When you see a Formula One car working on the track at full speed, there’s a certain grace and composure that comes along with it, right? They do not bounce, heave, or look untoward when they pull multiple Gs in a bend. Nope, these things are perfectly glued to the surface and the guy inside looks like he’s doing little more than aiming the rocket where he wants it to go. This has been a hallmark of F1 racing for many years but when we go back to this video which was made 30 years ago in Monaco, we see what was actually happening in the car. Here we’re going to ride with Ayrton Senna as he absolutely rips a lap around the curious street course in glorious Monaco.
This car is a freaking animal. This driver has one hand on the wheel for much of the lap because the cars were still actually shifted at this point and not with the flaps on the back of the steering wheel. They were shifted with a real gear lever! Smoothness? This guy is getting the stuffing beat out of him in this car. At times it looks like a funny car going through tire shake!
Senna was the man and he lost his life in an unfortunate accident on one of the most unfortunate weekends modern F 1 has ever seen. But back in 1990? He was a young man driving possessed and boy was it a thing to watch, especially from the view you will see in this video. Modern F1 drivers are amazing athletes, but they are not trying to wrangle a machine this freaking mean anymore.
This right here is what we want in racing!
