Thirty years on from his death, you can still walk around the McLaren Technology Centre and hear stories of Ayrton Senna being shared by people who were there to live the moments.

To some, he was a hero. To others, he was also a friend and colleague. We spoke to those on our team who knew him and asked them for their favourite memories from working with the legendary Brazilian driver. Here’s what they selected…

Alan Stovold, joined McLaren in 1988 as a Programmer

“Testing at Imola in 1990, I stayed back at the hotel to finish some software, while others were at the track. At 18:00, I went to the restaurant. Ayrton Senna was sitting at a table, and he gestured for me to join him. He was finishing a huge platter of lettuce. Being sat with a World Championship winning driver, I was quite nervous, and the menu was all in Italian. Trying to make conversation, I picked up the menu and asked him randomly what something... ‘Spaghetti Bolognese,’ he says, and so that’s what I order. In the meantime, Ayrton finished his huge platter of lettuce.

“The waiter removed the platter and returned five minutes later with another. The lid was removed to reveal more… lettuce! This was repeated, with the waiter returning with yet another platter. I was thinking about what self-control and discipline Ayrton had when… the lid was lifted to reveal a mountain of chocolate-covered profiteroles! Ayrton was human, after all. 

“After that particular test, occasionally Senna would come to the factory, and he might go to the bistro for a cup of tea or something to eat, and if I was in there, he would often come and sit down with me. I think because I was somebody he knew, it was a familiar face. I don't want to build it up more than it was, but it was maybe half a dozen times, and he was very friendly and approachable. He was a genuinely nice person.”

Peter Prodromou, joined McLaren in 1991 as a Junior Aerodynamicist

“I first met Ayrton Senna before I joined McLaren. I had been invited to a test at Silverstone and had no idea what to expect, I’d never been to a circuit before. I walked into the garage and asked for Henri Durand, my new boss. One of the mechanics said to me, ‘He’s over there speaking with Ayrton.’

“I didn't know what to do, so I stood there like a lemon for five or 10 minutes, and then plucked up the courage to go and approach them. I went up and tapped on Henri's shoulder. He greeted me and introduced me to the drivers, and Ayrton turned around and said: ‘You are the new guy that's coming in a few months.’ I was just blown away. That’s one of those days you never forget.

“He mesmerised you with his words. He gave off an energy that felt almost spiritual. It's tough to explain what that feels like, and it certainly wasn't a result of him being a hero to me. There was something special about him as an individual, like an electric field around him. That isn’t something that I've experienced many times in my life.”

Indy Lall, joined McLaren in 1981 as a Mechanic

“At tests, he’d always spend time with the guys as he knew they were working 16, 18, even 20-hour days because there weren’t any curfews. He knew how important these people were and made a point to appreciate that and spend time with them, talking about their families. For me, this was very touching, and it was genuine.

“When Ayrton first came to McLaren at the start of 1988, we went to Rio de Janeiro to test for two weeks, and that's when I first saw the other side of Ayrton. He was a family man, and a very, very humble, caring individual. He looked after us all, took us out for dinner and ensured we were cared for. These were very, very special moments. I was very fond of Ayrton away from the car.  His true personality was a very, very humble, kind, generous individual. At testing, there would maybe have been 45 to 50 people, but he knew everybody intimately.

“He relaxed by flying remote-controlled helicopters and airplanes. He’d often bring them to tests, and if he felt like he needed any downtime, he would take himself away to fly these. I was into remote-controlled cars at the time, and we were able to exchange our interests through this. He was a fun person.”

Neil Oatley, joined McLaren in 1986 as a Chief Designer

“He exuded positivity, not just with the designers but also with the team's management and mechanics. His way of dealing with people was to encourage them rather than be super critical.

“One of my most memorable races with him was his first home Grand Prix victory in Brazil in 1991. We had mechanical problems with the gearbox, and in the last 10 laps or so of the race, he was stuck in sixth gear, and he had to drive in very difficult conditions on a very tricky circuit with just one gear. The desire and commitment he showed to win that race was really intense.

"Afterwards, the emotion completely overcame him and most of the team. He had to be lifted out of the car because of the physical intensity of that race. He had cramps in his shoulders, and he was just not in the best physical condition afterwards. He couldn’t even lift the trophy up properly, he could only get it up around chest height. That’s sticks in my mind.”

