
Much to fans happiness, Sebastian Vettel has been back in the paddock at Imola and fronted a touching tribute to Ayrton Senna and Roland Ratzenberger in the buildup to the Imola Grand Prix (Emilia Romagna Grand Prix) – with it being 30 years since both men were killed at Imola in 1994.
All of the Formula 1 drivers were at the tribute alongside Sebastian Vettel, as were the F2 and F3 grid – with everyone wearing specially made t-shirts for Senna and wristbands for Ratzenberger.
Ayrton Senna was a three-time Formula 1 World Champion, from Brazil. He is considered as one of the greatest drivers who had so much more to give to the sport.
Roland Ratzenberger was a newcomer, from Austria. Taking part in his third F1 race weekend, he was killed just one day before Senna during qualifying – in a tragic horror incident.
The weekend in 1994 is when Formula 1 changed. The whole approach to the safety of the cars changed and this is something that we still see continued today.
Going back to the tribute that we had, the paddock gathered alongside Sebastian Vettel – including drivers, team bosses and personnel!
Formula 1 drivers gathered and took their time to spend a moment next to Senna and Ratzenberger’s helmets and spending time with the families – holding both the Brazilian and Austrian flags for both drivers.
Vettel fronted the tribute and he took the time to make a speech, pointing out that the security of the cars changed on that weekend.
There was a moment of reflection for everyone, an emotional moment and a tribute lap.

Sebastian Vettel took the time to shake everyone’s hands and thanked everyone for turning up.
Handing out paddocks with keys to all the drivers, this was as a token and telling the drivers to ‘lock’ them into the fence with tributes – keeping their tributes and memories for eternity.
It was at Imola, prior to the chicane being installed, that Senna and Ratzenberger suffered their fatal crashes.
After this, Sebastian Vettel didn’t leave, instead, he posed for photographs along with waving to the fans who had lined up at the track to join and be a part of the tribute during the build-up to the weekend.
Seeing the paddock and drivers come together like this is really beautiful and touching. Every driver has their story and their memory of key drivers that we consider to be the amongst the greatest.
The sport has changed throughout the years, especially in relation to the safety of the cars.
Whilst Senna and Ratzenberger may be gone, they have not been and will never be forgotten. They both have their legacies and it was their tragic endings that changed the sport we know and love, for the better.
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