All language subtitles for Lauda Greatest Racing Rivals

[Sound of racing - Music]

Narrator: Twenty-five cars line
up to start the last Grand Prix

of the most extraordinary season
of the history of Formula One.

Announcer: This is the
clincher, the world championship

decider of the climax--

Narrator: As heavy rain pours
down, two drivers prepare for

the race that will decide
which one of them

becomes world champion.

Announcer: James Hunt in the
McLaren, Niki Lauda in the

Ferrari. The flag is
down, they're off!

Narrator: The two men could not
be more different.

Britain's James Hunt is a fast,
flamboyant showman who parties

as hard as he races.

James is the driver of all
time.

The gentleman driver, the
flamboyant, that has the nature

of talent to go fast in a car.

Tell us what happened.

There's a race going on, dear
boy.

Narrator: His rival is the
steamy Austrian, Niki Lauda, who

drives with cold, hard logic.

Niki was the scientist, the
counterpoint, he was the

ultimate, the first, really,
really technical driver.

[Racing sounds]

Announcer: This is the story of
Formula One's legendary battle,

told by those who witnessed it
firsthand.

James got out of the car,
pulled off his crash helmet,

started to rant and rave at
them.

They are no friends.

Basically, they are trying to
win, and friendship is not the

case.

Announcer: Now, wheel to wheel.

The tension was just amazing.

They all think they're the
quickest.

They can't imagine that they're
not the fastest racing driver in

the world.

His face was in a mask of
blood, and you think, my god,

how can he race.

Narrator: With previously unseen
footage and exclusive

interviews, this film charts the
epic duel that changed

the lives of both men, and the
sport, forever.

You couldn't make it up.

You could not make up the
season, it was just

unbelievable.

[Racing sounds - wreck sounds -
dramatic music]

Event Announcer: This is going
to be a fantastic race!

[Music- fans chanting]

Narrator: Fans line the streets
to see Austrian Niki Lauda

crowned world champion of 1975.

Lauda drives a Ferrari, the
greatest racing car constructor

in the world.

But Lauda's thoughts and those
of his team are already turning

to next season.

Ferrari's team manager, Daniele
Audetto, is confident that Lauda

will retain his crown in 1976.

Niki Lauda was a very
professional driver.

He can see the strategy, he can
really understand when was the

moment to push a little bit
more, a little bit less, and was

very fast, extremely fast and so
consistent.

[70's stye music]

Narrator: But in Britain, a new
challenger has emerged.

James Hunt has signed for the
British team McLaren.

Hunt is better known for his
romantic exploits

than his driving.

McLaren team manager, Alastair
Caldwell had his reservations

about Hunt joining the team.

The '76 season got off to a
very interesting start for us.

James didn't even have a drive
and we didn't have a driver, so

we were thrown into bed with
him.

He rang me up and said, I think
I'm your new driver, and I said,

I guess you are.

One of the first things we
noticed that when the car was

switched off on the grid, he was
so wound up, the whole car was

shaking with his nervous energy.

He was always competitive, and
always very focused on something

he wanted to do, be it
budgerigars as a teenager, or

train sets or scalex tricks or
something, as a small boy.

James was a sportsman, through
and through.

He never played team games, his
sports were all solitary, and he

was very single-minded, and he
knew what he wanted, he wanted

to be world champion.

[70's style music]

Narrator: The 1976 season
consisted of 16 races over 10

months, running from January
to October at locations

across the world.
Ferrari and McLaren were

the leading contenders.

Ferrari are my arch enemies,
Daniele Audetto was their team

manager, so I was at war
with him.

Ferrari is easily much bigger,
much longer than McLaren.

We could compete with them on
money, but we could compete with

them on style, and we can
compete with them in efficiency.

They were a lot bigger team, and
they were incredibly Italian.

I think we respect each other
professionally, but I don't have

a beer with him in the pub, if
you want an example.

Race one is in the scorching
heat of the Interlagos Circuit

in Brazil.

