Ayrton Senna: the greatest racing driver ever

He never wanted that role, but, history always writes itself and so Ayrton Senna is widely accepted as the greatest racing driver ever. He danced his F1 cars around the track with an unmatched intensity, often ending races with muscle spasms, dehydrated and totally.worn out. He bled racing, and tragically, the sport responded in kind. But even today, almost twenty years after his death, watching him drive carries the same level of excitement as seeing a great artist painting a canvas or a musical virtuoso play his instrument. 

There is a shift from mastery into total control. He never hesitated, never slowed his progression: it was not a competition against other racers, it was his competition for the perfection. He never shied from controversy and his vibrant personality was often misunderstood, but the Brazilian racer was a purist and he never lost his innocent love of the sport. 

Brazil memorialized his death with three days of national mourning and his sister established a foundation, which has donated over $400 million to children in need. Ayrton Senna is best remembered in this way: he was more than a driver, he was iconic of the best of Brazil, the best of mankind...

Ayrton Senna and the charity: he gave away $4 million a year to the poor

Senna got a lot of pleasure out of spending his vast fortune but his wealth troubled his conscience. He soothed it by giving away around $4 million a year in charity to the poor of São Paulo. As Senna got wealthier with his near-$20 million-a-year income from driving and sponsorship, his attention was turned to what he could do for the poor. His focus was on children, He said: “Brazil has lots of problems, lots of difficulties."

Josef Leberer remembers: “We were driving through São Paulo and I had to ask him, ‘you are a wealthy guy, you see these poor areas, what do you think about it?’. He was such a good person. And you could see that it went deep into his heart because he said, ‘this is a big problem in Brazil and sometimes it is difficult with the corruption, but I would like to do something already’. He was supplying children in hospitals but he was never talking, he said ‘I don’t like to talk about it, I like to do it’. I remember I thought I was really proud to have the chance to meet someone like him.

Adriane Galisteu cashed 400.000 euros and a BMW in 1995 using the death of Ayrton Senna

Adriane Galisteu, an unknown model from Sao Paulo, became rich and famous thanks to the death of Ayrton Senna

Posing naked for Playboy Brazil in 1995 as the last official girlfriend of Ayrton Senna reported a small fortune to Adriane Galisteu.

A year later after the death of Senna at the Italian circuit of  San Marino, in Imola, his last known girlfriend, Adriane Galisteu, an events model from Sao Paulo, discovered the big money thanks to a reportage of nude pictures for the Brazilian Playboy. Posing as the last girlfriend of the national Brazilian idol of Formula 1, Ayrton Senna, allowed the young woman of just 22 years old to cash an interesting amount of money: 400.000 euros. Together with that, she also received a BMW car from the magazine of Hugh Hefner.

The money received was used to buy herself a luxurious appartment in the most noble neighborhood of Sao Paulo, Jardims. Although in later years, she tried a more politically version of the facts to be known, saying that she wanted to use the money to help her sick brother, drug addict and infected with AIDS, the truth is that Adriane herself admitted in an interview in 1995 that she wanted the money primarily to buy a house.

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Ayrton Senna at his private family farm Fazenda Dois Lagos, in Tatui - Brazil

The Tatui farm, in Brazil, a Fazenda Dois Lagos, the family farm that Ayrton Senna made build between 1990 and 1993

Ayrton Senna fishing, one of his favorite hobbies, at the Tatui farm, in Brazil

Ayrton Senna and his nephew, Bruno Senna, at the family farm  in Tatui, Brazil. Go-kart circuit.

Ayrton Senna in the swimming pool of the family farm, in Tatui, Brazil, 1994

Ayrton Senna at the family farm in Tatui, Brazil. Practicing one of his hobbies, aeromodelling

His career was certainly becoming very rewarding and he bought his second home in Brazil, which he intended to be a family ranch. The property would take three-and-a-half years to complete the plans he had for it – to make lakes and go-kart tracks and turn it into a rural playground. Rather than his own home, he intended this to be a family home which they could all share. The 200-hectare cattle ranch was called Fazenda Dois Lagos, at Tatui, some 120 kilometres outside São Paulo. It was a paradise where he would recuperate rather than go to for pleasure, like the beach house at Angra dos Reis. 

