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Niki Lauda

The Biography

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Niki Lauda

By: Maurice Hamilton
Narrated by: Andrew Wincott
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About this listen

 LONGLISTED FOR THE WILLIAM HILL SPORTS BOOK OF THE YEAR PRIZE 2020
'The definitive biography of a racing driver who won three World Championship titles' Matt Dickinson, The Times, Sports Books of the Year
'Thoroughly gripping...a fitting tribute' Justin Marozzi, Sunday Times

Niki Lauda was one of the greatest stars in motor racing – a superb driver on the track and a much-loved personality off it. From his famous rivalry with James Hunt in 1976, as depicted in the film Rush, to working with Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes, his career helped define modern Formula One.

Six weeks after the 1976 crash at the notorious Nürburgring that left him burned and receiving the last rites while obituaries were written, Niki Lauda stepped back into his Ferrari at Monza to defend his first World Champion title. Jackie Stewart called it ‘the most courageous thing I have ever witnessed in sport’. Lauda and Hunt were playing cat-and-mouse for the championship. At the final race of the season in Japan, the weather was appalling and conditions treacherous. Lauda had a narrow lead and an agonising decision to make – high-speed drama at its best.

Following his extraordinary recovery from the accident, Lauda won the title in 1977 and again, following a return from retirement, in 1984 with McLaren. When he eventually hung up his helmet for good, he started his own airline and had to deal with the horrendous aftermath when one of his aircraft crashed, killing all 223 on board. He later returned to the sport in various management roles and successfully persuaded Lewis Hamilton to join Mercedes.

Maurice Hamilton first came across Lauda in 1971 and in this definitive biography tells his remarkable story. Based on interviews with friends, family, rival drivers and colleagues, it is a superb tribute to a brave, supremely talented and much-missed star of Formula One.©2020 Maurice Hamilton (P)2020 Simon & Schuster UK Sports Biography Racing

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Critic reviews

'By the end of this thoroughly gripping biography, what is abundantly clear is that statistics tell only half the story... This was a man who was forged in fire... Some of the most engrossing passages in this book, big on anecdote and reportage, have nothing to do with Lauda's racing career. Hamilton...reveals a man who is far more riveting and intelligent than his ability to pilot an F1 car very swiftly around a circuit may suggest. This biography is a fitting tribute to him.' (Justin Marozzi)
'Hamilton's book is the one we'd recommend. As great as To Hell and Back remains, the new biography adds greater detail from other perspectives... Autobiographies are not necessarily the definitive word on a subject. Hamilton adds a nice personal touch... His use of less familiar period interviews adds vivid colour... What really makes this new biography compelling are the chapters after 1985... It was Niki Lauda's humanity that was his true driving characteristic, and that's the running thread that pulls his authoriative book together.' (Damien Smith)
'Petrolheads will enjoy Hamilton’s expert analysis of car construction…for the rest of us, there is more than enough to savour in Lauda’s singular character, especially his amusing bluntness’ (Matt Dickinson)
All stars
Most relevant  
Great story, great narration, remarkable person.
Not just about his achievements but the real Niki.

Great

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A really wonderful book about an incredible man, it just gets better and better, I loved it

Excellent and intuitive read

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How to cover everything I feel about Lauda and his life story? To start with, the day of his first return back at Monza in 1975 was the very day of my birth... Not relevant to his story but mine to his. He won his first championship that year.
The last championship he won was the first year I started actively watching F1. He was my first F1 hero. I didn't remember, or even seem to have seen, his scars, I only noticed them when I was much older and more aware of peoples looks, I guess.
I learnt a lot about him here and truly appreciate it.

My first F1 hero.

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brilliantly told, a true sporting legend, a must for any F1 fan, powerful, moving and inspiring.

difinitive !

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I am not a F1 fan but I had heard of NL and had watched Rush, so had fingers crossed when I got it.

Was well written and narrated, credit to all involved was a great read.

I feel as though I know NL.

Fantastic book

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The contents of the book are well written and well presented. They paint a good picture of this fantastic person and legendary racer. There’s some lack of depth regarding Niki’s personal life (with the most salient details poorly compressed at the end) but perhaps that’s for the best. The narration however is so eye wateringly bad it became a sort of Grand Prix effort in itself to finish listening to it. The narrator insists on mimicking the accents of not only Lauda, who is made to sound like a third rate sitcom Count Dracula, but also every other person that is quoted in the book. It’s terrible and the effect is that most of the time the listener is left with the impression that he’s mocking the people he’s trying to portray (French accents unsurprisingly being the worst, pure Black Adder type comedy). I do recommend the title but not as an audio book. Read the actual book instead. This one should have come with a warning label.

Great book ruined by poor narration

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I have been following F1 for nearly forty years and this biography of Lauda is one of the best ways I have heard the subject of F1 written from a driver's perspective and that of a World champion. Maurice Hamilton provides a definitive account of the career of Lauda along with anecdotes and interviews with family, friends and colleagues who knew and worked with Niki.

Andrew Wincott delivers a fine performance by managing to accurately capture the personality of the many people involved in Lauda's story. He manages to provide an accent and match the speaking style of many of Niki's contemporaries.

I would recommend this book for any F1 fan who wants to know the story of F1 of which Niki Lauda was such an intrinsic part.

A Fitting Tribute to a Champion

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Really enjoyed this book. Wish that there had been more about his life with his families, but that is my only gripe. Fascinating story about an amazing man and of the cutthroat world of F1.

Great man. Good book.

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I thoroughly enjoyed both the book and the reader, although it seemed to take a few chapters to get used to his voice.
a fascinating life of not just a great racing driver but an interesting man off track. I would recommend for both racing and non racing fans as he survived a crash that would no doubt have killed most people but to win and arguably have more business success.a

Very good book

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For any motor racing fan this is a must book absolutely brilliant portrayal of a great man in many ways

Niki Lauda

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