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Prost Pleased to Have Dodged Social Media Menace During His Controversial F1 Days Opposite Senna

Published 01/11/2022, 2:02 AM EST

The 2021 Formula One season witnessed fans go absolutely crazy over how the finale unfolded at the Yas Marina F1 Circuit. Max Verstappen stole the championship title from Lewis Hamilton right at the cusp of the chequered flag, and one would acknowledge it was barely straightforward.

The stewards played a massive role in bringing about this particular result, and well, unsurprisingly, a lot of fans were unhappy. The social media went berserk, with a lot of hate fired towards Verstappen and Hamilton from almost everywhere.

But, one must admit the fact that controversies have come down quite drastically over the years compared to how it was peaking to an unimaginable level during the era of Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna. Well, decades later, Prost is heaving a sigh of relief that the concept of social media did not exist back in his racing days.

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What did the ex-F1 champion say?

As reported by Motorsport, Prost opened up that the existence of social media in the 80s and the 90s could have been a complete disaster for Formula One, considering the toxicity that prevailed between him and his late rival, Senna.

“I am very intolerant of injustice and I always keep my word. It was very difficult for me to accept that the people around me were not like that,” he said. “As a driver, you take refuge with the people you love and those who love you. You still have to deal with the press.

“Luckily there was no social media back then because that would have been a complete disaster.”

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Prost reveals details about the controversial 1982 French GP

The Frenchman revealed that Renault had an agreement with the two drivers prior to the race in France. However, come the main race, Prost’s teammate, Rene Arnoux refused to go by the agreement.

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“It was a very difficult time with Renault and it all started with this French GP in 1982. Team management asked René to let me pass if we’re ahead and the Brabham drivers stay on the road, as their engines weren’t the most durable in those years,” he said.

“Because I was in the lead in the championship. This was conveyed to René and he said it was okay. That’s exactly what happened in the race and Rene wouldn’t let me pass. I can understand why you didn’t want it when there was a win, but I would have preferred to have said it from the beginning.”

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Overall, there is no denying that Formula One was mostly driven by controversies back in the day. So, how do you think social media would’ve reacted had it existed during that period? How insane could the fans have gone watching the Prost-Senna rivalry?

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Written by:

Rohit Kumar is an F1 author at EssentiallySports. He has been an ardent follower of the racing series since 2007, with his love for the sport coinciding with his love for Kimi Raikkonen. He is also an ardent follower of Sebastian Vettel and Aston Martin Racing.

Prost Pleased to Have Dodged Social Media Menace During His Controversial F1 Days Opposite Senna

What did the ex-F1 champion say?

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Prost reveals details about the controversial 1982 French GP