WHO WAS THE BEST?

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Ever analysis depends on personal criteria, so I tried to avoid preference or nationality, using the criteria that I found most important to analyze an F1 driver, knowing that both drivers were contemporaries for only two full seasons and had completely different opponents and teammates in their careers.

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TWO GENIUSES, TWO F1 LEGENDS

 

Schumacher and Senna had a very similar level of GENIUS, with some similarities in their talents and differences in their respective careers, which will be discussed below on this page.

 

Both were extremely fast in training, in the rain, and on any type of track, whether street, medium or high speed, all analyzes show that Senna and Schumacher were well matched drivers in terms of talent.​

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Senna himself saw Schumacher as a very talented and fast opponent.

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​IN THE KART

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Senna was runner-up in 1979 and 1980, and in 1979 he lost because he let his teammate (Peter Koene) overtake him in one of the heats, as he did not know that the rules for breaking points had changed that year. (Statement by Peter de Bruijn - Racing Magazine February and March 2004 pg 14) Peter de Bruijn tied for points with Senna, but was the champion due to the new tie-breaker criteria that took into account the results of the qualifying heats and no longer the results of the semi-finals.

 

Schumacher, like Senna, was also runner-up in 2001, losing to the Italian, Vitantonio Liuzzi, in Kerpen, Germany, a track where Schumacher trained throughout his childhood. Regardless of this, the German was always recognized for being extremely fast and skilled in karting, just as Senna was.

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​NATURAL TALENT

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Nowadays, drivers arrive in F1 very well prepared, because of the simulators and they receive help from engineers to improve their driving skills. All of this makes life much easier for drivers when they sit in a Formula 1 car for the first time. In the past, it was very difficult to achieve a competitive time when first driving the car, as there was no possibility of testing on simulators, so it took a long time for drivers to reach the car's limits.

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Certainly Senna and Schumacher were the drivers with the greatest natural talent in the history of F1. They debuted in F1 with barbarism and running faster times than the main drivers on their teams, who had more experience than them.

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Both were absolutely equal in terms of natural talent.

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SPEED IN QUALIFYING

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By comparing the practice sessions between Senna and Prost at McLaren (1988 and 1989) and Schumacher and Barrichello at Ferrari (2000 to 2005), we can get a sense of how much faster Senna and Schumacher were compared to their teammates.

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Senna x Prost 1988 and 1989:

Starts: 28 x 4 (0.6s Senna on average faster)

Percentage: 87.5% x 12.5% ​​

 

Schumacher x Barrichello 2000 to 2005:

Starts: 80 x 24 (0.4s Schumacher on average faster)

Percentage: 77% x 23% ​​ ​

 

We can analyze the percentages of pole positions, front-row starts, and starts in front of their teammates, remembering that Senna had proportionally fewer cars to achieve pole positions and compete for titles than Schumacher.

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Percentage of poles:

Senna 40% 

Schumacher 22% (27% before his return to F1). ​

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Percentage of starts in the 1st row:

Senna 55%

Schumacher 38% (47% before his return to F1). ​

 

Percentage of starts ahead of teammate:

Senna 89%

Schumacher 75% (86% before his return to F1).

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​All comparisons show that Senna and Schumacher were the fastest drivers in modern F1 (after 1968), but Senna was slightly faster than Schumacher on a flying lap. 

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FIRST PILOT CONDITION

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Few people know, but Senna joined Lotus in 1985 as 2nd driver. His car did not have an on-board computer and used the Renault EF4B engine in 4 races, while Elio De Angelis from the beginning of the year used the more powerful Renault EF15 engine and had an on-board computer. It was only in mid-1985 that Lotus began to give equal treatment to both drivers.

 

In 1988 at McLaren the situation was similar, Senna came in as 2nd driver and Alain Prost was the 1st driver established within the team, but the results on the track forced the team to give equal treatment to both drivers. I must mention that Prost was the best driver in F1 at that time and the absolute record holder for victories in F1, as he had just beaten Jackie Stewart's record for victories, so Senna had to reverse the situation of 2nd driver, to have equal treatment within the team.

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In 1986, 1987 at Lotus, and in 1990, 1991 and 1992 at McLaren, Senna had priority within his teams. In 1993, the Brazilian was the first driver, but after the weekend of the Portuguese GP, he announced his departure from the team. The team began to prioritize Mika Hakkinen, who would remain with the team, as reported in the newspapers at the time. ​​​​

 

Schumacher, from 1992 to 2006, always had priority as the first driver in every season. At Ferrari, things reached extreme situations, to the point where Irvine and Barrichello were not allowed to overtake the German or even gave up their position, such as in the 2001 and 2002 Austrian GP, ​​the 2005 Monaco GP, the 2006 European and German GP.

