Motorsport · 1976 · Nürburgring, West Germany
Lauda's Forty-Two-Day Return
Given last rites after a fire left him with severe burns and damaged lungs, Niki Lauda is back on the grid six weeks later with his wounds still open.
42
Days out after crash
4th, Italian GP
Comeback result
2nd (by 1 point)
Championship finish, 1976
Niki Lauda's Ferrari crashed and burst into flames on the Nürburgring's notoriously dangerous Nordschleife circuit during the 1976 German Grand Prix. He was trapped in the burning car for almost a minute before other drivers pulled him free, with severe burns to his face and head and toxic fumes that damaged his lungs and blood. A priest administered last rites in hospital while his condition was considered critical.
Six weeks later, on 12 September 1976, Lauda was on the grid at Monza for the Italian Grand Prix, bandages still fresh and blood visibly seeping through the dressings beneath a specially adapted helmet. He finished fourth, scoring points and keeping his championship fight with James Hunt alive.
He lost that year's title to Hunt by a single point at the season finale in Japan, and won two more championships later in his career. Getting back into a car six weeks after being read his last rites is the part nobody has been able to file alongside anything else.
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