NIKI LAUDA NIKI LAUDA WAS BORN ON FEBRUARY 22, 1949 IN VIENNA, AUSTRIA. HE BORROWED lbs30,000 FROM AN AUSTRIAN BANK - "RAIFFEISENKASSE", IN 1972 TO BUY HIS DRIVE IN THE WORKS MARCH F1 TEAM TO DRIVE ALONGSIDE TEAM MATE RONNIE PETERSON. THE MARCH 721X WAS VERY UNCOMPETITIVE AND PRODUCED VERY LITTLE RESULTS FOR LAUDA. NIKI HAD A HUGE DEBT BY THIS TIME SO HE CONVINCED BRM TO LET HIM TEST ONE OF THEIR CARS AND HE WAS HIRED AFTER HE PUT IN A FASTER TIME THAN BRM'S DRIVERS AT THE TIME CLAY REGAZZONI AND JEAN-PIERRE BELTOISE. LAUDA PAID HIS SPONSERSHIP MONEY WITH THE PRIZE MONEY HE EARNED IN THE PREVIOUS FEW RACES. HE NOW HAD A HUGE OVERDRAFT BY THE END OF THE 1973 SEASON. HE SIGNED A 3-YEAR CONTRACT WITH BRM BUT WAS LATER OFFERED A RIDE WITH FERRARI WHICH HE TOOK BUT HAD TO PAY A FINANCIAL SETTLEMENT WITH BRM. THAT SEASON OF 1974 WITH FERRARI HAD HIM WIN THE SPANISH AND HOLLAND GRANDS PRIX IN A FERRAR B3. IN 1975, DRIVING A FERRARI 312T, NIKI LAUDA WON HIS 1ST WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP WITH 5 WINS IN MONACO - BELGIUM - SWEDEN - FRANCE AND U.S.A. AT THE OPENING LAP OF THE 1976 GERMAN GRAND PRIX AT THE NURBURGRING, LAUDA'S SUSPENSION BROKE ON HIS FERRARI 312T2 AND HE CRASHED IN A BALL OF FIRE. HE WAS RESCUED FROM HIS CAR BY DRIVERS GUY EDWARDS, ARTURO MERZARIO AND HARALD ERTL ALONG WITH A TRACK MARSHALL. NIKI HUNG ON TO LIFE FOR A FEW DAYS. HE HAD BURNED HIS FACE AND SCALP AND ALSO HAD HIS LUNGS SCORCHED BY THE HEAT AND WERE POISONED BY THE TOXIC FUMES FROM THE BURNING BODY WORK OF HIS FERRARI. HE SURVIVED AND RETURNED TO THE COCK-PIT OF HIS FERRARI LESS THAN 8 WEEKS LATER TO START IN THE ITALIAN GRAND PRIX WHERE HE FINISHED 4TH AND ALSO SET THE 2ND FASTEST RACE LAP. HE WITHDREW FROM THE JAPANESE GRAND PRIX WHEN HE WAS UN-SATISFIED WITH THE CONDITIONS OF THE RACE COURSE. IN 1977, NIKI WON THE SOUTH AFRICAN, GERMAN AND DUTCH GRANDS PRIX AND WON HIS 2ND WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP TITLE AND QUIT FERRARI TO JOIN THE 1978 TEAM OF BRABHAM-ALFA. IN 1978, LAUDA WON THE ANDERSTORP RACE IN THE BRM "FAN CAR" WHICH WAS LATER BANNED FROM F1 COMPETITION. HE ALSO WON AT MONZA, ITALY WHEN HIS 3RD PLACE FINISH CHANGED TO A 1ST PLACE AFTER MARIO ANDRETTI AND GILLES VILLENEUVE WERE DISQUALIFIED FOR JUMPING THE START. NIKI LAUDA STARTED HIS AIRLINE COMPANY AT THE BEGINNING OF 1979. HE SPENT YEARS BATTLING OVER GOVERNMENT BUREAUCRACY AS WELL AS THE AUSTRIAN AIRLINES MONOPOLY TO ESTABLISH IS OWN COMPANY.LAUDA RETIRED FROM RACING IN THE MIDDLE OF THE FIRST PRACTISE FOR THE 1979 CANADIAN GRAND PRIX IN MONTREAL IN SEPTEMBER. HE LEFT IMMEDIATELY FOR LONG BEACH, CALIFORNIA AND NEGOTIATIONS WITH AEROPLANE MANUFACTURER McDONNELL-DOUGLAS. LAUDA WAS NOW KNOW AS "THE RAT". IN 1982 HE CAME OUT OF RETIREMENT AND JOINED McLAREN FOR 4 YEARS. HE WON THE 1982 LONG BEACH GRAND PRIX. IN 1984, DRIVING A TAG-PORSCHE TURBO V6, LAUDA WON HIS 3RD WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP TITLE WITH VICTORIES IN SOUTH AFRICA - FRANCE - GREAT BRITIAN - AUSTRIA AND ITALY WINNING BY 1/2 A POINT OVER TEAM MATE ALAIN PROST. HIS AIRLINE BUSINESS NOW FLEW FROM VIENNA TO THE FAR EAST AND AUSTRALIA. HE HAS HAD ONLY ONE PLANE CRASH OF A BOEING 767 OVER TO THAILAND IN 1991. NIKI LAUDA WAS ONE OF THE BEST FORMULA ONE DRIVERS TO EVER DRIVE IN THE SPORT AND HE STILL VISITS THE ODD GRAND PRIX RACE TODAY. HE WAS IN ITALY FOR THE 600TH FERRARI START CELEBRATION AT MONZA IN 1998.
NIKI LAUDA'S F1 CAREER HIGHLIGHTS 1971 1 GP - 0 POINTS 1972 12 GP - 0 POINTS 1973 14 GP - 2 POINTS 17TH OVERALL 1974 15 GP - 38 POINTS - 9 POLES - 4 FASTEST LAPS - 2 WINS - 4TH OVERALL 1975 14 GP - 64.5 POINTS - 9 POLES - 2 FASTEST LAPS - 5 WINS - WORLD CHAMPION 1976 14 GP - 68 POINTS - 3 POLES - 4 FASTEST LAPS - 5 WINS - 2ND OVERALL 1977 14 GP - 72 POINTS - 2 POLES - 3 FASTEST LAPS - 3 WINS - WORLD CHAMPION 1978 16 GP - 44 POINTS - 1 POLE - 4 FASTEST LAPS - 2 WINS - 4TH OVERALL 1979 13 GP - 4 POINTS - 0 POLES - 0 FASTEST LAPS - 0 WINS - 13TH OVERALLNIKI LAUDA DID NOT DRIVE IN 1980 & 1981 1982 14 GP - 30 POINTS - 0 POLES - 1 FASTEST LAP - 2 WINS - 5TH OVERALL 1983 14 GP - 12 POINTS - 0 POLES - 1 FASTEST LAP - 0 WINS - 10TH OVERALL 1984 16 GP - 72 POINTS - 0 POLES - 5 FASTEST LAPS - 5 WINS - WORLD CHAMPION 1985 14 GP - 14 POINTS - 0 POLES - 1 FASTEST LAP - 1 WIN - 10TH OVERALLYEARS ACTIVE 13 GRANDS PRIX 171 POLE POSITIONS 24 FASTEST LAPS 25 WINS 25 POINTS 420.5 WORLD CHAMPION 3 TIMES