Ayrton Senna display tops bill at Silverstone Festival

The celebration of Ayrton Senna was a predictable highlight of Silverstone Festival, as the annual historic racing get-together gathered what has to be among the most definitive collection of cars associated with the great Brazilian driver ever seen in one place.

The accumulation of Ayrton-related machinery at Silverstone capped a year of marking not only the 30th anniversary of the three-time world champion’s death, but also the 40th anniversary of his Formula 1 debut with Toleman in 1984.

Three Tolemans that Senna drove were in the display, including the TG183B he tested for the first time at Silverstone in autumn 1983. His first grand prix winner, the Lotus 97T in which he splashed to victory at Estoril in 1985, and six of the Marlboro-sponsored McLarens that came to define his racing career were also present.

Other highlights were three of the karts in which Ayrton Senna da Silva, as he was first known, cut his racing teeth, plus both Van Diemen RF81 and RF82 Formula Fords and a Ralt RT3, the model in which he won the 1983 British Formula 3 title. The Lotus and Formula Fords were on brief loan from the Ayrton Senna Forever collection currently on display at the Museo Nazionale dell’Automobile in Turin until November 3.

Beyond the single-seaters, it was special to see two rally cars in the mix – an MG Metro 6R4 and Sierra Cosworth from the test Senna took part in for Cars and Car Conversions magazine in 1986. A pair of Honda NSX road cars he drove added to the diversity, as did a trio of Senna-badged Ducatis created in his honour in the 1990s.

Senna memorabilia was also on display in the Silverstone Museum, which was free to enter for anyone with a ticket for the festival. This included his winning trophies from Estoril 1985 and the 1983 Macau Grand Prix – the latter having sat on the desk of West Surrey Racing team boss Dick Bennetts for the past 41 years.