The man. The myth. The legend. From humble beginnings to his nightmarish death 20 years ago, the story of Ayrton Senna is by no means one of the most legendary stories in the world of motorsports. Here in Gran Turismo 6, we can retrace his rise to fame as the legendary racer once respected for his God-given talents in the world of motorsports in AYRTON SENNA TRIBUTE.
In Ayrton Senna Tribute, players can retrace the footsteps of the legendary Ayrton Senna from his humble beginnings as a kart racer at his youth to his first win at the Formula One Grand Prix since the 80's.
The Ayrton Senna Tribute features three memorable machines for players to feel what is like to be in Ayrton Senna's footsteps.
First, this is the
DAP Racing Kart #17. This racing kart served as the first page of Senna's career. When Senna's a teenager, he started kart-racing at Interlagos, where he set himself a new lap record and then won the Sao Paulo junior karting championship a year later. He placed 2nd in the Brazilian karting championship in 1975 and two years later, he became the champion of the South American karting championships. After his success at his home turf, Senna participated at the World Karting Championship in 1978, driving for the factory DAP team, for three years. Even though he didn't win the World Karting Championship, Senna's involvement in karting was the happiest moment of his career.
Next is Ayrton Senna's British Formula 3 Champion machine when he was with
West Surrey Racing. After his success at the 1982 European Formula Ford 2000, Senna took on the British Formula 3 series for 1983 with West Surrey Racing. This where the rivalry between Martin Brundle and Ayrton Senna took place. In the first half, Senna won nine races but in the 10th round, he crashed at Silverstone and several rounds later, Brundle stole Senna's lead in the points rankings until in the final round that took place in Thruxton where Senna took the lead five seconds ahead from a rival car, making him the 1983 British F3 champion having won 12 out of 20 races.
And finally, the legendary
Lotus 97T, the Formula One car that made Ayrton Senna achieved his first Formula One victory. In 1985, the Formula One rules were more challenging than it was expecting because of the fuel capacity restrictions and a ban on refuelling. The 97T was Lotus' answer to these regulations and it features improved aerodynamics on the radiator to keep up with the high temperatures from its 1.5L V6 turbo sourced from Renault as well as deflectors behind the front tires for reduced drag at the front.
The famous demonstration of Senna's talent in that F1 season took place in Portugal, the second round of his rookie season, where not only he scored a pole position but he used the rainy weather as his advantage to lap quicker than almost any racer except second-placer Michele Alboreto from Ferrari. At the checkered flag, the gap between Senna and Alboreto was over a minute, making it his first ever GP win for Ayrton Senna thanks to its uncanny ability in wet conditions.
These three memorable machines during Senna's career will find players some inspiration about reminiscing the legendary racer's success during his lifetime but as told; to be like Ayrton Senna, first you must act like Ayrton Senna. But how? The Ayrton Senna Tribute Special Event. Three chapters will put players to the test to aim for the gold target time using nothing but machines that Ayrton Senna used in the world of motorsports.
In Chapter 1, which is held at The Stowe Circuit, players need to aim for the gold award to win the DAP Racing Kart #17 while a silver award will give you Senna's race suit from that period.
In Chapter 2, which is held in the 80's variant of the Brands Hatch Indy Circuit, you need to match Senna's pole position time of 43.14 seconds if you're aiming for a gold award but be warned...the odds are about 1 to 100 so practice makes perfect. It's okay though because's Ayrton Senna's F3 car will be awarded for those who finished on the silver award while a bronze award will give you Senna's racing suit that he wore in that period.
The first half of Chapter 3, held in 80's Monza, gives players a fighting chance to take on Senna's pole position time of 1:25.084. Score a silver award and his racing suit is yours. Then, on the final half of Chapter 3, the most difficult part of the Ayrton Senna Tribute challenge, held at 80's Brands Hatch GP Circuit, it takes a willpower to beat Senna's pole position time of a superhuman 1:07.169. The odds are 1 to 200 so try and try until you succeed. If you score a silver award, the Lotus 97T is all yours.
Becoming Ayrton Senna is a very hard act to follow but one day...we can all follow the inspirations from one of the greatest racing drivers in history, who still lives strong in our hearts today. The Ayrton Senna Tribute is part of Gran Turismo 6's Update 1.08 so be sure to update now to follow Senna's footsteps in this special challenge where you can experience what it's like to be...the legend.
