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Lot Essay
In the first letter, Senna writes from Montreux (Switzerland) to give an account of recent tests with a water-cooled engine at the Jesolo circuit in Italy, alongside the 1973 karting World champion Terry Fullerton. Senna goes into considerable detail on the technical performance of the two engines tested, adding a drawing showing how the radiators are mounted, noting a necessary adjustment to the carburetor, the effect on the production of smoke by the exhaust, and adjustments to the piston and cylinder (adding a further diagram of the piston). 'These engines are undoubtedly a great surprise for this year because they are faster and more resistant to heat ... These engines were tested exclusively by me ... the Englishman Fullerton did approximately ten laps ... and then I began the real tests'. The letter concludes with details of Senna's upcoming races (beginning at Jesolo the following week), and information on how to call him in Italy.
The second letter is a review of two race weekends, beginning at Jesolo on 1-3 June, 'one of the worst races I have ever taken part in'. During the practice days on the Wednesday and Thursday, all went well for both Senna and his team-mate Fullerton, using both water-cooled and 'normal-cooled' engines: 'The chassis I was using was proving to be excellent (a new model), as were the engines'. However, on the Friday their performance began to deteriorate, in addition to which problems emerged with their new Continental tyres, and after a last-minute negotiation the introduction of the water-cooled engines was postponed, whilst during the time-trial on the Saturday, there was a 'major defect' with the carburetor. Senna then describes his performance in detail through the series of races, in the first of which he he starts in sixth place, but 'while trying to overtake the fifth-placed driver, there was a collision. I had to stop and restart from one of the last positions. I ended that race in 14th place (there were about 32 drivers per race)'. In the following races, crashes and further carburetor problems again intervene, while on the Sunday morning the problem is a loose chain, followed by a crack in the chassis tube at the time trial. He manages to achieve second place in the subsequent race, behind Fullerton: but in the last two races he is again hampered by the chassis problems, and finishes in tenth place each time. The following weekend is a meeting at the Wohlen circuit (Switzerland) on 9 and 10 June, involving five races, in the first of which Senna finishes in third place, improving this to second place in the second. In the third, he manages fourth place in spite of heavy rain for which his chassis is poorly adjusted, improving this to third place in the penultimate race. Senna starts the last race in third place, quickly moving up to second:
'The race consisted of 15 laps. I started studying the 1st place driver, Busslinger, while also threatening to overtake him in areas where I had no intention of doing so. This was purely to pressure him into driving faster and possibly making a mistake. And that's what happened on the sixth lap. Fearing I would overtake, Busslinger pushed too hard in a high-speed section, opening a wide gap at the corner exit ... On the next lap, Busslinger made the same mistake, and this time I overtook him ... The final seven laps were intense for me, as I knew we were all lapping at similar speeds. A small mistake on my part could have allowed the group to catch up ... Fortunately I managed to maintain 1st place'.
Completing this collection are 25 photographs taken by Antonio Cechinatto during the Pan-American Karting Championship in La Paz, Bolivia, in 1979. The shots capture the young Senna on and off the track, illustrating the social and working environment of the South American karting tour.
Karting was the foundation of Senna's racing career: he began as a child, and contested the Karting World Championship between 1978 and 1982, finishing in second place in 1979 and 1980. Senna retained a lasting affection for the world of karting, which he described as 'pure driving, pure racing. There wasn't any politics then, right? No money involved either so it was real racing' (interview with Mark Fogerty after the 1993 Australian Grand Prix (Adelaide)); he described his DAP karting team mate Terry Fullerton as the opponent he got the most satisfaction from racing against.
The letters, addressed to a young journalist at the Brazilian motorsports magazine, Autoesporte, show Senna's remarkable attention to technical detail and tactical alertness even at this early period. They appear to be unique at auction: we can find no trace of any substantial autograph letter by Senna, let alone of this length, appearing at international auction.
The second letter is a review of two race weekends, beginning at Jesolo on 1-3 June, 'one of the worst races I have ever taken part in'. During the practice days on the Wednesday and Thursday, all went well for both Senna and his team-mate Fullerton, using both water-cooled and 'normal-cooled' engines: 'The chassis I was using was proving to be excellent (a new model), as were the engines'. However, on the Friday their performance began to deteriorate, in addition to which problems emerged with their new Continental tyres, and after a last-minute negotiation the introduction of the water-cooled engines was postponed, whilst during the time-trial on the Saturday, there was a 'major defect' with the carburetor. Senna then describes his performance in detail through the series of races, in the first of which he he starts in sixth place, but 'while trying to overtake the fifth-placed driver, there was a collision. I had to stop and restart from one of the last positions. I ended that race in 14th place (there were about 32 drivers per race)'. In the following races, crashes and further carburetor problems again intervene, while on the Sunday morning the problem is a loose chain, followed by a crack in the chassis tube at the time trial. He manages to achieve second place in the subsequent race, behind Fullerton: but in the last two races he is again hampered by the chassis problems, and finishes in tenth place each time. The following weekend is a meeting at the Wohlen circuit (Switzerland) on 9 and 10 June, involving five races, in the first of which Senna finishes in third place, improving this to second place in the second. In the third, he manages fourth place in spite of heavy rain for which his chassis is poorly adjusted, improving this to third place in the penultimate race. Senna starts the last race in third place, quickly moving up to second:
'The race consisted of 15 laps. I started studying the 1st place driver, Busslinger, while also threatening to overtake him in areas where I had no intention of doing so. This was purely to pressure him into driving faster and possibly making a mistake. And that's what happened on the sixth lap. Fearing I would overtake, Busslinger pushed too hard in a high-speed section, opening a wide gap at the corner exit ... On the next lap, Busslinger made the same mistake, and this time I overtook him ... The final seven laps were intense for me, as I knew we were all lapping at similar speeds. A small mistake on my part could have allowed the group to catch up ... Fortunately I managed to maintain 1st place'.
Completing this collection are 25 photographs taken by Antonio Cechinatto during the Pan-American Karting Championship in La Paz, Bolivia, in 1979. The shots capture the young Senna on and off the track, illustrating the social and working environment of the South American karting tour.
Karting was the foundation of Senna's racing career: he began as a child, and contested the Karting World Championship between 1978 and 1982, finishing in second place in 1979 and 1980. Senna retained a lasting affection for the world of karting, which he described as 'pure driving, pure racing. There wasn't any politics then, right? No money involved either so it was real racing' (interview with Mark Fogerty after the 1993 Australian Grand Prix (Adelaide)); he described his DAP karting team mate Terry Fullerton as the opponent he got the most satisfaction from racing against.
The letters, addressed to a young journalist at the Brazilian motorsports magazine, Autoesporte, show Senna's remarkable attention to technical detail and tactical alertness even at this early period. They appear to be unique at auction: we can find no trace of any substantial autograph letter by Senna, let alone of this length, appearing at international auction.