In the thick of the action is
pit lane reporter, Peter

Windsor.

In the distance, you'd hear an
engine note and four minutes

later, the car would reach you
and all four wheels would be off

the ground, and you'd think,
wow, this is Formula One.

Narrator: Lauda has seen off
Hunt's challenge, he collects

nine points to start
building his score.

Point scoring system was
disarmingly simple.

Nine points for a win, six for
second, four for third, down to

sixth place where you got one
point.

We didn't know it was gonna
become so complicated.

Narrator: Lauda knows how to get
the best out of his team.

Niki Lauda had really learned
how to make Ferrari

work for him.

An awful lot of drivers, very
good drivers, went to Ferrari

and never quite made it work.

It had a terrifying presence of
Enzo Ferrari, with his dark

glasses, looming over the whole
thing.

[Speaking in foreign language]

Narrator: After nearly five
decades in motor racing, the

78-year-old Enzo Ferrari
rules his family business

with an iron fist.

If you win with them,
Ferrari's Ferrari.

A completely different ball game
than all the British teams of

the time.

When you lose, you get a lot of
pressure.

So, in Ferrari, you always had
the winning and staying or

losing and losing the job.

[Music]

Narrator: And Lauda delivers,
pulling further and further and

further ahead of Hunt
with every race.

But at the fourth round at
Spain, Lauda has worrying news

for Audetto.

Daniele, you have a problem.

What happened?

I fell out from my tractor in my
house in my garden, and I broke

two or three ribs.

I said, my god, two or three
ribs?

[Engine reving]

James had this approach to it
all which was well, he's no

problem, halfway through the
race, his ribs are gonna give up

and I'll pass him and win the
race.

That's exactly what happened.

[Music]

His first win for McLaren.

You're still extremely fast,
how do you do it?

Big balls.

[Music]

Narrator: But Hunt's victory is
short-lived.

In the scrutiniring area
afterwards, there was this

unheard of situation, really,
where the car was disqualified,

and that was something that
nobody in Formula One was really

prepared for.

Narrator: Teams were allowed to
modify thier car to suit each

circuit, but they must work
within strict regulations.

One centimeter in a Formula
One car makes such a

big difference.

Narrator: In Spain, Hunt's car
had been found to be just over

a centimeter too wide.

Before the race, the car was
measured by the organizers, and

every day, they didn't say
anything.

And I'm pretty sure they were
talking to Ferrari because there

was a bit of a kindred spirit
there, the Spanish-speaking,

Catholic country and the Ferrari
was saying shh, don't, keep it,

say nothing.

I was never involved with the
scrutiniring, I was involved

with my scrutiniring with my
cars that they weren't, that my

car respect under the same
rules, otherwise Ferrari

kill me.

Narrator: Hunt's points are
given to Lauda, and it looks

like McLaren will leave
Spain empty-handed.

We immediately appealed
because we thought the penalty

didn't fit the crime, it was
like being hung for stealing a

loaf of bread.

They pretend in the appeal to
say that this difference was not

affecting the performance
of the car.

Bullshit.

Had you any idea the car might
be thrown out?

No, I didn't know, I just
drive the damn thing.

Narrator: Although their teams
are at war, both drivers are

trying to steer clear of
politics, but despite their

different characters, their
passion for racing is a bond.

Well, Niki, he spent time in
our pits, was always visiting

us, and his grasp of English
was very good.

And he was always known as The
Rat, because he looked

like a rat.

So, he was called Rat to his
face.

James said, hello, Rat.

They meshed well because they
weren't actually directly in

competition from looks.

So, there are no friends.

They are all trying to win, and
friendship is not the case, but

some guys are more sympathetic
than the others, and James was

certainly one I would drink a
beer after a race, because he

was a nice guy.

Even high competition amongst
each other, but James was one of

the better ones.

[Music]

Narrator: The wild side of 70's
Formula One is revealed in this

recently discovered footage
of an after-race party.

