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“He Wouldn’t Let Me Cry” – How Lewis Hamilton Reacted to News of Ayrton Senna’s Death

Published 10/31/2020, 4:15 AM EDT

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Lewis Hamilton, the current world champion, looks up to Ayrton Senna as his racing idol. Ayrton Senna, the three-time world champion, is widely regarded as one of the most complete drivers of all time.

This weekend, Formula 1 is revisiting Imola after 14 years. 26 years ago, Ayrton Senna lost his life in an unfortunate accident when he lost control and smashed into the concrete barrier at 185mph. Ayrton holds an emotional place in the heart of legions of Formula 1 fans.

In 2017, Senna’s family gifted Hamilton Senna’s helmet for equaling Senna’s record of 65 Formula 1 poles. Hamilton has admitted that it was one of the greatest honors.

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Vettel, Mercedes, Ferrari, and Others Remember Ayrton Senna as F1 Returns to Imola After 14 Years

Lewis Hamilton recalls the unfortunate day

In the Mercedes press conference before the Imola race, Lewis Hamilton recalled the day he received the news of Senna’s death.

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He stated that he cart racing and helping his dad fix the bolts of the rear wheel of their car when he got the news.

He said, “I was helping my dad to fix the car.

“Someone informed my dad that Ayrton had died.”

Hamilton recalled walking away from his dad so he could cry.

He said, “I remember walking away from him to go to a different place because he wouldn’t let me cry.” He further admitted that the news was not easy to come to terms with.

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The world champion further explained how he used the sadness during his race. He said, “I remember trying to channel that sadness into my driving.”

“I think I won that weekend,” he further added. However, Hamilton acknowledged that the following weeks were very tough for him as a kid who lost his racing hero.

Yesterday, Formula 1 teams and drivers visited the statue of Senna at Imola. The Formula 1 community paid their tribute to the racing legend. This weekend at Imola will be emotional for many fans.

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Lewis Hamilton is currently standing comfortably at P1 on the drivers championship. He will look forward to winning the race this weekend and dedicate the win to his Formula 1 hero and seal in his seventh world championship title.

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Written by:

Ayush Manjunath

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Ayush Manjunath is a Formula 1 author for EssentiallySports with more than 500 articles to his name. A Law graduate and a current Sports Management student, Ayush also has a certificate from UCLA on Sports, Media and Entertainment Management. He has an undying love for motorsports and lives to see Max Verstappen, George Russell, Charles Leclerc, and Lando Norris battle for the championship one day!
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