NIKI LAUDA

The great racing driver faced a new challenge running the Jaguar Formula One team.
(The Times Magazine, 2002)

When Ni i Lauda wa! a! ed to wear a !uit for the launch of the Jaguar "# racing car$ he refu!ed. %No$& he !aid$ %there&! no need. I&m different' I onl( have one ear.& Thi! ma( have )een an e*aggeration + hi! right ear$ though !mall and !hrivelled$ i! !till recogni!a)le a! !uch + )ut$ !a(! Jaguar&! ,u)lic affair! manager Nav -idhu$ %We )oth new what he meant.& Lauda&! nearimmolation in the .erman .rand /ri* 01 (ear! ago$ and hi! come)ac to win a !econd and third World 2ham,ion!hi,$ !et! him a,art in a !,ort with no !hortage of heroe!. La3aru! can wear what he ,lea!e!. -o when Lauda a,,eared )efore the international motor4racing ,re!! in a di!co4lit hangar in 5ilton Ke(ne!$ it wa! in hi! cu!tomar( of uniform of 6ean!$ 74nec 6um,er$ well4cut 6ac et and + hi! own red )adge of courage + the /armalat )a!e)all ca, which he wear! to hide the !car! on hi! head. 8e had$ unu!uall($ ,ut on a tie 9at hi! wedding he had to )orrow one from hi! )e!t man:$ and though the effect wa! undermined )( the fact that one of hi! fl( )utton! wa! undone$ the di!cover( i! unli el( to have fa3ed him. De!,ite )eing )orn into a ,rominent 7ienne!e famil($ he i! a )lunt$ down4to4earth man who e*,re!!e! him!elf in what he call! 9with a chuc le: %!traightforward Au!trian4;ngli!h word!&$ and hi! mi!!ion !tatement i! refre!hingl( !im,le' %Don&t tal )ull!hit and have a million meeting! + do !omething.& Lauda&! em,lo(ment )( Jaguar at the age of <0 re,re!ent! (et another come4)ac . After finall( retiring a! a driver in =>?<$ he threw him!elf heart and !oul into hi! own airline$ Lauda Air$ onl( to )e ou!ted in an acrimoniou! ta e4over fifteen month! ago. La!t Fe)ruar($ with the encouragement of hi! old friend @ernie ;ccle!tone$ he agreed to move from 7ienna to London and ta e charge of Ford&! /remier /erformance Division, of which Jaguar is part. Initiall($ Lauda&! 6o) wa! to co4ordinate the wor of Jaguar "acing and it! two e( !u,,lier! + 2o!worth$ who ma e it! engine!$ and /i$ who ,rovide it! electronic! + while another e*4driver$ @o))( "ahal$ handled the actual running of the team. In Augu!t$ however$ "ahal returned home to America$ and Lauda too on the additional 6o) of team ,rinci,al + having$ !ome )elieve$ done !ome acrimoniou! ou!ting of hi! own. On arrival at Jaguar&! 5ilton Ke(ne! headAuarter!$ the enormit( of the challenge facing Lauda i! not immediatel( a,,arent. In the rece,tion

area$ gold and !ilver tro,hie! gleam li e the gift! of the 5agi. The wor !ho,! are$ di!a,,ointingl($ 6u!t a! !,ic and !,an' in!tead of grea!e mon e(! !,rawled under grim( cha!!i!$ immaculate technician! fu!! around !tate4of4the art eAui,ment. "u))er tu)ing !,ill! from !omething clo!el( re!em)ling a wa!hing machine$ a! if an alien had )een through the heav(4!oil c(cleB there i! even one of tho!e fiendi!h la!er! for cutting Jame! @ond in half 9though it! function here i! to mea!ure the ,reci!e !(mmetr( of a car:. /r( a little clo!er$ however$ and (ou find that thi! 6aguar ha! ,aw! of cla(. The !ilver tro,hie! are merel( for Formula #B the gold$ for a !ingle event + the .erman .rand /ri* + won three (ear! ago )( the team in it! ,reviou! incarnation$ Ford -tewart. Although that victor( generated great e*citement at the time$ it ,roved a fal!e dawnB Jaguar had a mi!era)le !ea!on in 0CCC$ and did onl( marginall( )etter la!t (ear$ fini!hing eight out of eleven in the con!tructor!