Alain Prost Was Once Labeled a “Coward” by Ayrton Senna Ahead of the Frenchman’s Final Year in F1

Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost once shared arguably the most iconic and heated rivalries in the history of F1. What started as mutual admiration soon took an ugly turn when the two became teammates at McLaren. The rivalry between both drivers soon made its way to the off-track elements of F1, inducing a war of words. Ahead of Prost’s final season in F1, the war reached its epitome, with Senna publicly calling his title rival a coward.

Heading into the 1993 season, Williams announced the signing of then three-time champion, Prost. Meanwhile, Ayrton Senna was still a McLaren driver, with his team ready to take on Renault as their engine supplier for 1993. Speaking about the prospect of fighting Prost in a Williams while driving a McLaren, Senna claimed that the Frenchman was a coward for not fighting on equal terms. 

Having taken a sabbatical from F1 in 1992, Prost was returning to racing the next year. At the time, Williams had the fastest car on the grid, and Senna wanted to be a part of the team. However, a clause in Prost’s contract prohibited Senna from joining the team in ’93. Thus, the Brazilian claimed Prost was scared of fighting him in equal machinery and was a “coward.”

“He (Prost) should be sportive (sporting). The way he’s doing, he’s behaving like a coward.”, said Senna.

Prost won the 1993 season by 26 points, with Senna finishing in second place. With four world championships to his name, the French driver was just one short of the all-time record.

However, he did not return to the grid to defend his championship again, given the ‘Senna-clause’ in his contract lasted for just one year. Per Prost, his curious exit from F1 left his fiercest rival without a source of motivation.

With Alain Prost, the motivation of Ayrton Senna also took a leave

While the relationship between Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna was mostly hostile, a certain warmth toned things down towards Prost’s sunset years. Ayrton Senna even sent out a special message for his arch-rival during his final weekend at Imola.

The message said, “A special hello to my dear…our dear friend Alain [Prost], in France. We all miss you Alain.”

In turn, Prost also once reflected on Senna’s final few races in F1 with a humane view. Prost claimed that with him gone, Senna did not have any motivation to continue racing as there wasn’t any heated competition. Michael Schumacher‘s rise to the forefront came a bit too late, as tragedy struck in 1994.

Ayrton Senna filled the Prost-shaped void at Williams in 1994. Chasing world championship number four, he would meet with a tragic accident that would end his life on the racetrack. The man who set out to equal his fiercest rival’s numbers was never able to achieve the feat as fate had other plans for the 34-year-old Brazilian.