Lightweight television cameras attached to the cars became common in the early 1990s. As well as boosting audience figures this also made the sport more attractive to sponsors beyond the traditional cigarette companies. Safety improvements also meant that the major car manufacturers were more inclined to attach themselves to teams on a rolling basis.
The late 1980's had seen the great rivalry between Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost and between Williams and McLaren develop, and the early 1990's were set to continue in a similar fashion. However, the tensions at McLaren meant that one of the drivers - Seena or Prost had to leave, and it was Prost who had seen the opportunity at Ferrari to partner Nigel Mansell. Senna stayed at McLaren for the 1990 season.
In a similar pattern to 1989 Senna and Prost contested the drivers' title in 1990 and once again they came together (crashed) at the Japanesse GP, Senna later openly admitted to deliberately driving into Prost in the 1990 race, drawing stiff condemnation from many in and associated with Formula 1. However, he was ahead in the points and won the championship with Prost second. McLaren won the constructors.
In 1991 Senna once again drove for McLaren, his main completion for the title was Mansell, now driving for Williams again, but three retirements at the first three races of the season was too big a gap to catch, and again Mansell finished in 2nd place behind the Brazilian who won his third title. Alain Prost was unhappy with the Ferrari car and chose to take a sabbatical in 1992.
Nigel Mansell finally had a season when it all came together; he won nine races in the 1992 season and won the drivers' championship by a large margin, Williams now powered by Renault engines won the constructors.
Alain Prost returned to F1 in 1993 after his sabbatical. He drove for Williams replacing Nigel Mansell, who had decided to race in the IndyCar series in the USA. (He won the Championship in his debut year). Prost was partnered by Damon Hill, the son of double world champion Graham Hill, Ayrton Senna remained at McLaren, but was unhappy that McLaren had lost its engine deal with Honda and the Ford engine was less competitive. The young Michael Schumacher was driving for Benetton. Alain Prost won seven races, Senna five, the rookie Damon Hill had a very respectable season with three wins and a name for the future, Michael Schumacher won one race. Alain Prost won the championship for the fourth time and Williams once again took the constructors title.
The excitement pre-season 1994 was intense; Alain Prost had retired and his place at Williams taken by Ayrton Senna who was partnered by the talented Damon Hill. Michael Schumacher had Ford power for his Benetton. McLaren had high hopes for its new Peugeot engine, and Ferrari was looking to erase the dismal memories of the last 3 years with Gerhard Berger and Jean Alesi.
The safety improvements in the sport had paid dividends, whilst there had been several terrible accidents in recent years past; the last fatality was Elio de Angelis (Italian) during testing in 1986. F1 was still (and remains) a dangerous sport, but the notion of drivers dying had past to the back of the mind. The speed of Formula One cars had continuously risen over 8 years, despite turbocharged engines being made illegal and reducing the width of tyres and eventually removing driver aids. At the same time the use of composite materials had strengthened cars, run-off areas at the track slowed the cars before reaching barriers, and a host of medical facilities had accompanied the speed increases. After the 1994 season safety would become of even greater significance, the FIA demonstrating considerable leadership, and the F1 management following with great commitment to the cause.
The San Marino GP was a shattering weekend for Formula 1:
The weekend got off to a bad start; Rubens Barrichello (Brazilian) had a major crash during practice and was knocked unconscious. Coming fast into Variante Bassa, his car was launched into the air by the kerb. Less than a metre from that kerb was a tyre wall, which almost instantly stopped the car's forward motion. His car was flipped over and landed upside down. Barrichello had swallowed his tongue and his life was only saved by quick action from the medical team. He would be back at the circuit on the Saturday afternoon with a fractured nose, bandaged arm and cut lip.
In qualifying, a front wing flap fell off Roland Ratzenberger's car, (Austrain). This caused major suspension damage and worsened aerodynamics. On his next lap Ratzenberger lost control and crashed into the wall at over 180 mph. His Simtek S941 was severely damaged, and he suffered a basal skull fracture caused by the impact and was pronounced dead at hospital shortly afterwards.
