 30th. Luckily it was a beautiful, warm day, arriving after several days of rain. The mass was scheduled at the church of San Bartolomeo di Frassineto, in Molino Nuovo, at 4pm. After the wedding the 90 guests went to the hotel around 5.30-6pm, while we went to take photos at the Scardovi lake (always in Castel San Pietro, ed.). We arrived at the “Castello” just before dinner.”
And then?
«Everything was going well. A boy was singing and cheering up the atmosphere, the guests were happy, we started eating, drinking, dancing. The classic worry-free wedding, in short. And then Senna arrived.”
How did it happen?
«At around 8.30pm, while we were in the middle of dinner, Ayrton, in the company of two Brazilian friends, had already returned to the hotel to rest, after having eaten at the “Romagnola” restaurant. I remember we were at the table talking with some relatives, when someone shouted: “There’s Senna in the hall”. So I didn’t think twice, I said: “Let me take a photo, it doesn’t happen to me every day” and I ran towards him. I walked down the corridor and saw him, he looked at me and I asked him if he could take a photo with my wife.”
And he?
«He immediately said “yes” to me, he was very kind, so we went into the room and the ovation began from the guests. I called the photographer and we posed. My wife kindly agreed, even though she has never been a fan of sports in general. A couple of minutes, a few photos, we shook hands and he left. A fantastic memory, immortalized in some shots. I jealously keep them with me in the wedding album at home.”
She, unlike her wife, has always loved Formula 1.
«Both Formula 1 and Senna as a person, even though I have always been a Ferrari fan. I still see the GPs today, despite the dominance of Verstappen and Red Bull. Max reminds me a bit of Ayrton, because he has no frills in his head and leaves crumbs to his opponents on the track. As a lover of the Cavallino, it was a shame that “Magic” never came to Maranello, despite him having been close several times. Senna is one of those riders who capture attention, who move the audience, a bit like Valentino Rossi in MotoGP in the recent past.”
The feeling of satisfaction of that April 30, 1994 was erased by pain the following day…
«The following day there was the Imola race and Ayrton’s death at Tamburello (on the seventh lap of the race, ed.). I couldn’t believe it: it seemed like a lucky combination to have met him at my wedding, the best gift there was, then suddenly he was no longer there.”
Do people still remind you of that moment?
“Frequently. I am a billiards player, a member of Fibis Emilia Romagna (the Italian sports billiards federation, ed.) and I often travel around the province to play. Several opponents recognized me and told me “But you are the groom who took the photo with Ayrton”. And they are surprised (laughs). Then we play.”
Go to all the news from Bologna
The Corriere di Bologna newsletter
If you want to stay updated on the news of Bologna and Emilia-Romagna, subscribe for free to the newsletter Courier of Bologna. Arrives directly in your inbox every day at 12pm. Just click here.
April 27, 2024 (modified April 27, 2024 | 10:02)
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
