Brazilian Formula One fans paid tribute to their idol, Ayrton Senna, at the São Paulo Grand Prix. Over 30 years after his passing, Senna is still remembered as irreplaceable by his fans.

“There’s no way, no way there’ll ever be another like him,” says 59-year-old Claudio Martins, a die-hard Senna fan, who waited in line with his family to enter the Interlagos circuit, home to an “S” curve designed in Senna's honor.

If the rain allows, seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, who’s been a fan of Senna since childhood, is set to take a few laps in Senna’s iconic red-and-white McLaren MP4/5B—the car he used to win his second of three championships.

The choice of Hamilton to drive the car sparked mixed feelings, especially from former Brazilian drivers like Felipe Massa, who said he would’ve loved the chance to be behind the wheel himself. Martins, who watched Senna race in Rio de Janeiro in 1987, recalls the experience vividly. “His determination, his grit, the perfection he drove with…” he says, describing what made Senna so special.

Senna's tragic death at 34 during the San Marino Grand Prix on May 1, 1994, after crashing into a concrete wall at over 200 km/h, left a lasting impact on Martins, who calls it “traumatizing.” Brazil, known for legendary drivers like Senna and Emerson Fittipaldi, has lacked a permanent Formula One representative since Massa retired in 2017.

Hoping to end that dry spell, fan Carlos Burgel places his bets on Gabriel Bortoleto, a 20-year-old who won the Formula Three World Championship last year. “He has potential, and there are already rumors he’ll join soon,” Burgel says.