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In this regard, Schumacher had it much easier than Senna.

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SENNA'S OPPONENTS​

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This is the biggest difference in their careers.  ​​​​​

 

Senna was a contemporary of four great F1 geniuses: Prost, Piquet, Lauda (at the end of his career) and Schumacher himself, and he also faced two excellent drivers: Mansell and Rosberg. They were very difficult opponents and this period is considered the toughest in the history of F1 in terms of competitiveness, as there was fierce competition between great drivers.

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These drivers won 15 world titles (not including Schumacher).

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Lauda 75, 77, 84

Piquet 81, 83, 87

Prost 85, 86, 89, 93

Senna 88, 90, 91

Rosberg 82

Mansell 92 ​​

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SCHUMACHER'S OPPONENTS

 

Schumacher began to emerge in F1, just when four of the great drivers began to abandon F1: Piquet in 91, Mansell in 92 (later returned in 94), Prost in 93 and Senna in 94. After Senna's death, the German was the only GENIUS remaining in F1, with no opponent to match his talent.​​

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To prove this, just watch the 1994 Brazilian GP. Schumacher and Senna lapped everyone on the track before the Brazilian spun and retired. Senna was driving 1.5 seconds faster per lap than his teammate Damon Hill, meaning Senna and Schumacher were on another level. When the Brazilian died, the German was left alone on that level. Damon Hill was a driver 2 levels below Senna and Schumacher.

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After Senna's death, F1 went through a traumatic transition. Damon Hill became the reference for a top F1 driver, which led to the appointment of David Coulthard and the return of Nigel Mansell, who was 41 years old and at the end of his career. Coulthard then served as a parameter for the hiring of Jacques Villeneuve, who in turn served as a parameter for the hiring of Frentzen. Let's face it, Hill and Coulthard were never the benchmark for top drivers in F1.

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From 1994 to 2002, Schumacher's opponents were: Hill, Coulthard, Villeneuve, Frentzen and Hakkinen, all of whom were below the great drivers of the 80s. Of these opponents, only Hakkinen had the ability to duel with Schumacher in terms of speed, but the Finn hid from everyone that he was left with after-effects from the coma he had after the 1995 accident, and deep down Mika was a very unstable driver. I do not consider Rubens Barrichello an opponent, as he was relegated to Ferrari's 2nd driver, without permission to beat the German.

 

In 2003, the competition started to get tougher, when Raikkonen and Montoya gave the German a hard time, but it was only in 2005 and 2006, when Fernando Alonso started to have a competitive car, that Schumacher started to have a truly worthy opponent... but he soon retired.

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TIME DOMAIN IN F1

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From 1984 to 1987, the Brazilian competed against great drivers (Lauda, ​​Prost, Rosberg, Piquet, Mansell) who were driving competitive cars, so he was unable to dominate F1, even though he was considered the fastest driver in the category. Senna's temporal dominance only began in 1988 and lasted until 1994, even though he did not win the titles in 1989, 1992 and 1993. ​

 

Schumacher's temporal dominance was the greatest in the entire history of F1, lasting 11 years (1994 to 2004). During this period, he was by far the best driver in the category, even though he did not win any titles. It was only in 2005 and 2006, when Fernando Alonso challenged Schumacher, that the German had a worthy opponent, and the Spanish driver managed to defeat the German.

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It is undeniable that Schumacher's dominance was greater than Senna's, but we have to take into account the various factors that helped the German maintain this dominance for so long.

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RUNNING PACE

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In terms of race pace, both were extremely similar, but Senna raced 158 races in a time when refueling was not allowed, the race pace was not as intense and it was not necessary to make so many VMRs. Schumacher, on the other hand, raced for most of his career in a time when refueling was allowed and the driver needed to race at qualifying pace without saving tires or fuel and making many VMRs.

 

The only race they did together with the refueling regulations was the 1994 Brazilian GP, ​​where Senna was ahead of Schumacher in the 1st stint, and Schumacher was ahead of Senna in the 2nd and 3rd stints, and in the 3rd stint Senna was closing the gap to Schumacher when he spun. The race pace between the two was very similar, with a slight advantage for the German. ​​​Fastest laps of the 1994 Brazilian GP: Schumacher did 1m18s455, Senna did 1m18s764 and Hill did 1m20s386. ​

 

In this regard, I consider Schumacher to be slightly better than Senna, as the German was an "animal" in terms of racing pace.

