Bernie Ecclestone: Formula One’s Survival in Question after Ayrton Senna Tragedy
Ayrton Senna, the shining star of Formula One and an icon in Brazil, met his untimely demise on lap seven of the San Marino Grand Prix three decades ago. Bernie Ecclestone, the stalwart of the sport for forty years, revealed to PA news agency that following Senna’s fatal crash, there were grave concerns about the future of Formula One.
“If you think about all the things that happened, with Roland crashing and never getting out of his car, and then Senna, I really don’t think it would be possible for it to happen again.
“Max (Mosley – FIA president at the time) said to me afterwards that he believed it would be the end of Formula One. I said, ‘I think you are wrong and we will have to see’.
“We hoped it wouldn’t cause what Max had suggested might happen, but it was just a disaster. It wasn’t a good weekend, and it seems to me a lot longer than 30 years. He was just so unlucky to die in that accident.”
Reflecting on the disastrous weekend which also claimed the life of Roland Ratzenberger, Ecclestone recalled Max Mosley’s grim prediction that the sport might not recover. Despite the tragedy, the race resumed shortly after Senna’s accident, with Michael Schumacher emerging victorious.
“When these things happen, they all happen so quickly that you don’t really have that much time to think. Legally, it should have been stopped, because we now know he died at the circuit.
“But in the end, it came down to commercial problems, people who would have wanted refunds and all these sorts of things. And the other side of it, wasn’t really taken into consideration.”
Martin Brundle, now a respected television pundit, expressed anger over racing past the scene of Senna’s accident. Ecclestone, however, defended the decision to continue the race, citing commercial pressures and logistical challenges.
“Formula One became more popular after Senna’s death,” added Ecclestone. “It got so much worldwide publicity that people who had not watched Formula One before started to become interested.
“But I hope we will never see something like that again, and I think today, with the way everything has improved with safety, thank God, the chances are so much smaller.”
As Formula One prepares to pay tribute to Senna at the Emilia Romagna GP in Imola, Ecclestone emphasized the lasting impact of Senna’s death on the sport’s safety measures and global popularity. He expressed hope that such a tragedy would never be repeated, acknowledging the significant strides made in safety standards since Senna’s passing.