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Three-time World Champion Ayrton Senna kickstarted the shockwaves within the 1994 season by switching from McLaren to Williams in the exact same marketing campaign the place digital driver aids corresponding to traction management had been outlawed by the FIA. Senna, nonetheless, was satisfied that Benetton didn’t cease utilizing them. And Jos Verstappen – Benetton driver on the time – all however confirmed the identical.
In a 2019 episode of Past the Grid podcast, host Tom Clarkson requested Jos Verstappen if Senna’s allegations had been true. The Dutchman replied,
“I undoubtedly didn’t have it. In fact I do know all of the rumors however I can not show something. However one factor I can say is I didn’t have it.”
Verstappen’s reply prompted Clarkson to interrupt into fun. The previous wasn’t the one driver at Benetton that yr, and what he advised Clarkson instructed that his teammate, Michael Schumacher, may have been utilizing traction management.
On the 1994 Pacific GP, Senna retired from the race due to a collision. However as a substitute of returning to the Williams storage, he sat on the wall subsequent to the place he crashed. Why? As a result of he needed to take heed to the vehicles and work out in the event that they had been utilizing traction management. After about 10 laps, he was positive that the Benetton was unlawful.
Senna wouldn’t stay to see his accusations make any modifications within the paddock. Simply two weeks after the Pacific GP, the Sao-Paolo-born driver tragically misplaced his life following a crash in Imola. However earlier than that, he was within the combine for profitable the World Championship, and his title rival was none aside from Schumacher.
Ayrton Senna moved to Williams in 1994 as a result of McLaren failed to supply him with a title-winning automotive the earlier two seasons. Sadly, with out traction management, the automotive was very troublesome to drive. This irked him massively, as he was satisfied that Benetton and Schumacher had been having it simpler by nonetheless utilizing the outlawed aids.
How controversial was Michael Schumacher’s first F1 title?
After Ayrton Senna’s tragic passing, Michael Schumacher assumed the position of Championship Chief. Ultimately, he would go on to win his first World Championship in 1994. But it surely was shrouded with many controversies.
Schumacher obtained a two-race ban after the British GP for overtaking Damon Hill on the formation lap. He then refused to serve the stop-and-go penalty, resulting in the officers waving a black flag (he was disqualified).
Moreover, he ran an unlawful plank beneath his automotive on the Belgian GP for which he was as soon as once more, disqualified.
Due to these bans, Damon Hill (who was Ayrton Senna’s teammate) had given himself an excellent shot at profitable the Title. The combat got here all the way down to the ultimate race of the season in Adelaide. All Hill needed to do was end forward of Schumacher, who was main by only one level.
Nevertheless, the race led to large controversy. Schumacher made a mistake and Hill tried to overhaul him after which the previous abruptly moved again on observe to crash into the Briton’s Williams. Each drivers needed to retire from the race. And Schumacher grew to become the World Champion.
Within the aftermath, the truth that Schumacher intentionally took his rival out, grew to become frequent perception throughout the F1 paddock.
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