The race track in Spielberg has the Lauda curve again

The first corner of the circuit in Styria now bears the name of the man who has had a lasting impact on Formula 1, and not just in his home country.

Lauda's widow Birgit and his son Lukas as well as his long-time companion Helmut Marko were present when the starting curve was officially christened on Sunday morning. Marko, motorsport consultant for track owner Red Bull, symbolically presented a sculpture that corresponds to the layout of the Red Bull Ring.

“It means a lot to us, of course also for the family, because it would have meant so much to Niki,” said Birgit Lauda: “There was a story about a curve that he already had one, and then it basically became him taken away. At that time he was quite disappointed and sad."

When the track was still called A1-Ring, one corner was already named after Lauda, but with the takeover by Red Bull, most of the corners were given sponsor names. “In the course of redesigning the ring, it somehow got lost and that bothered Niki,” said Marko: “I told him: 'You'll get a curve again'. I think now is the right moment to document in a dignified manner the myth, the personality and, above all, the contributions to motorsport that Niki Lauda has made."

Lauda became world champion three times (1975, 1977, 1984), and also achieved legendary status through the fire accident at the Nürburgring in 1976 and his quick return to the cockpit. To this day he is the only Austrian to win a Formula 1 race in Spielberg (1984). After his active career, he remained in Formula 1 in various roles. Until recently, as head of the supervisory board, he was instrumental in the upswing of the Mercedes works team, which has dominated the sport since 2014. Lauda died in May at the age of 70.

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The race track in Spielberg has the Lauda curve again

The first race in Austria since Niki Lauda's death is all about the late Formula 1 legend, and since Sunday the three-time world champion has officially been part of the Grand Prix in Spielberg again.

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