Niki Lauda wants more risk and spectacle in F1
Niki Lauda reflects on the current image of F1. Moreover, he shares his vision of what the discipline should be: a sport where danger is present, but without neglecting the safety aspect.
According to Niki Lauda, non-executive director of Mercedes, Formula 1 cars should scare the drivers, and only the best among them should be able to push them to their limits.
For the Austrian triple world champion, the single-seaters have become too easy to drive in recent years. In this regard, he joins Kimi Räikkönen, who stated last week that Formula 1 should be more dangerous: When I moved from Formula 2 to Formula 1, I wet myself. It should be for real men and not just for young guys pushing buttons on a steering wheel. Only drivers with the highest driving skills, and I mean skills, should be in Formula 1, said Lauda.
« There is too much control, too many rules, and not enough character. Engineers and constructors must have more freedom. What should be important in Formula 1 is that the cars should be more difficult to drive. We cannot go back, but drivers should have their hand on the clutch and not just drive by pressing buttons as they do now. » he continues.
In this interview, given to the German magazine Bild, the Austrian explains that the risk factor no longer exists in Formula 1. According to him, risk must return to the circuits without compromising safety: « Dangerous, no, but riskier, yes. I’m not saying that safety should be neglected. But for the moment, if the cars were faster, there would be more thrill for the drivers and the spectators, so it would automatically be better. In this way, we need to go back. Any type of change is the worst thing you can do to a sport. I’m talking about artificial elements, like reverse grids or adding weight to the cars as Bernie Ecclestone suggested, that cannot happen. »
