1988 F1 Season Repack -

Senna won the race. He punched the air as he crossed the line. He was the world champion.

On Saturday morning, Prost walked into Senna's driver room. No cameras. No engineers. Just the two men. "Ayrton," Prost said, leaning against the doorframe. "We are going to crash into each other. It's inevitable. But it doesn't have to be here." 1988 f1 season

Senna sat in the gravel, engine dead. Then, impossibly, marshals appeared. They pushed him. The engine caught. He rejoined the track dead last, 20 seconds behind. Senna won the race

Senna stood up without a word. He walked out into the wet Suzuka night, alone. A mechanic handed him a towel. He didn't take it. He just stared at the sky, where the rain had finally stopped, and whispered something in Portuguese. On Saturday morning, Prost walked into Senna's driver room

The story began not at the first race in Brazil, but in a cold Honda factory in Tochigi the previous winter. Alain Prost, the Professor, sat calmly as engineers showed him the telemetry. "Fourteen percent more downforce than last year's car," they said. Prost nodded, already calculating. He knew the car was a masterpiece. He also knew that his new teammate, a fierce-eyed Brazilian who prayed before races, would treat it like a weapon, not a tool.

The press conference was a tomb. Senna sat with his arms crossed, refusing to wear the winner's wreath. Prost sat beside him, uncomfortable, holding a championship he felt he hadn't truly won.