& cham,ion!hi,. Lauda )elieve! that the team need! to ri!e to fifth or !i*th ,o!ition thi! !ea!on if it i! ever to challenge the giant! of Ferrari$ 5cLaren and William!. It i! hard to meet Lauda without feeling a degree of a,,rehen!ion. -o )adl( wa! he )urned in hi! accident at Nur)urgring that$ he !a(!$ %5( wife could onl( recogni!e m( feet. -he !creamed and had a nervou! )rea down.& De!,ite thi!$ he refu!ed to have more than the minimum of ,la!tic !urger( + 6u!t enough$ famou!l($ to allow him to drive in the Italian Grand Prix six weeks later. In the event$ it i! the ,art! un!carred )( the flame! which !tri e one mo!t' the ,ale hand!$ and the )lue e(e! 9one admittedl( o,ening wider than the other: rendered all the more inten!e )( the !urrounding ! in$ which + dar and mottled + !ugge!t! the under!ide of an ancient )ar of Fruit D Nut. -taring from )eneath hi! )a!e)all ca,$ he might )e a tortoi!e ,ee,ing from it! !hell. Thi! ma( !eem di!re!,ectful to a man who inha)it! a world of hare! and who$ in hi! racing da(!$ regularl( out!tri,,ed them allB )ut the more one o)!erve! him$ the more true it !eem!. It i! not that he i! !h($ !im,l( that he ee,! hi! own coun!el' he will an!wer a fu!illade of Aue!tion! without flinching$ allow hi! face to crac into a !mile at one of hi! own 6o e!$ and then$ )efore (ou now it$ retreat into !ome hidden$ ,rivate ,lace. 8i! go!,el i! a)ove all one of !elf4reliance + or$ in Lauda!,ea $ %If (ou are in the !hit$ alwa(! tr( to !olve the ,ro)lem (our!elf.& 8e tell! the !tor( of a friend who rang him to ma e a )u!ine!! a,,ointment' %I new I couldn&t go$ )ecau!e I had m( idne( tran!,lant coming u,$ )ut I didn&t tell him that + I !aid it wa! m( a,,endi*. Wh( worr( him with m( ,er!onal ,ro)lem when he can&t hel,E& ;ven hi! driving$ fa!t and fearle!! a! it wa!$ had !omething tortoi!eli e

a)out it' a reliance on will,ower and calculation rather than fl(ing )( the !eat of hi! ,ant!. %I&ve wor ed clo!el( with three driver! who I would ran a! the greate!t$& !a(! Jaguar&! technical director -teve Nichol!' %/ro!t$ -enna and Lauda. The( were all ver( different character!$ )ut the thing that !et Ni i a,art wa! hi! iron4willed determination to !ucceed + and I haven&t !een an( diminution of that in him a! a team ,rinci,al.& In hi! =>?< auto)iogra,h($ To Hell and Back$ Lauda outline! what he call! hi! %!(!tem&' in e!!ence$ a !u)limation of emotion !o that all one&! energ( can )e channelled into dealing rationall( with the ,ro)lem in hand. A! ed whether he ha! found hi! team&! recent ,erformance! fru!trating$ he !a(! no' %I&m not a dreamer who !a(!$ FDo thi! and (ou !uddenl( have a car which i! winning a race.G It&! reall( hard wor which can )e !im,l( anal(!ed' we now the !te,! that we have to ta e.& Intriguingl($ the )oo de!cri)e! the !(!tem a! a cara,ace' %I am not ,re,ared to let m( feeling! run riot$& he declare!. %I&m too !en!itive$ too emotional to let that ha,,en.& 8e Aualifie! thi! toda( )( !a(ing that hi! )ru!h with death at Nur)urgring allowed him to o,en u, in hi! ,er!onal life$ if not hi! ,rofe!!ional one' %@efore the accident$ I wa! !o focu!!ed on racing that I wa! a ver( un,lea!ant ,er!on. Afterward!$ I could !till focu! on it$ )ut I wa! a)le to !,lit m(!elf' I wa! more ea!