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SUCCESS IN FRONT OF YOUR TEAMMATE ​​​​​​​ ​

 

In terms of success against his teammate, Senna beat them all in points with the exception of Prost. While Schumacher defeated all his teammates, with the exception of Piquet and Nico Rosberg.

 

When finishing at the front under normal conditions, which are those not arising from abandonment, car problems, team order or delayed pit stop or punishment, we have:

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Senna was beaten 4 times, all by Prost:

Prost (4): Mex/88, Por/88, Esp/88 and Aus/88. ​

 

Schumacher was beaten 32 times:

Piquet (1): Por/91.

Brundle (1): Ing/92.

Barrichello (6) : Eur/02, Hun/02, Ita/02, Ing/03, Ita/04 and Eur/05.

Massa (2): Mal/06 and Tur/06.

Rosberg (22): Bah/10, Aus/10, Mal/10, Chi/10, Mon/10, Eur/10, Ing/10, Ale/10, Bel/10, Ita/10, Sin/10, Cor/10, Bra/10, Chi/11, Tur/11, Eu/11, Ing/11, Ale/11, Abu/11, Bra/11, Bah/12, EUA/12.

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Let's ignore the 22 times Schumacher was beaten by Rosberg, because he was at the end of his career and did very badly.

 

The German was beaten 6 times by Barrichello and 2 times by Massa, and neither of them were geniuses, apart from the times when Ferrari didn't let Rubinho get ahead of the German. While Senna was beaten only 4 times by Prost, who was one of the greatest geniuses in history. ​

 

It is clear that both Senna and Schumacher were destroyers of teammates, but Senna was slightly better than Schumacher in this regard.

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PILOT ERRORS

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Senna was heavily criticized for making silly and unnecessary driving errors like in Monaco 88, Italy 88, Portugal 89, Australia 92, but under pressure in a title dispute situation, he didn't make so many mistakes.​​​ ​​

 

Schumacher, on the other hand, drove extremely quickly, but made a lot of mistakes under pressure. In the 4 times he competed for the title in the last race of the year, he made a mistake in all of these races: Australia 94, Europe 97, Japan 1998 and Japan 2003. 

 

Both are very similar in this regard, it's difficult to know who was better.

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DRIVING IN THE RAIN

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It is difficult to make this analysis, since both drivers shared few races in the rain, but in the ones they did together, Senna won three and Schumacher won one. So let's use the averages to analyze these two drivers.

 

Senna won 13 out of 21 races in the rain, an average of 62%. Not to mention that he lost two races in the rain due to breakdowns and accidents, when he was leading comfortably (Canada 89 and Australia 89), otherwise the average could be higher.

 

Schumacher was also exceptional in the rain and had legendary races in these conditions, but he won 19 out of 51 races in the rain, an average of 36.5%.

 

When it came to driving in the rain, both were brilliant, but Senna was better; the Brazilian was probably the best driver in the rain in the history of F1.

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DRIVING ON A STREET CIRCUIT

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Street circuits have characteristics that prioritize the talent and technical ability of the driver more than the quality of their equipment. These are tracks where we can truly identify whether the driver is talented.

 

Corroborating what was written above, all the drivers with two more pole positions in Monaco, which is a typical street circuit, are considered the most talented drivers in the history of F1:

• Senna 5,

• Fangio, Clark, Stewart and Prost 4,

• Moss, Lauda, ​​Schumacher and Leclerc 3.

 

Senna only raced in F1 for 10 years and had 13 victories on street circuits:

• Monaco 6 times (he could have won 7 times if he hadn't beaten himself in 1988)

• USA 5 times

• Australia 2 times ​

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Schumacher raced in F1 for 18 years and had 9 victories on street circuits:

• Monaco 5

• Australia 4 ​

 

This comparison is not conclusive, as it depends on the adaptation of the cars that both had to typical street circuits, but everything indicates that Senna was superior to Schumacher on this type of track.

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WIN RACES WITH A DAMAGED CAR

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We have several examples in the past of drivers who completed a race with a damaged car: ​

• Jim Clark in the 1963 French GP won with the engine speed limited to 9,500 RPM and in the 1965 British GP he won the race with the engine without oil (Source Book the History of Jim Clark pg 114 and Revista Auto Esporte September 1965 pg 40 and 42),

• Schumacher in the 1994 Spanish GP, in which he came in 2nd place with only 5th gear from lap 21 onwards,

• Vettel in the 2011 Brazilian GP, ​​in which he came in 2nd place with gearbox problems. ​​

 

But no driver is known to have won as many races with a damaged car as Ayrton Senna:

• GP Japan 1988, won without two gears,

• GP Monaco 1989, won without 1st and 2nd gears,

• GP Monaco 1990, won with the engine losing power,

• GP Canada 1990, without 1st gear,

• GP Brasil 1991, with only 6th gear with 7 laps to go,

• GP Belgium 1991, with broken gearbox,

• GP Italy 1992, with broken gearbox and exhaust.​​​​​​

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In this regard, Senna was better.