Hunt is the star, with Lauda in
the wings.

For sure Niki was in awe of
James's good looks

and personality.

James was the good-looking
playboy and Niki was the small

Austrian who looked like a rat.

They were good friends, though
on the race track, of course no

chord are given because that's
the, you know, the race driver

persona can change completely
once on the race track all of

this is forgotten.

All successful racing drivers
are invested with an

enormous ego.

They all think they're the
quickest.

They can't imagine that they're
not the fastest racing driver in

the world.

To admit to anything else but
that would be ludicrous.

Niki and James both thought they
were the best racing driver in

the world.

Narrator: As the season
approaches halfway, and even

when the points from Spain are
reinstated, it's Lauda who still

dominates with double Hunt's
points.

[Music]

Anouncer: This is Brands Hatch,
just outside London in the Kent

countryside, and today is
British Grand Prix day.

The biggest day on Britain's
motorsport calendar.

Narrator: The race is sold out.

Britain is in [unintelligible]

A record 80,000 spectators fill
the circuit and all eyes are on

one man.

There is drama right from the
start.

Clay Regazzoni managed to
drive into the back wheel of

Lauda, so the two Ferraris
actually collided, complete

mayhem began.

James's car landed on
the left front corner, but being

a McLaren, it didn't brake, and
being James with two pints of

adrenaline, he didn't stop, he
charged off with the front

wheels splayed out, like this.

Announcer: Drivers who escaped
the pileup are

soon flagged down and the race
called to a halt.

James was immediately
thinking, I've got to get back

to the pits and have the car
mended.

I never hit anybody.

I stopped on the left, and next
car came piling into me.

Tell us what happened.

There's a race going on, dear
boy.

Narrator: The race has ground to
a complete halt.

The organizers want to restart
immediately, but Hunt's damaged

car is not on the grid.

And in the chaos in the pit
road, he comes running up to me,

I said, what's the car like?

He said, oh, the car's
destroyed, the car's a

write-off.

I wandered down to have a look
at the racecar and realized the

racecar was repairable, that
James's explanation that it was

a write-off was not true.

Narrator: Caldwell and McLaren
will have to act quickly, there

are only minutes to spare.

It was thought that James Hunt
would not be allowed to take the

restart, and the crowd got
behind James as a driver they

wanted to see in that restart in
a way that you don't see

outside a soccer match.

[Audience clapping in unison

The slow handclap which ran
from the start/finish line all

the way up to Paddock Bend and
all the way around South Bank

and round to Westfield Bend, and
then it became boos and then it

became catcalls.

[Audience chanting, "We want
Hunt!"]

Then, the marshals had to rush
onto the track to pick up beer

cans and coke cans and even
bottles.

I've never seen at a motor race
quite such an extraordinary

display from the public.

We want James Hunt, we want
James Hunt, it was a mini riot

that was going on, which was not
very British.

McLaren were delighted that
there was this confusion and

delay because it gave them a
little bit more time to mend

James Hunt's car.

Anouncer: When they return to
the grid, the crowd goes wild.

Now, James Hunt is certain to
start again.

Well, Ferraris, you could see
their faces fell because they

knew instantly what had
happened, that we had

fixed the racecar.

And what I remember most of
all, actually, in all that, is

Niki Lauda in a rage, getting
back into his car, because he's

suddenly realized how much time
had passed and that McLaren had

had time to repair their racecar
again and get it onto the grid,

and he was absolutely livid.

Anouncer: Back to the grid, and
off they go again.

Narrator: After another chaotic
start, Lauda storms ahead, with

Hunt chasing hard on his tail.

[Racing sounds]

Announcer: The battle is really
on now between Niki Lauda

and James Hunt.

Niki Lauda in the Ferrari
leading James Hunt, cheered on

by the British crowd, gradually
winding him in.

As we went past half distance,
cars go round Paddock Bend, down

to the bottom of the hill, up
the hill and behind the tree, as

the cars then came back into our
sight, the McLaren was in front.