These two incidents were terrible, but with the greatest respect to both drivers neither Rubans Barrichello nor Roland Ratzenberger had transcended their sport to become a global sporting super star. Ayrton Senna was such a sportsman.
After qualifying re-commenced, Senna took pole position ahead of Schumacher, Berger, Hill, Lehto and Larini. During the race morning driver's meeting, all determined to improve safety for drivers, resulting in the inauguration of the GPDA (Grand Prix Drivers Association). Senna offered to take the role of leader as he was the most senior driver.
At the start of the race, Lehto's Benetton B194 stalled and was hit by Pedro Lamy's Lotus. Debris from the crash, including Lamy's right front tyre, flew into the grandstand and injured four spectators and a policeman. The Safety Car was called out with Senna leading Schumacher, Berger, Larini and Häkkinen. The race restarted at the end of lap 5. And Senna tried immediately to pull away from Schumacher, whilst Berger in 3rd was already 2.586 seconds behind and Hill in 4th was 5.535 seconds behind. At the start of the 7th lap, Senna lost control, for reasons that are still the subject of controversy, and his car went straight on at Tamburello into an unprotected concrete wall at 131 mph (210 km/h). The suspension of the Williams broke on impact, flying backwards and hitting Senna on the head, piercing his helmet and fracturing his skull. The car slid to a halt on the circuit, with Senna motionless. From the helicopter pictures, a slight movement of Senna's head gave a hint of hope. Professor Sid Watkins, a world renowned British neurosurgeon and official Formula 1 race doctor, was on the scene in less than two minutes. Senna was airlifted to hospital. Ayrton Senna, three time world drivers' champion, was pronounced dead later that evening. After the race, a poignant detail was revealed when an Austrian flag was found in Senna's car; he had planned to dedicate the win to Ratzenberger had he won the race.
Two further incidents occurred during the race that resulted in immediate changes in the rules relating to the Pit area; Speed limits in the pits were introduced, and pit crews must remain inside the garage until needed.
While significant changes could not be made to cars in 1994, the FIA required all Formula 1 cars' airboxes to be perforated to reduce their 'ram-air' effect, to reduce power. For the same reason special racing fuels, previously an exotic mixture of benzenes and toluenes, were banned; only those with similar characteristics to everyday unleaded petrol would be permitted. To reduce down-force, and therefore the cornering speed of the cars, a wooden 'plank' was to be fitted beneath the central portion of the chassis, forcing a large section of the floor further away from the track. If the plank was worn over a tolerance, approximately 10 mm, the car would be deemed illegal.
Further, from 1995, car designs were required to be drawn from a reference plane (template), and strict limitations were enforced as to the minimum and maximum tolerances for aspects of the vehicle (such as the size of the cockpit opening, and of aerodynamic devices.). Further, maximum engine displacement was reduced from 3.5 litres to 3 litres. Further changes were mandated as the FIA continued to try to curb the increase in speeds of Formula 1 cars as the years progressed. These changes included the increase in size of the cockpit opening (to ensure driver egress was easy and to minimise possible side head impacts), introducing grooved tyres (to reduce cornering speeds by reducing grip) and narrower bodywork (this would complicate cooling and also reduce cornering speed), raising and reducing wing sizes and elements (cutting aerodynamic down-force, thus reducing cornering speed), and introducing comprehensive checks on stiffness tolerances and measurements to ensure cars conformed completely with the regulations (for example, weight tests on wings and bodywork to ensure that they maintained integrity and did not flex to give an aerodynamic advantage in a straight line).
The rapid introduction of all of these new rules and regulations--particularly those introduced in 1994--made the atmosphere even more chaotic for Formula 1. Michael Schumacher had to fight desperately for his first World Driver's Championship, as his Benetton team found itself in frequent violations of FIA regulations, and Schumacher was suspended for several races as a result. Even his championship-clinching race in Australia was controversial, as he collided with rival Damon Hill, taking them both out of the race and ensured he won the title.
