Hamilton drives Senna's McLaren in Brazil, leading tributes to F1 legend

Lewis Hamilton said that it was the “greatest honour off my career” to drive Ayrton Senna‘s 1990 title-winning McLaren MP4/5B at Interlagos in front of grandstands of passionate fans.

It spearheaded a series of tributes to the three-time world champion ahead of the 2024 Sao Paulo Grand Prix, marking 30 years since Senna’s death in 1994.

Once again, the bowl-shaped Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace echoed to the scream of the Honda V10, which powered Senna to six grand prix victories, five podium finishes — one of which came at Interlagos — and a drivers’ world title in 1990.

Senna claimed pole position for the 1990 Brazilian Grand Prix, but it wouldn’t be until the following year that he won in front of his home crowd for the first time. Just as he did then, so Hamilton slowed during his demonstration run to pick up a Brazilian flag.

Hamilton has made no secret of his admiration for Senna since he first joined the F1 grid with McLaren in 2007 — dubbing the Brazilian his “genuine hero” during a BBC interview in 2014. But his tour of Interlagos in the MP4/5B was supposed to be kept secret.

“I had a white suit with his helmet, so I’d go out and drive the lap and it would look like it was him out there,” said the three-time Interlagos winner, who was made an honorary citizen of Brazil in 2022. “But somehow it got out there. It’s impossible to keep these things quiet.”

That’s not the only aspect that didn’t go to plan: after a Saturday afternoon downpour, qualifying and the scheduled demonstration run were cancelled. Both took place the following day.

Senna’s bold yellow helmet was echoed by the Pirelli caps worn by the top-three drivers on the podium after the Sao Paulo Grand Prix

Earlier in the day, Lando Norris had been given a commemorative version of the miniature tyre that is awarded to polesitters.

The rim was painted in Brazil’s national colours and is one of two: the second will be auctioned off in conjunction with the Senna Institute.

Giant Senna helmet

Sebastian Vettel reunited with old rivals, joining  most of the F1 field at Interlagos in a giant version of the Brazilian’s race helmet.

Big enough to fit 15 F1 racing drivers inside, the helmet was made entirely out of recycled materials, and was displayed on the circuit with the likes of Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc, Carlos Sainz and Franco Colapinto peeking out.

Sporting a ‘Keep the Legacy Alive’ t-shirt, Vettel also made a point of blending his awareness for environmental preservation with this weekend’s ‘Sempre Senna’ event by litter picking on the streets of Sao Paulo.