As well as a home it would remain a proper working farm, with 50 pigs and 50 cattle, and fields full of vegetables growing. When it was complete, he would be able to enjoy go-kart races with his nephews on the private circuit, tennis and long sleeps in the 10 bedrooms that would all be rearranged to have views of the lake and access to the central jacuzzi he planned. The renovations he planned were budgeted to cost $3.16 million. 

Behind the purchase of the farm was his unfulfilled dream of settling down with the wife of his choice and starting a family. Over the years he constantly spoke to journalists about his quest for the perfect woman, and how he had never found her. He said: “When one makes a non-stop trip around the world for professional reasons, it is absolutely necessary to be able to return to one’s roots, stay in touch and avoid losing oneself."

Senna runs to join Sid Watkins in the Medical car after Ratzenberger's fatal crash, Imola, April 30th 1994

Ayrton Senna runs to the track after hearing about Ratzenberger's death - Imola, San Marino, 30th April 1994

161 starts, 65 pole positions, 41 wins. 

Those are the statistics of none other than Ayrton Senna. The statistics, however, do not even begin to tell the story of the incredible man that was Ayrton Senna. A testament to his greatness was that during the recovery efforts after his fatal accident, the medics found an unexpected item - an Austrian flag, sadly bloodstained from the accident. Had Senna won the race, and he had every intention of doing so, he would have held the flag aloft on his victory lap to honour the memory of Roland Ratzenberger. It would have been a simple gesture, but it sums up the nature of Ayrton Senna perfectly.

Picture: Senna runs to join Sid Watkins in the Medical car after Ratzenberger's fatal crash, Imola, April 30th 1994

Ayrton Senna thought his sister Viviane Senna, was wonderful

"I think I am very happy because my father and my mother gave me the fundamental feelings I have today. Additionally, I have a wonderful sister, a special brother, and always lived very close to each other, always thinking as a group, as a whole, always being positive about things. "

Nothing in the world of Formula 1 stayed the same after Senna's death

Nothing stayed the same after his leaving because the cold, sterile, high-tech and highly politicized world of Formula 1 was only the frame that emphasized more Ayrton’s gentle but, at the same time, incredibly strong personality. And from when Ayrton is gone away, this frame is remained empty like a picture without its canvas, like a body without its soul...

Ayrton Senna launches join venture bikes with Carraro, Italy

Ayrton Senna during the launch of his bycicles join venture with Carraro, Italy

Ayrton Senna launched 3 different types of bycicles

On Thursday, before heading to Imola, Senna was one of those trade commitments that caused concern Galvão Bueno: the launch of three models of bikes Senna, created by the Italian factory Carraro.

Source: O heroi revelado, Ernesto Rodrigues

Thursday 28th April 1994 was destined to be a busy day for Ayrton Senna. He woke in his villa in Quinta do Lago in the Portuguese Algarve as usual and went for an early morning run around the sand dunes and golf greens. His Portuguese housekeeper, Juraci, was already up doing errands and fussing around him. He hated leaving his Portuguese home. The four-bedroomed, white-walled villa sat in its own grounds set in a dream resort of around 2,000 acres. With golf courses and lakes on one side and a beach on the other, this paradise was still a well-kept secret as far as Senna was concerned. Only people who had been there understood the unique atmosphere and climate. The resort had a five-star hotel, four championship golf courses and many top restaurants and a nightclub.

But most of all Quinta do Lago gave him the anonymity he craved.

The people also spoke his language, Portuguese. It was the only place in the world outside Brazil that he felt at home. André Jordan, the developer of Quinta do Lago, had employed Brazilian architect Júlio Neves to design much of the infrastructure. And over the European winter, when he had been inBrazil, the house was remodelled and redecorated. In 1994, for the first time, he planned to spend the entire European season in Portugal and not return to Brazil at all.

