As we head to the Monaco F1 Grand Prix this weekend we reflect on the two wins that the late Niki Lauda had during his time as a driver.
Lauda competed at Monaco in 11 Grand Prix. Of those he retired in six, didn’t qualify in one (1983 both McLarens of Lauda and John Watson failed to qualify) and finished on the podium in the other four.
His first win was in 1975 with Scuderia Ferrari in the Ferrari 312T. A feat he repeated again in 1976 with Ferrari.
In 1977 he finished second to Jody Scheckter (Wolf-Ford) and again second in 1978 this time to Patrick Depailler (Tyrrell-Ford).
1975 was the year that Lauda won his first F1 world title. He won five of the fourteen Grand Prix races that year (Monaco, Spa, Seden, France, USA). It was the 29th season of F1 and Lauda’s second season at Ferrari. The Ferrari 312T was a car that was regarded as technically superior to the competition and Lauda finished 19.5 points ahead of Brazilian driver Emerson Fittipaldi (McLaren-Ford M23) and favourite Carlos Reutemann (Brabham-Ford BT44B).
At Monaco it was Lauda who took pole ahead of Tom Pryce (Shadow). Rain leading up to the race provided drivers with a damp track. Lauda led from start to finish with the pack behind him shuffling for positions. Fittipaldi took second from Carlos Pace (Brabham). The race also marked the final Grand Prix that British driver Graham Hill entered. He was not able to qualify in his Embassy Racing Hill GH1.
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