By 1995, however, things had settled down somewhat - Schumacher took his second driver's title, and Benetton, their first Constructor's title with relative ease, defeating the Williams team of Hill and David Coulthard (British). The Renault engine which powered both teams was virtually unbeatable, with only Ferrari claiming a single win at the Canadian GP for Jean Alesi, (French) his only career win.
In 1996, as part of his plan to rebuild Ferrari, Jean Todt brought Michael Schumacher to the team from Benetton, essentially in exchange for his 1995 drivers Alesi and Berger. There was an immediate effect, in his first year with the Ferrari / Schumacher won three races, more than the team had managed in the previous five years. Ferrari were not championship contenders though and Damon Hill made a strong run to the title, finally claiming the crown after 3 years of nearly. Damon Hill is the only son of a World Champion to win the title. Williams easily won the constructors title as well, but it was the beginning of the end of Williams' 1990s dominance, as it was announced that Damon Hill and designer Adrian Newey would depart at the conclusion of the season, with engine manufacturer Renault also leaving after 1997.
In 1997, another son of an F1 racing legend took the titles for Williams; Jacques Villeneuve, son of Gilles Villeneuve, became the 4th driver to take both the Formula 1 and CART championship (the others being Mario Andretti, Emerson Fittipaldi, and Nigel Mansell). This season was much closer than 1996, and Villeneuve only clinched the Drivers' Championship at the final race. Once again, Michael Schumacher collided with his championship rival at the final race, but unlike 1994 events turned against him. Schumacher not only found himself knocked out of the race, but was found to have deliberately tried to run Villeneuve off of the road. Schumacher was disqualified from the Championship.
At the end of 1997 Renault withdrew from F1. McLaren-Mercedes took the drivers' title for the next two years, both being claimed by Mika Häkkinen. The Finn was nearly untouchable as he took his first championship while Schumacher and Villeneuve struggled to match the speed and skills of the flying Finn, Schumacher putting up an admirable but futile fight. The 1999 season provided a stiffer contest for the title. Villeneuve was out of contention at the brand-new BAR team, but Schumacher was in contention when he crashed and broke his leg at Silverstone. His team mate Eddie Irvine eventually lost by only two points to Mika Häkkinen, but his efforts contributed to Ferrari's first constructors' championship since 1983.
The 1990's had seen the steady demise of the small private teams, many left the sport unable to compete with the financial demands of a global sport. Some very big names such as Lotus and Brabham vanished from the grid. The costs debate and difficulties of funding would continue into the new century, but the first fifty years of F1 had produced some of the most exciting action to be witnessed in any sport. The controversies were dramatic, but the sport was always bigger.
| Season | Driver | Nationality | Team | Constructors | Base |
| 1990 | Ayrton Senna | Brazilian | McLaren-Honda | McLaren-Honda | Britain |
| 1991 | Ayrton Senna | Brazilian | McLaren-Honda | McLaren-Honda | Britain |
| 1992 | Nigel Mansell | British | Williams-Renault | Williams-Renault | Britain |
| 1993 | Alain Prost | French | Williams-Renault | Williams-Renault | Britain |
| 1994 | Michael Schumacher | German | Benetton-Ford | Williams-Renault | Britain |
| 1995 | Michael Schumacher | German | Benetton-Renault | Benetton-Renault | Britain |
| 1996 | Damon Hill | British | Williams-Renault | Williams-Renault | Britain |
| 1997 | Jacques Villeneuve | Canadian | Williams-Renault | Williams-Renault | Britain |
| 1998 | Mika Hakkinen | Finnish | McLaren-Mercedes | McLaren-Mercedes | Britain |
| 1999 | Mika Hakkinen | Finnish | McLaren-Mercedes | Ferrari | Italy |
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