[Music]

And that's when the crowd
erupted.

[Music - Audience cheering]

Announcer: James Hunt wins the
British Grand Prix.

And we did win the British
Grand Prix fair and square.

James, how much
does this victory mean to you?

Nine points, $20,000 and a lot
of happiness.

How remarkable--

Can you give me a cigarette?

Can I grab that cigarette off
you?

Thanks.

[Cheering]

Narrator: But Ferrari is about
to spoil the party.

I think Ferrari appealed
straight away after the race

that we didn't comply with the
rules.

We couldn't work out what
current rule they thought we

hadn't complied.

The rule says, and I am
surprised but not surprised that

Alastair doesn't know what the
rules, that is another example,

no?

That you have to complete the
racecourse even if the race is

suspended.

Narrator: Instead of completing
the lap as the race was stopped,

Hunt had taken a shortcut
back to the pits.

In cutting behind the Paddock,
he didn't complete the race

distance, simple in that.

Narrator: For now, the race
winning points are Hunt's, but

the result hangs in the balance,
waiting on a hearing scheduled

for months later.

[Chopping sound of helicopter
blades]

Narrator: he next race is at the
notorious Nürburgring

in Germany.

The Nürburgring was a
frightening, but fantastic

racetrack.

It's 14.7 miles around, goes up
and down thousands of feet, it's

got hundreds of corners, it was
just a hostile direct to fast

racing cars, which is part of
its appeal.

Every time I see this it
frightens me, because there's no

barriers on the right-hand side,
there's just a rock face and

trees.

I think if I were to walk along
it then I would be horrified,

I'd never drive around the place
again.

A quick glance at the green, you
probably experience more in 7

minutes and 6 or 7 seconds than
most people have experienced in

all of their life.

It was a pre-health and safety
era.

Motor racing was dangerous, it
said so on the back of every

ticket, and it was part of what
it was.

Narrator: Nearly every year in
Formula One,

a driver had been killed.

By this stage, I'd lost a
brother in a racing car

accident. So, after that,
I thought, I won't

befriend racing drivers, I'll
have them as people who work

for me, but I won't become their
friend, because I don't want

to go to their funeral as a

friend, I want to go to the
funeral as their team manager.

Narrator: For Lauda, the ring
isn't worth the risk.

He calls a meeting of drivers
in an attempt to have it

stopped, but his fellow drivers
don't agree.

He loses by one vote, and now
has no choice but to race.

Sunday before the race, I
walked to the Paddock up to the

pits, and there was an autograph
guy, German guy who wanted an

autograph, which was normal and
I signed the autograph for him,

and he said, put the date on
there, which nobody ever said

before to me, and I said, why
the hell do you want the date?

Because it could be the last
one.

Narrator: For the first time in
the season, it is raining on

race day, but the track is so
long that not all of it is wet.

The choice of tires will be
crucial.

Wet tires, they're quite tall,
they've got big tread on them

like a road tire, unlike the
slicks, which are smooth, no

tread at all.

[Engines reving]

Like, most of the field, Lauda
starts the race on wet weather

tires, but quickly discovers
he's losing too much speed on

every dry section of the track.

After the first lap, many
drivers come into the pits to

change the tires, it was
really chaos.

The pit stop was a little bit
slow, and when Niki started for

the second lap with the sleek,
he was about maybe in

tenth position.

For a driver, it is not good,
psychologically, to go race in a

sleek on a track that is too
dangerous because it puts you in

a condition that you are afraid.

When he restart on the second
lap, he was not the "cool Niki"

that we know.

I went out of the pits, then I
drove about 18 kilometers around

the circuit and then I crashed.

[Dramati music]

[Squeeling tires]

Narrator: His helmet
comes off in the impact,

and he is trapped in a
fire burning over

400 degrees centigrade.

It will be nearly a minute

before Lauda is pulled
from the flames.

