Bruno Senna
Born in São Paulo, Brazil, on 15 October 1983, as the nephew of three-time Formula One world Champion, Ayrton Senna (21 March 1960-1 May 1994), it seems that Bruno Senna Lalli had racing in his blood from the start. Pitting his skills against those of his uncle (the brother of his mother Viviane) on the family farm while racing in go-karts, it was clear to all that Bruno had great potential for a career in auto racing. The death of his uncle at the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix put a stop to him pursuing a racing career at that time, and the family was dealt another blow when his father, Flávio Lalli, lost his life in a motorcycle crash in 1996.
In 2004 Bruno Senna received, as a gift from a family friend, a replica of his uncle’s 1986 Lotus 98T which he drove at the 2004 F1 Brazilian Grand Prix in São Paulo. From there his driving career took off as he competed in the last three events of the British Formula BMW Championship that year. For the following two years, Senna competed in the British Formula Three season with some success, finishing third in the standings in 2006, having earned three pole positions and five victories.
Upon switching to the GP2 series in 2007, Senna clocked up one race win, as well as two second places, ending the season eighth in the championship. 2008 proved to be a good year for Senna as he ended his second GP2 season with two victories and runner-up to Giorgio Pantano. It was in 2008 too, that Senna made his unsuccessful F1 test debut for Honda. Having missed out on an F1 drive, in 2009 Senna signed with Oreca and competed in the Le Mans Series, including the legendary Le Mans 24-hour race.
After announcing that he had signed a deal to race for Campos Meta in the 2010 F1 Championship series, the team changed hands resulting in some uncertainty as to whether contracts would be honored by the new owner, Spanish businessman José Ramón Carabante. However, on 2 March 2010, it was announced that the team’s name would change to Hispania Racing, with Bruno Senna and Karun Chandhok as drivers.
When Ayrton Senna left McLaren at the end of 1993, he was quoted as having said: “If you think I’m fast, just wait until you see my nephew Bruno.” With such an endorsement, we can be sure that many will be following Bruno Senna’s career with great interest.