Toto Wolff feels a void without Niki Lauda at Mercedes

For almost four years, the most famous red cap in F1 has not been worn. It is only displayed on the wall of radio helmets. And a symbolic red star serves as a reminder of Niki Lauda. It is simply placed on the livery of the Mercedes W14.

Deceased in 2019, Niki Lauda was a genius of this sport. On and off the track. Triple world champion in the 70s and 80s, he proved that he was one of the best drivers in the world. Then, from 2012 to 2019, he held the position of non-executive director within the German team.

Here, he was the one behind strokes of genius. It was him who had the intuition and tact to recruit Lewis Hamilton in 2013. It is the same man who managed to bring both the British driver and his former teammate, Nico Rosberg, back down to earth when the two were fighting for the world championship.

Tragically passed away at the age of 70, just a few days before the Monaco Grand Prix, Niki Lauda left a void in the Mercedes garage. This is the feeling of the team boss, Toto Wolff. Niki has been missed all these years because he always managed to bring things back to the essentials, explained the Austrian to the F1 website.

« I always have to think about what he would have said and what position he could have taken. We worked well together in the sense that sometimes excessive simplification can lead you straight to results. »

« But there were obviously many nuances, because it is a technical sport, so maybe my role was to translate that in a way that we could actually implement it in the car’s design.»

In eight years with the team based in Brackley, the one who was nicknamed “The Computer” managed to sweep everything: five driver’s championships with Lewis Hamilton, one with Nico Rosberg, and six constructor’s championships. Enough to fill his trophy cabinet, which already counts his three crowns and his 25 victories.