Another Ayrton Senna Honda NSX for sale

Silverstone Auctions’ Race Retro & Classic sale at Silverstone on 22^nd and 23^rdof February will see an ex-Ayrton Senna Honda NSX under the hammer.

Ayrton Senna was arguably the greatest F1 driver of all time, and his death 20 years ago at Imola sent shock waves through the sport and deprived F1 fans of more years of Senna’s driving prowess.

But driving F1 cars wasn’t the only thing Senna did; just like today’s F1 drivers he was also involved in road car development, and during his time with McLaren he was a part of Honda’s (engine suppliers at the time for McLaren) development of the original NSX.

So any Honda NSX with a clear link to Senna can reasonably expect to be a desirable car for collectors and F1 fans to acquire, and the Honda NSX up for grabs at Silverstone Auctions’ sale next month has a very clear Senna link.

Bought by Senna’s friend, mentor and manager, Carlos de Almeida Braga, for Senna to use when he was in Portugal, the black on black manual NSX is the exact same spec as Senna’s very own NSX he kept in Brazil.

After Senna’s death in 1984, Braga kept the car at his home in Portugal for two years before selling it on to a new owner, who kept it briefly before selling it on to the current owner.

Expected to reach £75-85,000, this Senna NSX isn’t quite an ‘owned by Senna’ car, but it’s as close as you’ll get at sensible money.

And just in case you’re wondering, there is a third ‘Senna NSX’ – a red one – that also has close links to Senna; it was provided by Honda for Senna’s use when he was in Portugal and is currently owned by a Brit who bought the NSX a couple of years ago.

But that one’s not for sale – and nor is Senna’s own NSX in Brazil – so if you want a Senna NSX this one’s your only option.

The  Silverstone Auctions’ Race Retro & Classic Car Sale is on the 22^nd and 23^rdof February.