It is still greatly painful for drivers of Ayrton Senna's generation to come to terms with the death of the great Formula 1 driver, 1 May 1994 remains a scar that many will carry forever, among them Johnny Herbert who drove past the wrecked Williams at Imola that day.
The Englishman was 29-year-old at the time, and Senna was 34 a three-time F1 World Champion with the dominant Williams team. Herbert drove for Lotus, the once great F1 team reduced to backmarkers and in their final season before the team folded.
Two drivers on different spectrums of the F1 driver pecking order at the time, Senna at the very top in contrast to Herbert who was paying his dues before he became a Grand Prix winner.
A day after Roland Ratzenberger was instantly killed when crashed his Simtek during Qualifying for the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix, Senna was killed early on in the race ar Imola.
Pained by the memories to this day, Herbert opened up on Senna as never before: "Ayrton apparently had a premonition the night before that he was going to die. He said this to Professor Sid Watkins, F1’s medical expert, who told him to quit and go fishing as he had nothing else to prove to anyone.
"Senna said he was not in a position to do so and had to carry on. He was always aware of the risk factor but we all were. We had all seen the horrific accident with Rubens on the Friday, then Roland being killed. It was made worse because it was Ayrton Senna and the myth that surrounded him."
God was his biggest protection and always had been
"You see the cameras trained on his face before the race," explained Herbert. "It was a very different Ayrton than we had seen before. He looked very distant. It was very, very eerie knowing what was going to happen. To go through what he did with those feelings on his own apart from the conversation with Professor Sid, must have been so hard. He then had to get into the cockpit. It makes it all the more poignant.
"God was his biggest protection and always had been. That is how he got through his races. Then there was the calling he had the night before after seeing Ratzenberger die," ventured Herbert, referencing Senna going to the accident site. "It was a weekend of mayhem. I had known Roland since our days in Formula Ford. He was a lovely man. It was his first season in F1.
On Sunday, Senna was on pole for his 161st GP start in the Adrian Newey-designed Williams FW16, as Herbert lined up P20 on the grid in the Lotus 107C. It was his 50th F1 start.
Johnny recalled the 1994 San Marino GP: "I remember Senna’s crash. We all stopped on the grid with the red flag waiting for news. I remember on the screen we had on the car the shock of seeing the crash and then seeing his helmet move. I remember thinking: It’s ok, he is alive. But it wasn’t, it was just a nerve twitch. It was such a shock.
"We had seen Rubens Barrichello’s accident. With Senna’s accident we were unaware during the race itself what the outcome had been. Ayrton knew there was a risk. At the start JJ Lehto, my teammate, had stalled and Pedro Lamy crashed into the back of him. Several spectators were hit by debris."
When I drove past the accident at the Tamburello corner I could see it was Ayrton
"Going past after the crash I thought he was ok. We weren’t aware until after the race when we were told he had died. When I drove past the accident at the Tamburello corner I could see it was Ayrton. I didn’t think it would be of any significance.
"The way he hit the wall, there were still wheels on the car. It was still together. I didn’t see him slump to one side. I thought it was a normal crash and it would all be fine," lamented Herbert.
What might have happened had Senna walked away from the wrecked Williams? Herbert ventured: "He would have been F1 world champion for several years to come. Probably three or more. We saw him getting to his peak in that period, but we were never able to see the best of that peak."
As for what the Brazilian meant to him personally, Herbert revealed: "I have lovely memories of Ayrton. I knew him when I was karting. Then seeing him go on to achieve what he did in his early days for example in the Toleman. That was Ayrton’s rare ability, to jump into any car, wrestle it around to get the best out of it.
"Then his first win in Portugal in atrocious conditions in the Lotus which probably wasn’t the most competitive car at the time but he got the very best out of it. That was the toughest conditions you could drive in yet he was totally at home.
"It is difficult to compare eras but without doubt he was one of the greatest of all time. He was a pure racer but pretty complete with it. He was amazing in qualifying, he was brilliant at getting the best out of the car in race conditions."
Max Verstappen, Michael Schumacher, Lewis Hamilton... Ayrton Senna
Herbert continued: "You have to remember that nowadays they have so many sensors and data running throughout the race it is the team that decides the strategy. Back in those days it was the rover who decided a lot of the strategy. You still had to feel the car, adapt to how the tyres were working and make those tyres last as long as they possibly could.
"Then Ayrton was one of the classiest at being able to do that. He was unbelievable whether it was wet or dry. He was one of the most complete drivers of all time and certainly who I ever raced against. Max Verstappen, Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton have had a similar way of doing it.
"Ayrton was in a period when it was safer than in the 1960s and 70s, but it still had an edge. There was a mental side of it too which goes back to his belief in God. He had that side of his character which was his protection.
"He had his own self-belief but had that extra layer with one hand on his shoulder which made him able to do things which provided a ‘Wow’ factor. He is in my top three along with Jim Clark and Lewis Hamilton.
"That’s what the drivers have today, the safest cockpit that any driver has ever had. They have that safety net which is 360 degrees around them. It was never like that before. There was always something that was going to get you.
"Humans always live and learn and we try and make things better. And safety is where F1 has definitely made things better. Max Mosley tried very hard to change things for the better in the 90s as Jackie Stewart did in the late 60s and early 70s."
You might have the safest cockpits in history and there is always that chance
"The teams also did a lot with technology. Halo being one simple but effective example. I didn’t like it when it was first introduced but there have been instances where it has saved drivers. Drivers nowadays think no-one should ever get hurt which narks me a bit."
"It is not like that. Things can happen. You might have the safest cockpits in history and there is always that chance," warned Herbert, much like his one-time rival and F1 World Champion Jacques Villeneuve did when he said "Senna-style accidents can happen again in F1.
The legacy of Ayrton Senna is as strong as it has been since he was buried in his Sao Paulo hometown three decades ago. Herbert added in his hommage to the F1 great: "The legend is just because of what Ayrton was able to do in a race car, starting with the Toleman back in the 80s then the Lotus and McLaren with Alain Prost, with the fight they had.
"He had an aura. When he walked into a room he had a presence that was very powerful. I know Martin Brundle often said when you looked in your mirror and saw that yellow helmet you thought: On No. It’s Senna. I’ve got to get out of the way."
He sent me a Christmas card after my accident in 1988
When asked to compare Senna's strengths to a modern-day driver, Herbert said: "That art is something Max Verstappen also has, that intimidation."
But despite the ruthlessness, Herbert recollected: "Senna was one of the very few drivers who, when accidents happened, stopped and got out and ran to the [stricken] car. He did that on at least three occasions I know of. That is someone who has a nice side, always thinking about his fellow drivers."
After he defied death in a horrific F3000 crash at Brands Hatch, Herbert was hospitalised for many months during which Senna showed his humane side: "He sent me a Christmas card after my accident in 1988 which meant a lot to me because he understood what I had gone through. That was his sign of showing respect.
"Also, at drivers’ briefings, if he was behind me he would always pinch my bum! I’d turn round and he’d have a wry smile on his face," recalled Herbert of his idol, rival and F1 legend: Ayrton Senna.
Big Question: What is your fondest Ayrton Senna memory?
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