Steve Nichols, former McLaren Designer and Engineer

“My strongest recollection is of his kindness. This was in contrast with how intense he was with his competitors, his teammates, and the press, but with me, he was very kind, and we had a friendly relationship. Everyone saw the fantastic race car driver, but what I remember is his humanity and what a lovely person he was to work with.

“I remember one time, late in Qualifying, he’s sat in the car waiting and I was telling him that we were running out of time, and he needed to go, but he just sat there, still. I’m saying to him: ‘Ayrton, we’ve got to go’. He gives me the signal to start the engine and pulls out of the garage, but then, he stops again with the engine running. He’s stopped there in the car, still, and I was telling him that we had to go right away. Finally, he left, and he put it on pole. I asked him afterwards what he was doing, and he said, ‘My heart was pounding so hard, and so fast, and I was trying to get my heart under control.’

“That was the level of intensity he was putting into laps. That level of intensity is just otherworldly. After a lap like that, he’d want to share it with you - he’d reach his hand out of the car to shake mine and it would be shaking. He’d be embarrassed and start to pull his hand back, so I’d grab it with both of mine to steady his hand, nod, and say, ‘It’s okay, you deserve to be a little shaky after what you’ve just done!’

“And when he won a race, on the radio, there would be this eruption of pure joy, half English, half Portuguese, mostly unintelligible, microphone driven to distortion. You certainly knew he was happy, and he wanted to push the button and share it with you.”

Peter Hodgman, joined McLaren in 1980 as a Race Mechanic

“He had an aura about him, which is pretty unusual. I certainly haven't met anybody like him in my life.     

“He was very religious. I once found something in his car. It was a test car, and we’d had a lot of wires running from one side of the cockpit to the other, which needed removing when he drove it, as it would have been dodgy to put cables in there around the pedals.

"After we’d taken it all out, I found a bit of tape inside and thought it had been left there. I was on my own, so I pulled it off and found that it was actually a religious figure called an icon, with some words in Latin, that he had stuck to the car. My first thought was that ‘at least it’s light!’ I never told anyone, I just stuck it back on and made sure that it was securely fastened.”

Rob Irwin, joined McLaren in 1988 as an Electronics Technician

“When he won his fourth World Championship, he came to the factory to take team photographs with everyone. Each department had one serious photo with him, stood by the car, and a fun photo with props. We were in the Electronics department, so we had electrical items and bits of circuit dangling off each other. The accounts department had fake photocopied money that they threw into the air. He also wanted one of the white overcoats to wear in a photo with Ron Dennis. At Christmas, he would send race-themed cards to everyone on the team, with wording like ‘Whatever you do in life, keep your right foot down’.

“I remember him being really concerned when Gerhard Berger crashed at a test in Estoril. He shunted and hit the barrier and then carried on into the gravel. I was at the back of the garage, and Ayrton Senna went hurtling past me, and we’re thinking: ‘What? Where is he off to?’ He’d seen the crash quicker than anyone and was onto the track, running all the way down to Gerhard to see that he was okay. For me, that’s the mark of the man.”

Scott Bain, joined McLaren in 1991 as a Design Draughtsman

“When he walked into the office, it went quiet. Maybe it was me being in my first motorsport job, but he had this persona. He was quite normal when he came into the factory, though. He would come into the restaurant and have lunch with everyone, walk around the factory and the offices, and see what everyone was doing—although that was quite nerve-wracking.

“Once, I think it was in a live race debrief, he said, ‘We don’t have enough power in the engine. Honda needs to give me more power.’ And that was it. Honda stopped everything they were doing, and three weeks later, a new engine turned up. It shouldn’t have been possible, but that was the enormity of his spoken word.”

Steve Moore, joined McLaren in 1990 as a Mechanical Inspector

“He certainly had a sonar about him. He was very different from nearly anyone else I've ever met. He was very special, very engaging, and he had very strong self-belief. He considered himself to be the best, and you felt that from him. But he made it feel like quite a family. There weren’t very many of us on the team at that time, and he was quite an instrumental part of that.

“He was very comfortable walking around the factory by himself and would acknowledge you were there. I remember we did a big photoshoot with the team, and everyone got individual shots with him. After that, he came by the model shop where I was working, and he was very interested in what was going on. That was a good day.”