[Dramatic music]

I have no memory of the
accident at all because I hit so

hard, and I was on fire so long
that there's no memory

whatsoever, it's blocked
out, and the memory came

back in the first hospital, or
second hospital.

[Thematic sounds]

Narrator: Amongst the drivers
who arrived just after the crash

is James Hunt.

We weren't aware that Niki was
in trouble because there were

racing drivers at the scene, and
he was conscious and talking to

everybody, so when drivers came
back to the pits and said, oh,

Niki's burnt, but he's okay,
he's fine.

Narrator: With the
track cleared, the race

is restarted, and Hunt
is victorious.

He's now just 14 points behind
Lauda.

Then the news came through
that he was gravely ill, so,

yeah, just cast a shadow over
the whole thing.

[Dramatic notes]

I can remember it now, I
remember thinking, he isn't

gonna live.

And I felt absolutely
horrendous.

I felt like the bottom had
fallen out of my world.

When we arrived at the
hospital, Niki was little by

little losing conscious.

[Dramatic notes]

Narrator: Whilst Lauda battles
for his life, Ferrari are

already looking for
another driver.

So, I was speaking with
Ferrari all the time about the

accident, and Ferrari said to
me, you know, Ferrari will live

with or without Niki.

You don't need to stay in the
hospital, you know, we need you

to go back and find another
driver, because if Nikki will

not drive, Ferrari will not
stop.

Narrator: Once he had been the
protégé of Enzo Ferrari, but for

Enzo, giving up on the world
championship is not an option.

Press and the public like to
concentrate on the drivers being

the most important member of the
team, but it's not at all.

The drivers are very much
replaceable.

And the unfortunate idea of the
two McLaren drivers being

involved in a motorway accident
together and dying, do you think

that their team would be on the
back row of the grid in

the next race?

No, they won't be, because
they'll just hire two more hot

shoes and they'll be right up
there.

[Racing sounds]

Narrator: Hunt takes full
advantage in the next two races,

closing the gap to
just two points.

Lauda has second and third
degree burns to his face and

hands, part of his scalp has
been burnt away.

He has lost half of one ear and
his lungs are barely working.

But I suddenly was aware of
through the accident, how

quickly you can die.

I remember my wife coming and
she burst in tears, so she was

very much affected when she saw
me there, and I said, shit, you

know, if she's crying then I
must be in a bad state.

But in racing, the risk and
taking chances was exactly the

same as it was before because
this was part of the game.

[Group chatter]

Announcer: Just 40 days after
doctors had given up hope, and a

priest had knelt at his
bedside, the Austrian

ace climbed back into the
cockpit of his glaring red

Ferrari. His friends and
colleagues claim that

his miracle recovery had

more to do with his iron will
than with master surgery.

Narrator: With 5 races left and
everything still to play for,

Lauda is back.

Niki Lauda was recovering so
fast that he proposed to Ferrari

to race him at Manza.

And Ferrari said, no, don't,
because if we lose the

championship in the end of the
year, you don't start so early

because then we can say you had
an accident.

And this was exactly the
opposite what I was thinking.

Narrator: At Lauda's side is his
wife, Marlene, who has been with

him throughout his recovery, but
Manza is the last place she

wants him to be.

[Crowd chanting]

Narrator: Manza, Italy, home to
Ferrari and their fans.

After coming within seconds of
being burnt to death, Lauda

returns to a hero's welcome.

When we went to Manza, the
focus was on Niki, 110%.

We took him inside the garage,
he took out the balaclava, and

it was really, his face was a
mask of blood and they said, my

god, how can he race?

[Thematic notes]

It was pouring with rain on
his return.

This is the Nürburgring carrying
on, almost.

You know, the gloom of the
Nürburgring.

Is there any psychological
aftereffects from this accident

for you at all?

No, I don't think so.

Everything looks good.

Narrator: Lauda prepares to go
back on the track to race

against the clock for his
place on the starting line.

The pressure was on.

The Ferrari called, should they
race, should they not race?

It was huge pressure on me for
that particular race.

