Lap of the Gods

May 14, 1988, was the date on which Ayrton Senna went from being a racing driver to a legend. On his second qualifying lap in Monaco, Senna laid down a remarkable time of 1 minute and 23.998 seconds, enough to give him pole position for the upcoming race. But while pole position was already a cause for celebration, the true shock of this lap came from just how far ahead he was of everyone else.

In a sport where a tenth of a second can mean the difference between positions, Senna finished a mythic 1.4 seconds faster than his teammate in the same car. Equally famous was his almost religious explanation for this achievement. When asked how he did it, Senna responded, "It was something that I was not - not that I was not in control - but I was not aware exactly of what was happening. I was just going-going-going."

One of the most legendary laps in the sport, this proved Ayrton Senna could race with and beat anyone who challenged him, a legacy that this diorama celebrates.