Nigel Mansell on being punched by The Ayrton

"SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie" (sidewaysondirt)
10/19/2015 at 08:36 • Filed to: senna, mansell, fights, f1

During the 1987 Belgian Grand Prix, a fight broke out in the paddock between Ayrton Senna and Nigel Mansell over an incident at Turn 1 where the two collided. The details have been subject to rumors over the years and with Nige not talking and Ayrton unfortunately departed, but with a book to promote, !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! . I believe his account because I really can’t see Senna walking away from a real fight with him undamaged, but it’s been confirmed that Senna did throw punches. Apparently he was a bit of a wimp. I’d like to see more of this these days. I get the feeling that all of the drivers are wimps now and they’d just be slapping each other wildly, but it would still be hilarious. Imagine Seb and Fernando going at it! Think about how the cooldown room would heat up if Lewis and Nico had an incident but managed to get over the line 1-2 anyway! Everyone’s worried about declining viewership figures, but I’m sure some NASCAR style post-race fights would fix that pretty quickly.

DISCUSSION (9)

Flavien Vidal > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie
10/19/2015 at 08:46

Let’s just say I have a lot more respect for what Mansell did than for Senna, who I personnaly consider as an over-hyped genius. A very talented driver that was a danger in so many ways... The fact that he thought very highly of himself is not really something I liked with him too...

Extremely talented, yet, a total ass.

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > Flavien Vidal
10/19/2015 at 08:53

I agree, but on the other hand kind of get where the ego comes from and how it’s a bit necessary for what they do. If they didn’t believe they were the best there, they wouldn’t force their way to the front. On the other hand, I also think that Senna was a bit of a dangerous ass. Quite possibly the greatest driver ever, but dangerous and . The fight between him and Eddie Irvine was even more ridiculous, and in that one Senna started it entirely.

Sam > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie
10/19/2015 at 09:03

Senna was a great driver, but he was a pretty huge dick. Like, I wouldn’t even want to hang out with him, he just doesn’t seem very pleasant.

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > Sam
10/19/2015 at 09:08

Yeah, he’s a bit like Lou Reed. I love his music, but what a prick.

Flavien Vidal > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie
10/19/2015 at 09:27

Kinja'd!!!

This guy desagrees :)

It’s just that most driver are unfortunatly massive entitled asses... And that’s valid in most racing series, where very few got there because of how talented they were, but due to having rich parents who didn’t mind spending hundreds of thousands into their kid’s hobby. Sure some of those entitled kids ended up showing talent after a while, but natural talent is almost non-existant in the racing world nowadays. Natural talents often end up stucked in cheaper-less known series, as money opens a lot more doors than talent in the modern racing world.

Margin Of Error > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie
10/19/2015 at 09:59

He also punched Eddie Irvine for “unlapping” himself during the last lap.

Mr. Senna was a bit of a dick sometimes.

StingrayJake > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie
10/19/2015 at 10:22

Oooooo... new Question of the Day idea: What F1 driver, past or present, would you least want to be in a physical fight with?

We’re talking about mostly short, fairly fit individuals that are built more like horse jockeys than boxers.

I figure Dan Gurney has to be somewhere near the top... he’s certainly one of the tallest. Mark Webber seems to be pretty scrappy — and devilishly handsome.

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > StingrayJake
10/19/2015 at 10:52

Alan Jones

Dan Gurney (MURICA!)

Nigel Mansell

Friolan Gonzales

James Hunt (probably too drunk to feel pain)

Jochen Mass

StingrayJake > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie
10/19/2015 at 11:03

David Coulthard’s jawline makes him look like a mean SOB. Not sure I’d push my luck with that guy.