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​​​CAR SET UP

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Both are considered good car experts, despite being inferior to Piquet, Prost and Lauda in this regard. ​​​​

 

Senna was an excellent car tuner for training, but he was only reasonably good at tuning for the races. It should be noted that of all the Brazilian's teammates, he only copied the setup of Alain Prost, who was known as a great master at tuning cars for the entire race. Furthermore, the Brazilian could adapt to any type of car (front, rear or neutral), which greatly facilitated his performances.

 

Schumacher was good at getting cars right, especially in the rear style (oversteering) which was his specialty. But on certain types of tracks, this type of setup didn't work, so several times he copied Rubens Barrichello's (and even Felipe Massa's) setup. Other than that, the German didn't adapt to front cars, as he himself admitted in 2010 when he returned to F1.

 

In this aspect, I consider Senna to be slightly better than Schumacher, as he adapts to any type of set up.

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TEAMWORK AND USE OF AVAILABLE RESOURCES

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Senna worked well in a team, but his years at Lotus were not fruitful, as the team had been in decline since the death of Colin Chapman. At McLaren, after Prost's departure, the Brazilian had to lead the team and won 2 titles, and in 1991, Williams was better in several races, but Senna managed to involve the team and gasoline supplier Shell to improve the car's performance in the 2nd half of the season.

 

Schumacher knew how to get everything out of the team, making everyone work for him. Schumacher knew how to get everything out of the team, making everyone work for him. At Benetton, he knew how to get everything out of the car like no one else, using Ross Brawn's best racing tactics. We have the example of the 1993 French GP, when he overtook Senna, having opted for two stops compared to the Brazilian's only one, and several victories in 1995, always using racing strategies to beat Williams.

 

The German was responsible for restructuring Ferrari's technical team, when he asked to hire two Benetton engineers for Ferrari in 1997: Rory Byrne was important, as he was the engineer responsible for designing the 1994/1995 Benetton cars, and Ross Brawn was important in the race strategies and, when necessary, changing them to make Schumacher win, as happened in the 2004 French GP, when he won with 4 stops, when the initial plan was 3 stops.

 

Besides that, the German knew how to choose his teammates, so that there would be no competition within the team and he always made good use of the 1st driver clause, as happened during his Ferrari years, preventing his teammates from competing with him.

 

Rod Smedley was very apt when he defined Schumacher's ability to work as part of a team:

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"Michael was so smart about how to manage people, I think that was one of his great strengths. He understood how to manage people. He understood what people could do for him." (Rob Smedley)

Source: https://motorsport.uol.com.br/f1/news/engenheiro-relembra-evolucao-de-massa-e-ajuda-de-schumacher-854970/854970/

 

In using all the team's resources, Schumacher was better than Senna.​​​​​

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CARS THAT WON CHAMPIONSHIPS

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Senna had dominant cars in 1988 and 1989 and Schumacher had them in 2002 and 2004. But while Senna had very strong competition within the team, Alain Prost, a brilliant driver and record holder for F1 victories, Schumacher had Rubens Barrichello who did not oppose him and when the Brazilian did compete, Ferrari tried to intervene. ​ ​​​

 

In this case, Schumacher had a much easier time breaking records than Senna.

 

Senna had a car on par with Ferrari in 1990 and again competed for the title against the brilliant Alain Prost. While Schumacher had a car on par with Williams in 1994 against Damon Hill, with McLaren in 2000 against Mika Hakkinen and with Williams and McLaren in 2003 against Montoya and Raikkonen. Both Senna and Schumacher won all the titles in those years.

 

 

Senna won the 1991 title, with a McLaren that was inferior to Williams, because in addition to driving a lot that season, he was lucky due to Mansell's mistakes in the Canadian GP 91 and the mechanic's mistakes in the Portuguese GP 91. Schumacher won the 1995 title, with a Benetton inferior to Williams, just like Senna the German drove a lot and took advantage of the mistakes of Damon HIll and David Coulthard.

 

In this regard, they both had similar situations and were champions.