His one servant was Juraci, who was in permanent residence. Her duties were to cook, clean and chauffeur and she did them all admirably.

In fact Senna felt good every time he drove past the rainbow-coloured ‘Q’ logo statue that rotated slowly inside a fountain at the main entrance to the complex. He felt he was entering a unique environment where nature was in complete harmony with his design for living a Brazilian lifestyle in Europe. His garden was a breathtaking vista of exotic, tropical plants – palms and banana trees, giant hibiscus, vivid yellow mimosa, whole walls of bougainvillea, orange, lemon and avocado trees. The area, legally protected since 1987, was a unique natural habitat for more than 200 resident or migratory birds, including a number of rare and endangered species. The lakes were a rich repository for shellfish and other marine life.

When he wanted he could jet-ski or windsurf on the lakes and run for hours along the nature trails. It made his fitness regime more bearable in the wonderful climate and beautiful surroundings. And when he needed a social life he went to the golf club, where the locals and residents knew him but, more importantly, knew not to bother him. At the restaurants and nightclubs on the complex, the same rules applied. And he regarded the security firm that looked after the site as his own personal one. It was so effective that petty crime in Quinta do Lago was virtually non-existent.

And things were about to get even better. He packed a small overnight bag himself for the three nights he was going to spend in a hotel in San Pietro near Bologna, whilst competing in the San Marino Grand Prix. There were no formal dinners or commitments that weekend, so his clothing needs were minimal. As he packed he remarked to Juraci that life couldn’t get any better than it was that bright sunny morning in the Algarve. But he was always saying that to the people around him, reminding them all, and not least himself, how lucky they all were to be sharing the life Formula One had given him.

His brother, Leonardo, was staying until Sunday and would be coming with him to Imola. 

Senna spent his time between two tight groups: his family, with whom he congregated in Brazil; and his private circle of friends, which was just as tight as his family group, and with whom he spent time in Europe. This group consisted of around a dozen people headed by Antonio Braga, a wealthy Brazilian who also divided his time between Brazil and Portugal. He liked having them around. The upcoming race at Imola would be no different.

After his run Juraci prepared a light breakfast for him and Leonardo, who was returning to Brazil after the San Marino Grand Prix. She then delivered them to Faro airport, where Captain Owen O’Mahoney was waiting in Senna’s own BAe HS125 jet to fly them to Munich for a morning meeting with executives from Audi. Senna had been negotiating to take over the Audi franchise in Brazil. This was a meeting to finalise the terms. A few hours after landing they were ready to take off again this time for Forli airport near Bologna. From Forli the brothers would go by helicopter to Padua and the Carraro bicycle factory. Senna had a new deal with Carraro to manufacture a carbon-fibre bicycle called the Senna that would carry his famous double ‘S’ logo. It had been planned for some time and was one of many new products under the famous ‘double S’ Senna brand. He was also to import the Carraro bicycles into Brazil. 

After arriving at the factory to formally sign the contract, he would go on to the Sheraton Padova Hotel on the highway from Milan to Venice.

At around 4 o’clock he arrived in Padua and landed his helicopter in the grounds of the Carraro Industria factory. After signing the contract he went with Giovanni Carraro to the hotel for a press conference. It was part of the start of a new life for him as an entrepreneur when he retired from racing. He wanted to talk about it but there were hardly any journalists he recognised at the press conference and naturally all they wanted to talk about was motor racing, not bicycles. Senna told the press conference: “The world championship is just beginning for me in Imola, with a handicap of two races.”

Even though the journalists present were not Formula One veterans, they were enthusiastic Italians and wanted to ask him questions about Benetton’s supposed traction control. Senna was surprised about their depth of knowledge. He said: “I really can’t say much about it,” and then said, in a way that revealed both very little and yet a lot: “It’s difficult to talk about things one cannot prove.”

