Minardi carries tribute to Senna.

The Minardi team and Ruud Wildschut, CEO of title sponsor Wilux, chose to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the death of Ayrton Senna with their own unique tribute to one of motor racing's greatest stars.

The single word 'saudade', along with the Brazilian flag, will appear on the sidepods of the three Cosworth-powered PS04Bs throughout this weekend's San Marino Grand Prix, conveying one team's memory of the three-time world champion. The Brazilian-Portuguese word, which conveys deep emotion, does not translate easily, but effectively means 'missing you'. It was introduced to a worldwide audience in the wake of Senna's death in 1994 after British musician Chris Rea paid his own personal tribute.

"During that terrible week, I happened to see a Brazilian holding a cloth with the word 'saudade' written on it,'" explains Rea, who like many, was a huge fan of Senna, "I couldn't find out what it meant. People told me there was no translation in English.

"Surprisingly, a British newspaper did an article on this very word, which explained that it vaguely meant a dignified sadness multiplied by a million tears that smile. The BBC asked for some music for Ayrton's tribute, and the song came from that. It proves there is such a thing as the Blues outside of Mississippi."

The graphics on the Minardi sidepods will also incorporate the yellow, green and blue Brazilian flag, the colours of which featured on Senna's instantly recognizable helmet throughout his racing career, and a website address www.senna.tv, where fans can log on to register their thoughts and remembrances of him. The messages will eventually be bound into a book and passed on to Senna's sister, Viviane, at this year's Brazilian Grand Prix.

The website also provides details of a special DVD, produced to mark Senna's death during the ill-starred 1994 San Marino Grand Prix. The majority of the proceeds from this will benefit the Ayrton Senna Foundation, an organisation set up by Senna prior to his death to assist children in Brazil through access to sports and education.

"Sadly, the deaths of Ayrton Senna and Roland Ratzenberger changed the face of Formula One forever and, although it remains one of the most tragic events in the sport's history, much of today's enormously improved safety provisions have come about as a result of what happened on that fateful Sunday ten years ago," reflected Minardi boss Paul Stoddart.