F1 | Audetto remembers Lauda's return after the Nurburgring accident: "he looked like a ghost"

Next August 1st, 45 years will have passed since the terrible accident involving Niki Lauda with his Ferrari in the hellish green of the Nurburgring, clearly not the current layout but the historic one of over 22 kilometres. An authentic challenge for survival reserved by fate for the late former non-executive president of Mercedes, who was remembered by the then Ferrari team manager Daniele Audetto interviewed by the official Formula 1 podcast Beyond The Grid.

In fact, Audetto recalled the test held in Fiorano in which Lauda was the protagonist, 42 days after an accident that could have led to his death.

"When he arrived, it was an image that I will never be able to forget in my life: Niki arrived in Fiorano with his plane that he apparently piloted himself to come to Bologna. He was so pale, full of scars, he had lost his hair, he couldn't close his eyes, he was like a ghost – said Audetto – He was very cold, very determined. She went into Fiorano's office to get her tracksuit but it was very large because she had lost 10 kilos. But if you saw Niki, you couldn't believe it. If you saw his face, his skin... but Ferrari said: 'Let's prepare a third car: Reutemann, Regazzoni, Niki Lauda' ".

Audetto, continuing to talk about Lauda who won two titles at Ferrari in 1975 and 1977 before moving to Brabham, then added: "It was a moment that you have to live to understand how good, how determined, how strong Niki Lauda was. He wasn't just a champion, obviously he won three world championships, but he was an incredible man. He was controlling within himself not only the emotion but also the strength because you can imagine, 40 days before… I saw him in the helicopter and I thought: 'I will never see you alive again'. He raced in Monza and finished fourth? He is incredible. I cannot forget in my whole life and in another life, all these moments".