(4going with m( wife$ more friendl( and funn(. It made me in general term! a nicer ,er!on.& The de!ire to race at the highe!t level wa! not alwa(! there$ though the fa!cination with driving wa!. At =<$ without a licence$ he wa! hurtling down the ,u)lic highwa( in the huge truc ! )elonging to hi! famil(&! ,a,er )u!ine!!. %I u!ed to get u, ever( morning at #$ without an()od( nowing$& he e*,lain!. %I new one driver who !aid$ FI&m tired in the morning$ !o (ou can driveG. -o I drove until < or 1$ and when the light came u, we !wa,,ed !eat!.& @( =? he wa! racing 5ini 2oo,er!$ and two (ear! later graduated to Formula #. 8i! )u!ine!! ! ill! develo,ed along!ide hi! !,orting ,rowe!!' di!owned )( hi! famil($ he had to hu!tle for !,on!or!hi, to !u,,ort hi! career$ and )orrow !um! which + had he failed + would have )an ru,ted him. At the !tart of hi! Formula One career$ he had to ,a( 5arch to let him drive for themB )( the end of it$ he wa! earning twice a! much a! hi! rival!. 8e al!o )ecame an ade,t ,olitician$ !urviving the @orgia4li e intrigue! of the Ferrari team and$ in =>?0$ leading a !ucce!!ful driver!& !tri e. The!e Aualitie! were needed in !,ade! when$ after di!covering the thrill of fl(ing a! a ,rivate ,ilot$ he decided to !tart hi! own airline$ )a!ed in 7ienna. %Au!tria i! dominated )( Au!trian Airline!$ and it wa! alwa(! going to )e a tough )attle$& e*,lain! Wa(ne 5iller$ a con!ultant who !,ent four (ear! wor ing for Lauda. %There wa! the !ame relation!hi,

)etween them and Lauda Air a! we have )etween @riti!h Airwa(! and 7irgin' the traditional carrier again!t an innovative airline with a d(namic chairman. There wa! a great !,irit in the com,an($ with (oung$ d(namic ,eo,le and ver( few )oundarie!. Ni i reall( doe! now how to create a lo(al following.& 9Thi! wa! confirmed at the ,re!! launch of the "#$ when I overheard Lauda di!cu!!ing a re,eat ,re!entation for the Jaguar wor force with the driver! ;ddie Irvine and /edro de la "o!a. Wa! it nece!!ar($ the( a! ed him$ for all three of them to )e on the ,latformE He!$ he !aid$ it wa!.: -tarting with a !ingle II4!eater Fo er 0J$ Lauda Air e*,anded into a !ucce!!ful ,u)lic com,an(. In the late Ninetie!$ however$ it wa! hit )( ri!ing fuel co!t! and the wea ne!! of ;uro,ean currencie! again!t the dollar. Lauda&! old enem($ Au!trian Airline!$ !ei3ed the o,,ortunit( to )u( a #1K !hare in the com,an($ and in Novem)er 0CCC managed to manoeuvre him out. At the time$ Lauda inveighed )itterl( again!t the )u!ine!! etho! of hi! native land$ )ut now he i! a)le to view the e*,erience more !toicall(. A! ed whether he feel! a !en!e of failure$ he !a(! no' %After all$ I )uilt Lauda Air from nothing + again!t a !tate mono,ol( + to 00 aero,lane!. The( wanted to run it their own wa($ which can&t wor $ !o I left + which i! logical if thing! ha,,en that (ou can&t control. @ut I&d done it long enough.& Doe! he find the @riti!h ea!( to do )u!ine!! withE 8e laugh!. %No. the @riti!h are ver( ,olite$ the(&re ver( friendl($ )ut I would li e to !ee a little )it more !elf4critici!m. If !omething goe! wrong and the !hit hit! the fan$ it i! FIt&! himG + FIt&! himG + FIt&! himG.