At around 5:30pm he left the Carraro factory and flew to the Imola circuit. On the way he collected Mike Vogt, marketing director of TAG Heuer. Senna and Vogt, who knew each other from his McLaren days, discussed a new Senna watch the company was developing. Even though Senna had left the McLaren family, of which TAG Heuer was a part, Vogt still wanted to do business with him. He knew he could sell plenty of Senna watches at $2,000 apiece.

SOURCE

Book The Life of Senna – Tom Rubython

How Ayrton Senna and Xuxa started their love relationship

Xuxa, a very famous TV show woman in Brazil, was the only true love of Senna and the only woman he wanted to marry

It was Xuxa who spotted Senna first, when she was flicking through a magazine. He was on the verge of becoming really famous when he joined McLaren, and was on the cover. Inside there were pictures of him with animals. She remembers thinking: “Wow, look at his face. He likes animals just like me, and is also famous.” She even discussed him with her manager, Marlene Mattos, but was certain it would come to nothing. “These things don’t happen in my life,” she said at the time. So she closed the magazine and forgot about it.

A week later Senna phoned her dressing room at the TV Globo studios. She was recording her show but he left a message, and she called him back. He said to her: “Hi, most beautiful woman of Brazil.” They talked freely straight away and he asked when they could meet. She said her show was filmed Monday to Saturday and she could not get away. He asked her about Sunday but she said she would not have enough time to get to São Paulo from Rio. He told her he would send his plane for her and she agreed. The plane arrived on the tarmac at Rio dead on time, and there was a little note for her from Senna. She took some colleagues back with her on the flight, then went to her house in São Paulo. She called Senna and tried to make excuses, saying she was very tired. “How long would it take for me to get to your house?” he asked. “Fifteen minutes,” she replied. “I’ll be there in five minutes,” he said. And sure enough, five minutes later a car was outside her house with the wheels spinning and smoke billowing from the exhaust.

Xuxa remembers he was really nervous, but then so was she. She says when they touched and shook hands for the first time she felt it was really special – and that her dog Zé fell in love with the Brazilian straight away.

"The life of Senna" - Tom Rubython

The last good-bye to Ayrton Senna in Sao Paulo, 5th May 1994

More than 1 million people in Sao Paulo accompanied the firemen truck that carried the coffin of Ayrton Senna from the airport of Sao Paulo to his grave in Morumbi. That day no crime was commited in the always difficult to live city of Sao Paulo.

Ayrton Senna was revered by Japanese fans

Ayrton Senna and Japanese fans, Suzuka 1990. Senna was considered almost a semi-god in Japan, somebody in front of whom Japanese people would bow in a respectful reverence. 

Gerhard Berger plays practical jokes on Ayrton Senna

Gerhard Berger was a prankster his whole career. Some of his most famous pranks came with Ayrton Senna.

Accounts tell of an incident at Monza where in a joint helicopter ride Ayrton had been showing off his new tailor-made briefcase. Having been made of carbon fibre composite, Senna boasted it was virtually indestructible – this claim his team mate Gerhard tested (to Ayrton’s disbelief) by opening the door of the helicopter and throwing the briefcase out as they were flying above Monza. Gerhard asserted innocently that he only sought to test the hypothesis.

“It fell somewhere near the course but we found it again”

Berger recalled with a cheeky grin. Gerhard later recounted further events before the 1990 Australian Grand Prix. 

"After dinner, we started to throw people in the swimming pool, all dressed. As I was good at defending myself, I escaped from the bath, but many people got wet. Senna ran away to avoid us from getting him, however, later, I went to his room and he awkwardly threw a glass of water at me. For a Tyrolean, that was nothing, but it did mean that the game was now on. With a hose, we improvised an extension to the fire extinguisher and we put it under his room door at three in the morning. We invited some people to watch and when we pushed the lever, Senna flew out of the window like a rocket. It looked like a bomb had exploded inside the room. The confusion woke many people up, who started to scream at Senna for making so much noise. He was terribly embarrassed."