Narrator: The physical
scars have begun to heal,

but the mental ones run deeper.

I came to the circuit, wanted
to drive, but couldn't drive.

And then, suddenly, I was hit by
the whole four weeks, accident

problems, all these kind of
things, and I just

couldn't drive.

So, I did one slow lap, went
back into the pit, I said, I go

back there and then drive for
myself.

[Thematic music with racing
sounds]

[Thematic music with racing
sounds]

And at the end of the day, I
was the quickest Ferrari, and

was right back like before.

Narrator: Just before the race
begins, Hunt's team, McLaren,

are having problems
of their own.

Their fuel has been ruled to be
illegal.

We were made to pump the fuel
out of their cars, fill up with

standard fuel at the racetrack
and start on the back

of the grid.

So, we were shafted by the
Italians.

But this is very, they're very
good at this.

So, the Italian Mafioso managed
to get us on the back row

of the grid.

How was it feeling, fighting
against Niki again?

Hard work.

When he first met him, James
said straight away, he said,

Niki, you're the only person I
know who can be in a fire and

come out better looking.

For Niki, this race is life or
death, you know.

I finish and go in the points,
or I lose the championship

here in Manza.

Narrator: Stuck at the back of
the grid, Hunt makes a charge on

the first lap, but as
he tries to fight his

way through, he almost
immediately spins

out of the race.

[Audience cheering]

Announcer: The Italian crowd
cheers for only two things

today, the Ferrari party,
or their most serious

challenger to the world
championship in trouble.

Here, it is the latter.

Poor James, he didn't enjoy
the walk back past the

Italian fans.

Well, actually, thinking about
it, knowing James,

he probably loved it.

Lauda's wife, Marlene could
only watch.

[Music]

[Music]

[Music]

Incredibly, Niki finished not
only the race, but finished

fourth, and that was something
incredible.

[Music]

[Music]

[Music]

Narrator: Hunt and McLaren jet
off to prepare for the Canadian

Grand Prix, but their
troubles are far from over.

In Paris, Ferrari presents its
case for overturning McLaren's

win at the British Grand Prix.

There were gentlemen in
blazers wearing old school ties

who were meant to decide on
matters of whether people should

be disqualified, drivers should
start or not start.

None of them really seemed to
have read the rulebook very

clearly.

These three old boys turned up
and were introduced to the

saintly Niki before they went
in, which was all part of

Ferrari's, you know,
psychological warfare.

So, they all went in going, oh,
we've touched the hand of Saint

Niki.

Narrator: The verdict goes
against McLaren, and nine vital

points are deducted.

So, we didn't win the British
Grand Prix, and there's no

appeal to this appeal.

That's it, that's the end of it.

Narrator: With so many points
lost, and only three races to

go, the odds are heavily
against Hunt.

I decided that y'know, we
couldn't possibly win the world

championship from this position
now, without these points, and

stopped trying to control
James's excesses, which became

quite excessive.

[Music]

We were staying in a great big
motel on the side of the freeway

in Toronto, and there was a live
band playing in the bar, and the

lead singer was a bit like
Stevie Nicks, blonde little

dynamite creature, so James made
us to pull her.

We had to get up early in the
morning to go out to the warm up

and he came down, you know,
disheveled with this lady,

obviously, anyway, disheveled
might be the best way of

putting it.

Staggered off to the racetrack,
won the race!

[Music]

Sex, the breakfast of champions.

In this particular case, it
worked out.

[Music-Audience cheering]

Narrator: The winning candidate
gets nine vital points, and in

the next race, he
remains on form.

He storms through to another
victory and takes the pole

again, but Lauda is still ahead
by three points.

After ten months and 15 races,
the championship has come down

to the very last Grand Prix.

For the first time ever, the
final race is in Japan.

Excitement about the season has
reached fever pitch.

Only three points separate Hunt
and Lauda.

This will be the first race ever
to be broadcast live by

satellite across the world.