& 8e mimic! a line of )uc 4,a!!er!. @( wa( of illu!tration$ he cite! the late Jame! 8unt$ who wa! one of hi! greate!t friend!. %When we !tarted out$ we couldn&t fini!h an( of the race!. Jame! !aid$ FDon&t worr($ Ni i$ it&! ver( !im,le + ta e the e*cu!e )oo .G And he gave me a little )oo which !aid$ F-hoc A)!or)er! + T(re! + ;ngine + OilG. -o I !aid$ FWhat the fuc i! thi!EG And he !aid$ FWhen (ou don&t fini!h$ 6u!t o,en it u,$ ,ic one thing$ and tell it to them' that&! the wa( (ou !urvive.G -o I !aid$ FAre (ou nut!EG & In!tead of ta ing the )oo $ he ,er!uaded 8unt to throw it awa(B the( )oth went on to )ecome World 2ham,ion!. A! it ha,,en!$ the Jaguar team currentl( ha! an e*cu!e with a ca,ital ;. For the ,a!t two !ea!on!$ it ha! lac ed it! own wind tunnel + an e!!ential ,iece of eAui,ment in aerod(namic de!ign wor + and ha! had to ma e do with one in 2alifornia. 9%We&d find !omething wrong with the car$& !a(! ;ddie Irvine$ %and have to wait three wee ! to get an an!wer to it.&: From thi! month LFe)ruar(M$ that will change$ a! a new facilit(

o,en! u, in @ice!ter' Jaguar "acing mu!t ,ut u, or !hut u,. The "#&! ,redece!!or!$ it i! generall( agreed$ were relia)le )ut !low. I ,ut it to a !enior mem)er of the Jaguar !taff that$ given that la!t !ea!on&! ,ro)lem! la( with the car 9which$ though inherited$ wa! Lauda&! re!,on!i)ilit(: rather than the team$ it wa! unfair that @o))( "ahal !hould have )een the one to go. %Hou&ll have to draw (our own conclu!ion! a)out that$& he !aid. %@ut (ou could ,ro)a)l( write a )oo a)out it.& 5otor racing$ he added$ i! li e ,olitic!' %It&! full of !trong ,er!onalitie!$ and the fir!t rule i! to ee, ,ower.& "ahal$ a former Ind(car cham,ion$ i! a ,o,ular figure 9%a ver( ,oli!hed interfacer + ver( affa)le&:$ )ut he and Lauda a,,ear to have )een on a colli!ion cour!e from the !tart. %When Ni i Lauda&! a,,ointment wa! announced$& remar ! one motor!,ort corre!,ondent$ %a lot of ,eo,le !aid$ FOne of the will )e gone )( the end of the !ea!onG.& Lauda&! great advantage wa! to have the ear of Jaguar&! chairman$ Wolfgang "eit3leB "ahal&! great mi!ta e wa! to tr( to !ell ;ddie Irvine. Although Lauda would onl( ever !elect a driver on merit$ it i! clear that there i! a !,ecial )ond )etween him and Irvine. For one thing$ Irvine wa! a ,rotNgN of Jame! 8unt&!$ and he and hi! )o!! can !ometime! )e !een on the town together$ re4enacting the e*ce!!e! of the LaudaO8unt Formula Fun team. %What ma e! their relation!hi, !o good i! that the( come from the !ame mould$& !a(! Nav -idhu$ %though Ni i i! ,ro)a)l( a more hard4core ver!ion of ;ddie.& Nothing$ therefore$ could have )een more calculated to irritate Lauda than the di!cover( that "ahal had !ecretl( )een negotiating Irvine&! tran!fer to the Jordan team. According to Lauda$ %@o))( defended the i!!ue )( !a(ing that it wa! no more than a 6o e$ )ut unfortunatel( 6o e! li e thi! with e*i!ting driver! do not wor ver( well. I !te,,ed in and ended whatever di!cu!!ion wa! ta ing ,lace at the time.& 9Lauda$ for hi! ,art$ infuriated "ahal )( giving the Arrow! team ,ermi!!ion to u!e the !ame engine a! Jaguar$ the 2o!worth 7=C.: In the end$ Lauda claim!$ commitment wa! the deci!ive factor' %@o))( "ahal had a lot of other 6o)! he wa! doing$ fl(ing forward! and )ac ward! to the United -tate!. A Formula One team doe!n&t wor li e thi!' Fran William! and all the!e gu(!$ the(&re there twelve hour! a da($ and that&! what it ta e! if (ou want to )eat them. I never wanted to ta e thi! 6o)$ )ut if (ou&re in charge of the whole grou, and !uddenl( !omeone&! mi!!ing in the mo!t im,ortant ,art of it$ the logic i! to do it (our!elf.& "ahal wa! di!mi!!ed from Jaguar without having com,leted a full !ea!on. On the ground$ the e*ten!ion of Lauda&! role ha! met with guarded

