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Ayrton Senna is the greatest Formula One driver of all time, according to a panel of experts for the BBC. The Brazilian topped a list which contained most of the sport’s greatest drivers including Juan Manuel Fangio, Jim Clark and even our own Sir Jack Brabham.
The problem with these types of lists is that they are subjective. One cannot equate Senna’s achievements or ability against the likes of Fangio or Brabham as they raced in different eras. While the mechanics of driving a racing car have not fundamentally changed since the 1800s the nuances that separate the good from the great have.
Senna cannot be compared with Fangio as Brabham cannot be compared to the great Tazio Nuvolari.
Nuvolari is widely regarded as the greatest driver to have ever lived, though as he raced prior to the Formula One championship beginning in 1950 he does not qualify for the BBC’s list.
Sir Stirling Moss is on the list at number six, despite most of his accomplishments having occurred outside the sphere of Formula One. Moss remains probably the best driver never to have won a world championship, but there are those who regard him so highly they refer to him as simply Sir God. He is ranked more highly than Sir Jackie Stewart despite never winning a championship to Stewart’s three.
If Moss is included perhaps so too should Chris Amon, the luckless New Zealander who never won a Formula One Grand Prix. He was one of the best drivers of his era, like Moss, but suffered a curse which would see him retire without a single win despite his immense talent.
Similarly Ronnie Peterson doesn’t feature while Gilles Villeneuve does. Peterson could have won the world championship for Lotus but valued his word and his signature more than fame and glory.
Villeneuve was not popular among his peers, regarded as dangerous and unpredictable, but he was popular with the fans.
According to the BBC Ayrton Senna is the best Formula One driver to have ever raced. He is better than Fangio, a man who won five world championships for four different constructors. The Argentinian won almost half the races he entered. Senna won a little over a quarter. Sir Jackie Stewart’s win rate is higher, yet the three-time world champion could manage just seventh on the BBC’s list.
The BBC’s list is meaningless. That it was compiled by experts does not carry weight – one can be an expert at under water knitting if willing to spend the time. We will all have our own opinions as to which driver was the best of all time, and it’s easy to imagine no two would be exactly the same.
One does not need to be an expert to have an informed opinion.
For me, Fangio was the best driver of all time, followed by Jim Clark and Alberto Ascari. Villeneuve would not make the list, though Peterson probably would.
Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel would not make the grade, though Fernando Alonso may sneak in at number twenty if I was feeling generous.
And Senna? He’d be in to the top ten, he did win three world titles and forty-one Grands Prix, but there are others in the sports history I would consider better drivers: Sir Jackie Stewart for one.
Senna was good, he was very good, but so is every other driver who has won a world championship. To label him the best will only ever be an opinion, however to suggest he’s not one of the best would just be foolish.
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