Determined to win it, so, in
order to do that, the best thing

for me to do is to win the race
here.

Narrator: But on race day, the
weather threatens to bring the

season to a premature end.

[Thunder]

All the drivers got together
and said, this is ridiculous,

and not only was Niki Lauda
saying that,

James Hunt also said, this race
should not take place.

James and Niki were both on
the Drivers Safety Committee, so

they were in the tower, arguing
that the race shouldn't be held.

So, we had this confrontation, I
was saying to him, you know, if

we don't race, James, you can't
win the world championship.

Oh, no, chap, we can't race,
it's too dangerous.

It's all very, you know, very
above board, a bit irritating

when you're trying to win the
world championship, and you

can't, obviously, when you don't
race.

[Thematic notes]

Narrator: The race has now been
delayed for nearly two hours.

The rain continues to fall, but
the race organizers have reached

a decision.

And before then, the race
director came in and said, we

have to start, and we all looked
up and said, excuse me?

It's the same rain as before,
why?

Because of television.

In two hours it will be too
dark, and we have the satellite

TV that cost a lot of money, and
we have a contract with the

organizer to at least start the
race, otherwise, we all lose

money, the teams, the drivers, I
lose the money if we don't at

least start the race.

Announcer: So, this race
is going ahead, the

drivers are going out now for an
exploratory lap, but I've never

seen conditions quite like this.

Narrator: The drivers have been
forced onto the starting grid by

the demands of the vast TV
audience they have created.

In Britain, it's three in the
morning.

Hunt's parents and friends are
watching the live satellite

broadcast in a TV studio, but
his sister, Sally, is at home,

glued to the radio.

We switched on the radio very
early in the morning, and I can

remember walking around the
house with the radio clamped to

my ear, and the tension was just
amazing.

Announcer: It's James Hunt who's
first to move, Hunt leads.

Who has been eating his spray.

The conditions are even worse.

Narrator: Hunt takes the lead,
but for other drivers following,

the water's spray is dangerously
reducing visibility to near

zero, and all the cars are
slipping and sliding in the

heavy rain.

Announcer:Brambilla takes the
lead, but Hunt comes back,

and Brambilla spins!

Hunt's clear, Hunt's retaken the
lead!

This is sensational world
champions.

Hunt leads the race, Niki Lauda
has pulled into the pits.

Niki stopped because, you
know, it's too dangerous, I

stop.

Announcer: So, this
extraordinary 1976 season has

taken another twist. Lauda
is out of this final race.

But it seems it's not because of
any problem with his car.

I tell him, Niki, what do you
have to say that you have a

technical failure or something?

No, he said to me, tell them
that it is too dangerous

to race.

[Thunder]

When a normal racing driver is
not affected by an accident, you

have reserves, so it means your
level of risk taking is higher

than you, like, in my case, you
just come out of death, and had

everything happening to you, and
then a couple of races later,

you have to face this more
difficult situation with the

water and the rain and risk
going up.

And, at that time, I was not
prepared to take this extra risk

because of the accident.

And, emotionally, for me, it
was impossible to tell Nikki,

you know, to go back to race,
because you see, his eyes, was

really terrorize.

Narrator: Lauda is out of the
race, but he was still become

world champion if Hunt fails
to score enough points.

[Music, racing sounds]

And then the rain stopped and
the water disappeared on the

circuit, and the circuit got
better by coincidence,

basically, and, but I was not
racing, and I still would do the

same today.

Narrator: Hunt must finish third
or higher to take the

championship. But as the
track dries out,

his wet weather tires
begin to overheat.

One of the techniques you
could do was cool them down by

running in puddles deliberately
on the straights.

So, we put this sign out, cool
tires, but James refused to

acknowledge or do this.

Cool the tires!

>Cool the tires!

And he's down the middle of the
road, oblivious.

Eventually, he wore all the
rubber off them, all the canvas,

down to the air, and he had two
flat tires.

And with five laps to go, he
came into the pits.

