Ayrton Senna did not like to be challenged on a Formula 1 track, and clashed with many rivals throughout his career.
His approach helped him to win three drivers’ championships in four seasons before McLaren started to struggle.
During Senna’s final season with them in 1993, he battled with one of the more difficult machines of his Formula 1 career.
He decided that enough was enough and moved to Williams for 1994, where he would partner future champion Damon Hill.
Senna once obliterated his F1 opposition and had a knack of producing sensational qualifying laps and leading from the front.
He didn’t always like being challenged, though, and Senna was infuriated by a difficult problem during his F1 career. He couldn’t accept not having the fastest car.
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Damon Hill recalls ‘put me in my place’ moment with Ayrton Senna
Both Hill and Senna were teammates for just three races before his tragic accident at the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix.
However, they had also shared the grid and clashed one year earlier in 1993 – Hill’s first full-time season in the sport.
Speaking to Jake Humphrey about the incident, Hill recalled feeling a bit frustrated that Senna was talking down to someone who was virtually the same age.
“[In] 93 I got told off by him for the way I drove, which, coming from him, I thought was a bit rich,” he said. “He sent his manager round to get me after a race. ‘Mr Senna would like to see you, sir.’
“Okay, alright, round I go. We were the same age virtually, and he sat there saying you’re a young driver. I said, ‘Well, I’m about the same age as you.’ I’m young in terms of years of racing and that.
“He said, ‘You know, you should be very careful about how you do things, sometimes it can go wrong.’ I was thinking, I know your career, mate! Honestly, really?
“He was trying to put me in my place I think, trying to get me to respect him. I think I tried to block him and the audacity to actually race and stop him overtaking me.”
READ MORE: Frank Williams’ son thinks 31-win F1 driver would have dominated Ayrton Senna and Michael Schumacher
How did Damon Hill fare against Ayrton Senna as Formula 1 teammates at Williams?
It’s hard to compare both Hill and Senna from such a short sample of races together, however, there is one clear statistic that stands out.
In all three races, Senna claimed pole position while they were teammates, and had a clear advantage over one lap.
Sadly, he retired from all three of his race starts, while Hill retired from one and picked up a second place and a sixth.
The Brit would go on to claim six victories in 1994 and miss out on the title at the season finale after an accident with Michael Schumacher.
It took him another two years to get close again, managing to get across the line in 1996 and win his one and only title for Williams, just before being dropped by them.
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