Berger is also accused of filling Senna’s hotel room in Adelaide with animals, when the Brazilian confronted his team-mate and angrily announced he’d spent the whole night removing frogs from his room, Berger asked

“Did you find the snake?”

“Actually they weren’t frogs, they were bigger, more like toads. In Australia they have this kind of stuff. I thought he liked animals but clearly not, "

Berger explained.It was an incident that prompted retaliation by Ayrton, who then proceeded to put a strong smelling French cheese in the air conditioning unit of Gerhard’s room.

On another occasion, Ayrton Senna and Brazilian compatriot Mauricio Gugelmin decided to fill Berger’s shoes with shaving foam on a fast train ride to a dinner in Japan. Having been forced to attend the dinner wearing a tuxedo with sneakers, Berger vowed for retribution. It was at the Japanese Grand Prix a few days later that Gugelmin (driving for Leyton-House) was approached by Joseph Leberer, the McLaren team nutritionist, offering fresh orange juice. Ever vigilant, Mauricio declined the suspicious offer. He would later expand:

"One hour before the race starts he crushed four sleeping pills into that juice and sent it to me. I would pass out at the start of the race in which the world title would be decided. The cars roaring by at the track and I snoring in the cabin, can you imagine it?"

Best known is probably an incident in which Gerhard replaced Ayrton’s passport photo with what Ron Dennis described as "an equivalent-sized piece of male genitalia". Senna’s fame meant he rarely had his passport checked, but on a later trip to Argentina Berger’s prank resulted in officials holding the Brazilian for 24 hours. As a response to this gag, Ayrton superglued all of Berger’s credit cards together.

Ayrton's physical appearance was so unlike any other human's

Nice words of a fan: "I'm deeply intrigued by the fact that, from my perception, Ayrton's physical appearance was so unlike any other human's, in a very appealing way. As far as I'm concerned, that adds a lot to his allure: his look exudes power, transcendence. Remarkable man in all ways, but his face has always had a particular impact on me. Nobody I've ever seen shares such a look, a subtlety that I can't put my finger on."

Ayrton Senna Memorial at Imola, San Marino, Italy

Ayrton Senna Memorial at the circuit of F1 in San Marino, Imola, Italy

 "I’m not a big fan of May 1. I know what to do each year on my wife’s birthday, our wedding anniversary, on Christmas, and all of the other major dates circled on the calendar, but the annual reminder of Ayrton Senna’s death on May 1, 1994 tends to leave me a bit confused and emotionally conflicted. It's been 19 years since his crash and subsequent death at the San Marino Grand Prix—more than enough time to have gone from mourning his loss to celebrating his life—but there are still tinges of sorrow that surface each May.

As much as I’m thankful for all he accomplished and left behind, I’m also somewhat selfish in wanting to have seen more. I feel the same way about the late Greg Moore and Dan Wheldon. Having witnessed their brilliance for only so briefly, living without it has left an immeasurable void that, if I’m honest, will probably remain unfilled. What I’m also left to consider each year on May 1—and I imagine I’m not alone—is how big of a role Ayrton Senna played in my life. Like millions of other Formula 1 fans, I dove headfirst into the sport in the 1980s. Despite my appreciation for many of the World Champions in the field, I was immediately drawn to Senna, a driver whose otherworldly talents were so perfectly balanced by his many flaws. He was painfully human —the most relatable driver on the grid, I reckoned. I digested every bit of news and information on Senna that was available from magazines like Autosport, On Track, and MotorSport (during those pre-Internet days) and videotaped nearly all of his F1 races (once I was old enough to get a job and pay for cable, that is).

I spent countless hours arguing with co-workers, bosses, and drivers about his superiority to Prost, Piquet, Mansell, and the rest. He was my hero, and my worship of him continued into the Nineties, adding Schumacher and Hill to the losing column in my superiority debate. By the way I miss those heated roundtables but remain convinced that I was always right... And then it came crashing down for me on live television in the early hours of May 1 at a hotel near Laguna Seca.