We thought that perhaps it was
all going to go wrong for James.

Announcer: So, finally, James
Hunt does come into the pits

with five laps to
go here at Fuji.

This could spell the end of
James--

Because he had two flat tires,
we couldn't jack the car

up very well.

So, the car was too low to get
the jack underneath.

So, the mechanic and I had to
pick up the left front

of the car.

So, it took us, like, 24 seconds
or something to

change the tires.

Announcer: Hunt is rejoined in
fifth place,

not enough for title.

Narrator: With the championship
seemingly beyond his grasp,

Hunt, the sportsman, throws
caution to the wind and makes

his charge for the finish line.

Announcer: See a McLaren passing
a Ferrari, so Hunt is ahead

of Regazzoni now!

The Lotus, Mario Andretti is
going to win this race, but

Hunt's on his way to third, and
four championship points, just

enough, by one point, to make
him world champion.

James Hunt finishes third,
James Hunt is champion

of the world.

[Cheering]

We were all whizzing about,
sort of cheering, and excited

because James was now world
champion.

Narrator: But right now, Hunt
himself has no idea

the championship is his.

Now, James Hunt came into the
pits in a rage, and as the

McLaren team gathered round,
James got out of the car, pulled

off his crash helmet, started to
rant and rave at them and Teddy

Mayer was holding up three
fingers, saying, James, you're

third, you're a champion!

And gradually, the penny
dropped.

There was a lot of excitement,
and does he know yet, and is it

true, and then suddenly, it was
true, and he was world champion.

Narrator: Hunt has won, despite
ignoring team words.

I was not best pleased with
him, you won't see me in any of

the photographs, I'm nowhere
near him, because I just wanna

punch him in the mouth.

[Laughing]

Even though he is the world
champion.

[Audience cheering]

Yeah, well, you know, I feel
really sorry for Niki, but quite

honestly, you know, I wanted to
win the championship, and I felt

that I deserved to win the
championship.

I also felt that Niki deserved
to win the championship, and I

just wished we could have
shared it.

I said at the same time, at
the time there, if anybody

should get the championship,
then I'm happy it's James,

because I liked him, and we were
not buddies, but we were at

least empathic, so I think we
took care of each other from the

heart in a very nice way, which,
in these days the heart was

never shown in Formula One.

[Music]

Hunt, who came into Heathrow
early today said, I don't think

I've stopped celebrating since
the race.

Well, we met James coming
home, there was James looking

slightly dazed, you could
probably say completely out of

it, he'd drunk quite a lot on
the way home.

Very tired and somewhat
hungover, thank you very much.

[Laughter]
What was the party like?

It was long, but quite good.

And we all went off
to a party, and I have to say,

my memory's a bit hazy
after that,

because, I think I drunk more

champagne for breakfast than I
ever had before.

Narrator: Hunt and Lauda would
never have such a close race

again, but the legacy
of the first superstars

of Grand Prix helped
shape Formula One

into the global TV sport it
is today.

The excitement of that season
meant that no self-respecting

country could allow its
television service not to cover

Formula One properly.

So, suddenly, Formula One was
available everywhere.

We had James and Niki coming
out of this as these two titans

of their time.

Who could've predicted that?

It was just the most amazing
season.

In life, you need a certain
amount of luck.

The question is how much luck
you need.

I think the luck is the meaning.

I think human beings can do much
more for themself then, I think.

We have to remember only the
good things.

It was a good fight.

I don't think I thought of it
as my little brother although

that's what he was.

I just thought, oh, it's James
who I love, and my friend, and

he's achieved what he wants to
achieve.

That was very exciting.

How do you want to do it?

Do you want to go a steady paced
70 years, or do you wanna go

flat out for 10 years and then
relax?

And I rather like doing it that
way.

At the time, we said, if you
wrote this as a film script,

people will say, that's
ridiculous.

You gotta have something
believable, you can't have the

farcical story.

But the farcical story is true.

[Music]

[Music]

[Music]