Niki Lauda died three years ago…

Three years ago, on May 20, 2019, Niki Lauda’s family announced that he has left this world after a long illness. We have collected in this material a few memories of what it was like …

Bernie Ecclestone: “Nicky was a wonderful person. After that accident, he returned to racing, although he shouldn’t have. But he went to the start and won the title.

Nicky was special. He knew what to say and when to say it. He was an excellent racer. Nicky is one of those people who always knew when to squeeze everything out of the car and get more out of it. He was respected and listened to.

Nicky loved Formula 1. Even when he was in hospital, he wanted to fly again and come to some races.”

Luca di Montezemolo: “We have been friends for fifty years and share the best moments of our lives. We won a lot of races, two championship titles and the third was not nearly enough.

Niki Lauda was an original personality and a very smart racer, he knew when to attack and when to save the car. Good relations with mechanics and mechanics were important to him, which helped a lot to get more out of the car.

Who else would have had the audacity to get back behind the wheel at Monza a few weeks after the Nürburgring fire? When he took off his helmet, the wounds began to bleed again. But he didn’t think about it at all. His departure from Ferrari never got in the way of our friendship. Even when we were later on opposite sides.

Sebastian Vettel: “I was lucky enough to know Nicky. When I played for Red Bull Racing, Nicky was a fixture in our team and spoke a lot with Helmut Marko. Nicky spoke about the characteristics of cars, about how racing has influenced his life, about what Enzo Ferrari really was. It is impossible to learn from books, it is information from the primary source.

Nicky has always been herself. Many in front of the cameras try to fit into a certain frame, but Lauda was not like that. He was always sincere, true to his word, always on the side of the truth. Nicky was a real racer, in love with our sport. I treated him with great respect.”

Toto Wolff: “What have I learned from Nicky? Never give up. Don’t look for excuses, reach the goal! Nicky never complained. Even when he was in pain and having a hard time. I was always impressed by his ability to cope with the challenges life brought him.

Our friendship grew stronger over the years, we were different and learned from each other. I miss my friend, interlocutor, opponent very much. He was always there for me when I was having a hard time. Nicky inspired me every day – with his invulnerability, flexibility, ability to be reborn.

Despite all the differences, we had a lot in common. I am one of those who never look back. I’m not interested in yesterday’s results. And he handled it the same way. We lived for today and tomorrow.”

Lewis Hamilton: “We all miss Nicky so much. I remember him every day. It’s hard for me to talk about him in the past tense. This was a person who was very close to me. We have experienced many incredible moments.

I remember our first conversations. It was in 2012. One day I was just getting home when Nicky called and started convincing me to go to Mercedes. I remember how excited I was to have the world champion, the legendary Niki Lauda, ​​call me home himself.

After that, we discussed this matter more than once, but the negotiations were still at an early stage and then the then head of the Mercedes team, Ross Brown, came to me. I couldn’t believe he was sitting in the kitchen of my mother’s house.

When Lauda came to my hotel room in Singapore and we had a crucial conversation, something clicked in me. I suddenly noticed that we look at many things in life and racing in the same way. Since then we have had a great relationship.

We traveled together, I visited him in Ibiza. He was positive, artistic, with a great sense of humor. He knew many stories. And what a racer he was! Always striving for perfection.

As a thank you for a good performance, Nicky took off his famous hat. And you knew you were really good. He’s not the type to give compliments. When Lauda takes off his cap, you’re done.

Even after the win he asked: “Lewis, what do you need to get even better?” He was always looking for an opportunity to achieve more. Of all the lessons I learned from him, this was the most important – it’s not enough for a driver to just work hard, he has to lead his team, ask the right questions, always push himself and his people to the best of themselves. to give.

It’s like a workout. You do ten pushups and on the ninth you realize you can’t do it anymore. So you have to find in yourself and your body the strength to wring out 12 or 13 times. The same goes for working with people. You can always do a little more. Nicky taught me a lot about dealing with people and I love knowing that I use his lessons every day.

I will never forget that it was Nicky who brought me to Mercedes and convinced me that the great success is yet to come. I was welcomed with open arms, we all grew up together. Nicky was the person who gave me my freedom because he felt that people are only capable of more when they can be themselves.

I am honored to spend so much time of my life with Niki Lauda. I cherish these memories. I am very grateful to Nicky for everything he has done for me. He will always live on in my heart. And I know he’s always with us when we go out on the track.”