The legendary Formula One driver has recently said that following his retirement from the sport, his former rival and teammate Ayrton Senna had also lost his motivation.

Prost is a four-time F1 World Champion and he retired by the end of the 1994 season. While Prost won the title that year in a Williams car, Senna was struggling at McLaren-Ford and the team had failed to construct a proper car that would provide him with the chance to win the World Drivers’ championship that season.

Despite the shortcomings in his car as well as in the team, the Brazillian did his best to push his rivals even further and challenge for podium finishes. Senna even won five races over the course of the season.

Senna and Prost had previously been teammates at McLaren in the 1980s. Their relationship wasn’t particularly warm or affectionate, and they often clashed with each other over the years. Both Senna and Prost dominated the F1 landscape during their heydays and were icons of the sport.

Senna and Prost last shared a podium together at the 1993 Australian Grand Prix where a certain Michael Schumacher also joined them on stage. Following that season, Prost decided to retire from F1 and Senna replaced his former teammate at Williams in 1994.

Despite the quite apparent animosity and bitterness in their relationship at their peak, it gradually softened and mellowed down towards the end of Prost’s career. Even in Prost’s final race, Senna personally sent him a message, saying, “A special hello to my dear… our dear friend Alain, in France. We all miss you, Alain.”

In a recent interview with French outlet L’Equipe, Prost said that Senna lost his bearings and motivation following his retirement. He even added that the Brazillian reached out to him several times since his retirement, something he had never done previously while they were still racing each other.

“We communicated so much with Ayrton the days after my retirement. I felt he was not well. He called me often. Sometimes twice a week. He never phoned me while I was still racing. He had, without me, lost his bearings. I was probably his source of motivation. It’s hard to understand…”

Looking back at their careers, the Frenchman added, “We both lived an incredible human and psychological story. You have to stay on the beautiful memories.”