The road not taken in Formula 1 is often paved with ego, timing – and in this case, principle. And if you ask Jean Todt, it was principle alone that kept Ayrton Senna out of Ferrari red in 1994.
Speaking on the most recent High Performance Podcast, Todt peeled back the curtain on an evening at Monza in 1993 when the greatest driver of his era practically begged for a seat at Maranello – only to be shown the door by a Frenchman’s rigid sense of honor.
Back then, Todt was tasked in 1993 with resurrecting a then-moribund Scuderia, the mission was so toxic that insiders warned him that he was walking into a career-ending trap.
"Ferrari was not successful at all, and they were dying to try to find somebody who could take the job," Todt explained.
"From when my name was proposed until I met them, it was a long time before we both agreed because I felt like it was going to be a very difficult challenge.
Everybody was telling me 'Don't go there. You will not last more than two years.' And for them to take somebody who had no experience of Formula 1 and to take somebody who was not Italian, it was a big change."
Despite the skepticism, Todt moved fast. His first order of business? The ultimate statement of intent.
"But finally, after long discussions, I think the discussion started in August '92 and we finalised it in March '93. The first really dream driver I discussed was Ayrton Senna."
A clash of principles
The meeting took place in the shadows of the 1993 Italian Grand Prix. Senna, disillusioned with McLaren’s waning power, met Todt late at night to plot a revolution.
"It was during the Monza Grand Prix in '93. I remember he came to my room in, we were staying in the same hotel, and we spent part of the night together to speak about him joining Ferrari, and he wanted to come," Todt recalled.
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However, the deal hit a wall of cold, hard ink. Senna wanted the seat for 1994, but Todt refused to sack his current lineup of Jean Alesi and Gerhard Berger. It was a collision of philosophies: Senna’s "win at all costs" versus Todt’s uncompromising integrity.
"He wanted to come, but he wanted to come in '94, and in '94 we already had a contract with Gerhard Berger and Jean Alesi and I said to him '94 will not be possible. First, we will not be ready yet, and then we have a contract.
“And he answered to me, ‘Formula 1 contracts are not important’. For me, a contract is important,” Todt fired back.
Read also: Todt rewrites Schumacher’s history with shock admissionDenied his Ferrari dream by a team principal who actually kept his word, Senna signed for Williams instead – a move that led to the tragic events at Imola.
"He wanted to arrive in '94. That's why he went to Williams. So after that '94 we still had the same drivers, but we were rebuilding the team," added the former FIA president.
History would eventually see Michael Schumacher fulfill the role Senna craved, leaving fans to wonder how different the sport might look if Todt had simply been a little less principled.
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