Senna raced a similar car at the 1984 Nürburgring Race of Champions, which was organised as an exhibition to mark the opening of the new Nürburgring GP circuit. The race had 20 entrants including such names as Nicki Lauda, James Hunt, Alain Prost, Carlos Reutemann, and Jack Brabham. Senna became part of the lineup when fellow Brazilian Emerson Fittipaldi became unable to take part and recommended Senna, a rookie F1 driver at the time, to take his place. This victory significantly enhanced Senna’s profile having competed against such names all in identical cars.
Senna was so impressed with the car himself that he ordered one direct from Mercedes and collected it from the Factory accompanied by Mauricio Gugelmin, another fellow Brazilian F1 driver, and drove it back to his home in Surrey, England.
Later, following his move to McLaren, and having relocated to Monaco, Senna sold the car. It passed through a few hands before ending up in Australia where is has been for the last 20 plus years.
During its time in Australia, it was showcased at the 2016 Grand Prix, and the engine compartment was signed by Nicki Lauda who was then non-executive chairman of the Mercedes Fi team. This, together with the doubtless other provenance items that will be available, will probably have a beneficial effect on the eventual purchase price. The car comes with a guide price of something between £220,000 and £250,000.
This is a rare opportunity for someone to own a significant piece of Senna history with such a personal connection to the legendary man.