enthu!ia!m. %5otor racing need! !ta)ilit( and need! direction$& !a(! Jaguar&! chief de!igner$ John "u!!ell. %We call !ea!on! cam,aign! for a good rea!on + thi! i! the neare!t thing to war without going out and in6uring ,eo,le with wea,on!. Ni i i! an aggre!!ive and tough gu($ and ho,efull( he will give u! that !ta)ilit(.& One of hi! colleague!$ however$ reveal! a degree of !ce,tici!m' %We !eem to have thi! thing a)out threetime! cham,ion!$& he !a(!. %Jac ie -tewart wa! one$ and !o wa! @o))( "ahal$ and now we&ve got Ni i Lauda.& There wa! !ce,tici!m$ too$ a)out Lauda&! deci!ion to tr( out one of the team&! car! for him!elf during ,re4!ea!on te!ting at 7alencia. ;ddie Irvine and /edro de la "o!a were clearl( an*iou! a)out )eing !hown u, )( their )o!!. %I&ve a! ed the gu(! to ma e !ure that he goe! a! !low a! ,o!!i)le$& 6o ed Irvine at the "# launch$ to which de la "o!a added$ %I&d love to !ee him cra!h + hone!tl(.& On the da($ Lauda !,un off twice in three la,! + )ut !till in!i!ted that the e*,eriment wa! worthwhile$ !ince it gave him a )etter under!tanding of what hi! driver! were dealing with. %I wa! told )( the engineer! that I went into the corner a! Auic l( a! /edro de la "o!a$& he added mi!chievou!l(. %The difference i! that I didn&t ma e the corner.& ;l!ewhere in -,ain$ another Lauda can )e !een in action thi! !ea!on + Ni i&! 0C4(ear4old !on 5atthia!$ who ha! recentl( )egun racing under the management of hi! older )rother Luca!. Thi! i! the !u)6ect of !uch ten!ion in the famil( that at fir!t their father would onl( di!cu!! it off the record$ though he !u)!eAuentl( relented. %The )o(! came to me and a! ed if the( could ta e m( Jaguar and drive to /rague$& he e*,lained. %I had no idea wh( + I thought the( wanted to !crew !ome girl! there or !omething. Then the( came to 7ienna and Luca! !aid$ FI didn&t go to /rague$ I went to /rin and organi!ed for 5atthia! to te!t drive a Formula # car. And do (ou now wh( I had to lie to (ouE @ecau!e (ou were !itting in a re!taurant with u! and reading the new!,a,er$ and 5atthia! a! ed (ou$ PI! there an( chance I can tr( a racing car one da(E& And (ou without even loo ing u, from (our new!,a,er !aid$ %Fuc (ou gu(!$ there&! no wa(&. And that ,i!!ed u! off !o much that I decided to arrange it m(!elfG.& Their father laugh!. %I wa! !ur,ri!ed that the( did it + )ut on the other hand I thought$ F-hit$ thi! i! not )ad$ I would have done the !ame thingG. The real ,ro)lem i! 5arlene.& Although Lauda claim! to have felt little fear in hi! racing da(! + %After the Nur)urgring I had !ome difficultie!$ )ut it too me one ,ractice and it wa! fi*ed again& + he i!$ to hi! own amu!ement$ ,lainl( intimidated )( hi! e*4wife. 9The cou,le divorced EE (ear! ago$ )ut remain clo!e.: %5arlene hate! racing li e (ou would not )elieve$& he !a(!. %I married her and three month! later I nearl( illed m(!elf$ !o whenever I raced afterward! !he !aid$ FDo whatever (ou want$ )ut I don&t want to now.G

