Autograph of Ayrton Senna (1994)

A month before the tragedy, in his last race in Brazil, Ayrton Senna signed an autograph for a construction worker in Interlagos.

• Ayrton Senna's autograph for Amauri, a fan working on the Interlagos works.
• March 1994, Interlagos, Brazil.
• 21 cm x 14.7 cm.
• Paper a little wrinkled.
• Unique piece.

Amauri first contacted me two years ago. We talked for hours on end about his life, Senna's life, about this meeting and this autograph. A humble person, he needed to sell his autograph, but he didn't want to part with it. The problem wasn't the price, but rather the attachment I had to it. Finally, he decided to trust me with his treasure so he could buy a truck, and we were both happy with the arrangement. Below are excerpts that tell the story of this exceptional autograph.

(...) I was working there at the Interlagos racetrack in 1994. The company I worked for took on the renovation of the Interlagos racetrack for the Brazil race.

(...) I was working and he got there. I went to ask for an autograph. I arrived myself and asked the security guard for authorization, obviously, and took this paper from the firm. “Can you sign an autograph for me?” I'm a big fan of yours. And he gave it to me, signed it.

(...) I like this autograph because it was at the Brazilian award, the last one, right. He passed away on May 1st, Labor Day. The Brazilian award was in March, April, or so. So as I was working there, I didn't have a pen, I didn't have anything, I took it from the sharpener there, I went to the warehouse and took this paper from the firm and borrowed a pen from the accountant so I could ask for an autograph for him.

(...) He had a great attitude. He went to the racetrack every day, every day he went to see how the works were going, the animal was capricious. I walked in the car, looked at the curves, if there was protection. I don't know how he died in that accident, he was so careful. He went there every day by helicopter. He greeted everyone, humble. He was a millionaire but he was humble. He didn't look to see if I was well dressed, if I was a construction worker, if I was a servant, no, he simply signed on the paper. I said thank you nice.

(...) We did all the renovations there, in the pits, on the retaining walls, those gravel boxes, we worked hard to deliver them before the race. We even saw the pilots do the tests. It's a shame I didn't have a cell phone at that time.

(...) After he stopped running, nothing happened in Brazil anymore, right. Rubinho Barrichello could have been world champion but he gave up being champion for money, right? The guy was up front a few meters before the finish line and let Schumacher pass, right? If it were Ayrton Senna, I doubt Ayrton Senna would subject himself to that. I've been following since 1984 when he ran in that very weak first team. The animal wasn't even a rain duck. When it rained, there was no one there, he hoped it would rain.

(...) He signed it in his own hand, the guy was too humble.

The Brazilian Grand Prix took place on March 27, 1994. Senna took pole position, but Schumacher won the race, a scenario that was repeated in the following two races: the Pacific Grand Prix on April 17 and the tragic Grand Prix of San Marino, in Imola, on May 1st. The rest is history. This autograph was one of the driver's last, signed a few hours before his last race on Brazilian soil and a little over a month before the damned Tamburello curve. The signature is a bit atypical, as he signed using the palm of his hand as a support, which he didn't like to do, simply to please Amauri. Dozens of Senna autographs, from all over the world, real and fake, are offered to me every year. Logically, the signatures or dedications of the 1994 idol are the rarest and most sought after, this is the first one that I decided to acquire for you after months of investigation.