Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna were arguably the fiercest rivals Formula 1 has ever seen. The two multiple world champions shared places at McLaren in the 1988 and 1989 seasons. While McLaren won double championships during those seasons, the intense rivalry between the two rose sharply. Prost accused the team of preferring Senna, just like Sebastian Vettel in Ferrari.
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The Frenchman was part of Mclaren for six years from 1984 to 1989 (and 1980), while the Brazilian star joined the team in 1988 and stayed until 1993 before joining Williams for the 94 ‘season, including his last in F1. The notorious fall of the championship defense at the 1989 Japanese GP was the culmination of their fierce rivalry.
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However, Prost felt that Senna, who was the “younger guy” on the team, had a unanimous preference. He believes this was in some ways similar to what Vettel may have been through after Leclerc joined Ferrari in 2019.
Alain Prost draws parallels to Sebastian Vettel
Vettel moved to the Maranello team at the end of the 2014 F1 season. In the 2017 and 2018 seasons, he finished second behind Lewis Hamilton. However, his wish for the 5th title in red remained unfulfilled. In 2019 Ferrari replaced Kimi Raikkonen with the young sensation Charles Leclerc.
Formula 1 F1 Grand Prix of Saudi Arabia – Jeddah Corniche Circuit, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia – December 2, 2021 Aston Martins Sebastian Vettel during the Hassan Ammar / Pool press conference on REUTERS
The entry of the Monegasken, however, diminished Vettel’s position in the team and left him the following year. In this context, Alain Prost drew a parallel to the four-time world champion. In a recent podcast moderated by world champion Nico Rosberg, Prost made this honest admission.
“I’ve thought about the well-being of the team, but in the first season I felt everyone had a preference for Ayrton.”
“The public was divided between Senna and me, and I was seen as the bad guy. He was also the young man who moved forward while I was the older driver, ”said Prost, as reported by PlanetF1.
“A bit like Ferrari with Leclerc and Vettel,” added the Frenchman.
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Sebastian Vettel strengthens the Aston Martin F1 team for the 2021 season. Apart from a P2 place in Baku, it was a below-average season for the German star. Nevertheless, he seems confident about the coming season, which will be governed by a completely new set of rules. His former team-mate Leclerc, meanwhile, finished 7th in the drivers’ championship, two places behind Sainz.
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With engine problems resolved, the Red Team will try to pave the way back to the top in the coming seasons. Bring your thoughts to this.
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