-he feel! it in her !tomach + when I drive with her in the car and go Auic er around a corner$ !he !cream!. If !he find! out that we )o(! are hel,ing 5atthia!$ !he will 6u!t ill u!.& @( the time of m( !econd interview with Lauda$ the new! of 5atthia!&! e*,loit! had lea ed out. It wa! the fir!t te!ting da( of the !ea!on$ at the -,ani!h .rand /ri* trac near @arcelona. And 5atthia! had come to watch the "# )eing ,ut through it! ,ace!. %5( mother wa! angr($& he admitted. %-he !tarted cr(ing. -he alwa(! ho,ed that I would do !omething normal and not )e a racing driver.& 8ad hi! father given him an( career adviceE %8e 6u!t !aid it&! m( life. If I&m doing good$ fineB if I&m doing )ad$ leave.& It wa! not an au!,iciou! da( for te!ting. The hill! overloo ing @arcelona were !hrouded in mi!t$ and the rain in -,ain !eemed to falling mainl( on the motorwa( to the 2ircuit de 2atalun(a. &<C ,h& wa! the !,eed recommended )( fla!hing electronic road!ignB Irvine and de la "o!a were ho,ing to record around EEE In the ,it!$ the now familiar !tandard! of cleanline!! ,ertained' indeed$ had the mechanic! !wa,,ed their green Jaguar overall! for !urgeon!& gown!$ the( might almo!t have ,a!!ed for the ca!t of ER$ mu!tered around the o,erating ta)le. The car !tood under a gleaming lighting rig$ attached to it! own life4!u,,ort !(!tem + !en!or! mea!uring ever(thing from air in,ut to fuel ,re!!ure +while a man with an aero!ol and a fi!tful of ti!!ue! da))ed at alread( immaculate )od(wor . %When (ou&ve got !,on!or! ,a(ing QEE million each$& Nav -idhu e*,lained$ %the( don&t want to !ee oil !meared on their logo!.& A! the morning ,a!!ed + the weather im,roving$ )ut the trac !o wet that gave few clue! to the car&! ca,a)ilitie! + Ni i Lauda hovered on the edge of the action$ hand! thru!t dee, in hi! ,oc et!$ chatting to Jaguar&! 5D .uenther -teiner or watching the mechanic!$ ever a,,roacha)le and ever i!olated. Later$ leaning alone on the ,it wall$ he had the loo of a !age who ha! !,ent decade! in ,rofound thought$ and feel! not relea!ed )ut weighed down )( the wi!dom he ha! garnered. There i! no dou)t that he will give Jaguar hi! )e!t !hot. %Whatever I do$& he !a(!$ %even if it&! cra3( thing!$ I tr( to do it ,erfectl(. -ome ,eo,le have great idea!$ )ut (ou have to do ever(thing to the la!t detail to win. That reall( i! m( !trength.& Will it ,rove enoughE %I&m !ure that he ha! the ,otential if he&! given the )ac ing$& !a(! -tirling 5o!!. %8e&! a ver($ ver( ca,a)le man' he&! a fighter$ and he doe!n&t !uffer fool! gladl(. @ut however )rilliant he i!$ it de,end! on !o much more + whether (ou can get the right driver$ and wind4tunnel$ and de!igner + and one can&t 6udge without nowing what hi! )udget from Ford will )e. The one thing I&m confident of i! thi!' I don&t now an(one more com,etent to ma e Jaguar wor .&

A! the afternoon te!ting !e!!ion )egan$ a ,o!!e of rival car! emerged from the ,it! and !we,t awa( li e Tol ien&! Dar "ider! unlea!hed u,on 5iddle ;arth. ;ddie Irvine ,ulled on a flame,roof )alaclava$ donned hi! helmet$ and !te,,ed into the "#. The garage door !wung u,$ the( t(re cover! were removed$ and the engine fired with a rever)eration that (ou could feel in (our !ternum. A moment later the car wa! a red tail light vani!hing into the di!tance. An o)!ervation of Lauda&! came to mind' %In the end there&! onl( one man driving the car$ whatever the car i!' it&! the driver that give! the re!ult$ not the aerod(namic!.& The mechanic! !tood on the !ide of the trac $ arm! folded$ !uddenl( ,owerle!!$ waiting in !ilence for their ring4)earer to return.