The outcome of his crash was obvious at the time, and although I was in shock, the announcement of his death that came over the public address system in the Monterey paddock wasn’t unexpected. Following Senna was incredibly personal for me and made his death hard to reconcile. Again, I can’t say if my attachment to him—one forged from half a world away—was unique, but every year on May 1, I’m taken back by the flood a memories—of who I was at the time, of what he meant to me, and of how my appreciation for him has matured."

By Marshall Pruett

Ayrton Senna had the good looks of a romantic hero

Death, perhaps inevitably, has lent Ayrton Senna's legend a romanticised sheen. The greatness of the man and the brilliance of his driving are remembered easily, the occasional darkness of his psyche perhaps less so. But it does Senna a disservice to honour only part of his legacy. The significance of his achievements cannot be properly understood without a full appreciation of their origins.

Ayrton Senna facts

World champion three times
161 grand prix starts
41 wins
65 pole positions
First race - 1984 Brazilian GP
First win - 1985 Portugese GP
Last win - 1993 Australian GP
Last race - 1994 San Marino GP

He had the good looks of a romantic hero, a charisma that could quieten any room, the eloquence of a poet and a spirituality with which millions felt they could identify. His dark eyes were windows to a soul of complexity and volatility. All that made him into a demi-god in his homeland of Brazil, and admired the world over like few sportsmen before or since.

But with that determination, and his own knowledge of just how good he was, came a sense of entitlement that was less attractive and which led him to take actions that put his own life - and the lives of his opponents - at risk.

Adriane Galisteu, ex-girlfriend of Ayrton Senna, played in a porn movie in 1995

Adriane Galisteu nua na novela de TV Xica da Silva - Rede Manchete TV 1995

Adriane Galisteu nua na novela de TV Xica da Silva - Rede Manchete TV 1995

Adriane Galisteu nua na novela de TV Xica da Silva - Rede Manchete TV 1995

Adriane Galisteu nua na novela de TV Xica da Silva - Rede Manchete TV 1995

Adriane Galisteu nua na novela de TV Xica da Silva - Rede Manchete TV 1995

Adriane Galisteu nua na novela de TV Xica da Silva - Rede Manchete TV 1995

In 1995, former girlfriend of Ayrton Senna (the last one in his life, although many say she was payed by him monthly to keep him company), Adriane Galisteu, used the name of Ayrton Senna to become famous and sold his private life to the press in many magazine interviews. She also wrote a book, "My life with Ayrton Senna", where she told very private details of his life. Ayrton Senna was an especially private person, very jealous of his private life, and he would be for sure horrified with the actions of his last girlfriend.

Adriane Galisteu also used the name of Ayrton Senna in an opportunistic commercial move, by posing for the magazine Playboy in Brazil, in August 1995. The magazine sold very well, almost 1.2 million copies, because everybody wanted to see "the body Ayrton Senna had in his bed every night" according to the words of a Brazilian journalist at that time.

Also in 1995 Adriane Galisteu, ex-girlfriend of Ayrton Senna, who he wanted to break up with after the Grand Prix of Imola 1994, due to her unfaithfulness, played in a porn movie, named "Xica da Silva" from Rede Manchete TV in Brazil. In that movie, she gets naked in most of the scenes and simulate sex and rape scenes.

According to the media, she was one of the actors who got hired because of pure commercial reasons, not for her talent. It was about a commercial bet of the director of the movie, Walter Avancini. Adriane Galisteu was one of the most obvious cases, since she had very little to say there, being filmed naked most of the time.

See the PORN MOVIE OF ADRIANE GALISTEU IN 1995, XICA DA SILVA


Adriane galisteu por amigosdohomer

 Read more about Adriane Galisteu and how she used Ayrton Senna after his death: http://ayrtonsennadasilvaforever.blogspot.com.es/2013/09/adriane-galisteu-cashed-400000-euros.html