Niki Lauda – More Than Just a Racing Driver
- Richard Baxter
- May 21, 2019
- 2 min read
It was sadly announced today (21/05/2019) that Niki Lauda has passed away. Legend is a term that is used way too often these days, but it’s fair to say Lauda truly was one.
Growing up I wasn’t aware of who he was or what he achieved. All I knew was the name and that he was a former world champion. My parents would tell me they remember seeing his crash on television and how awful it was. It wasn’t until my late teens though that I saw it for myself, the devastating crash and fire at the Nurburgring in 1976 is probably what he has become most famous for. What I didn’t realise for some years though is quite how bad that crash was, and how miraculous his recovery was. Against all odds to come back from the brink of death and get back in a car and race just 40 days after is unheard of. It’s no surprise that it has since been dubbed as the greatest comeback in sporting history and picked up by Hollywood for the film Rush.
In all honesty it’s only thanks to this film, and other documentaries that people my age are aware of what he has done and been through.
His driving style wasn’t as spectacular as some we have seen, but there is no doubting how good he was behind the wheel of a car. Intelligent and straight talking he was a different breed to a lot of the usual drivers.
Taking a loan out to secure his race seat he also could be classed as the potential creator of what we know today as a “pay driver” – essentially paying a team to drive their car. But this just showed how clever the man was. He knew where he needed to be to win and made sure he was there. He justified this in the end with multiple world championships – driving for the likes of Ferrari and McLaren, some of the biggest names in the sport.
Off the track he also had more to do with how successful Formula 1 has become.
Thanks to his rivalry with James Hunt in 1976 it really brought F1 to a world wide television audience.
He was one of the influential figures in helping make Formula 1 as safe as it is today.
He’s know for being straight forward and yet very eloquent. Seeing all the comments on social media it’s clear to see how well respected he was and how much he has done within the world of Formula 1.
It’s known publicly how much of an impact he has had with Mercedes and especially advising Lewis Hamilton to join the team. I’m sure they will miss him dearly.
He is an irreplaceable figure whose presence will be greatly missed.
Thank you Niki.
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