What makes a great rivalry? Maybe this philosophical
quandary can be answered more simply by what does not constitute a rivalry. A rivalry is not one person being readily
defeated time and time again. It is not a skilled person versus and inept one.
No, a rivalry starts with two people whose skill and determination are nearly
equal in every quantifiable way, but one succeeds more frequently to the dismay
of his adversary.
Many get their first taste of rivalry simply by being
birthed. Anyone who didn’t grow up an only child can testify to the constant,
unrelenting urge to compete with their siblings; psychologists have even given
it a clever name, sibling rivalry. Imagine that. At one point or another you
will have been edged out, shown up, or any other combination of directional
words, by your sibling(s). Now, most of us grow up and learn to be happy for
our parents’ other offspring, at least hopefully. But for some, the greatest
rivalries of their lives have yet to emerge, some will see these take on a life
of their own, to be later referred to as legendary.
I dare say rivalry spawned sport. The deep-seated ancestral
urge to prove that one person is better than another has been a building block
of modern society and sport alike. But one sport stands out in my mind as
having the most frequent, and greatest, rivalries in the world,
that sport is Formula 1.
Formula 1’s long and illustrious history is chalked-full of
great driver battles, and yes, you guessed it, rivalries. These rivalries are
innate to the sport of motor racing as it pits man against man in an Olympiad of
nerves and skill. Sure the outcomes were influenced by pit-crews, engineers and
even budgets, but in most of the greatest rivalries Formula 1 has ever seen, it
has come down to just one factor, the driver.
From modern day rivalries, such as teammates Sebastian
Vettel and Mark Weber, to past rivalries, such as the mythical battle between
Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna, which preceded Senna’s death in 1994, there have
been, and always will be, great rivalries within the sport. But, as great as
they may have been, few have compared in magnitude to the bitter rivalry
between James Hunt and Niki Lauda, and their savage battle for the World
Champion title during the 1976 season.
1976 would become a perfect storm for two drivers who were
polar opposites. The season would test both drivers and eventually crown one,
World Champion.
James Hunt began his career racing Austin Minis, he was
eventually picked up by Hesketh to race Formula 3. The team was sponsored solely
by a rich Englishman by the name of Lord Hesketh, a playboy who wanted to have
as much fun as possible; his foray into Formula 3, and eventually Formula 1,
was his opportunity to do just that. The entire team was then labeled playboys
and were often seen drinking champagne at the end of races no matter the
outcome. Hunt had no problem fitting in with the team. After he and a teammate
wrecked both Hesketh sponsored Formula 3 cars, Hesketh rented a Formula 2 car.
After Hesketh deduced that Formula 2 was hardly more expensive than Formula 1,
the team entered the top flight of motor sport.
Most teams viewed the Hesketh team as a joke, thinking that
the team was only out to have a good time, which they were, but they did,
however, have some very apt engineers. Hunt drove an impressive inaugural season
in which his highest finish was second at the United States Grand Prix. This
feat won him a Campbell trophy, awarded for the best performance by a British
driver in 1973.
Hunt drove for the team until they ran out of money in 1975,
after accumulating only a handful of wins, but somehow managing to finish
fourth in the drivers’ championship. This left him without a ride for the
upcoming season. McLaren hesitantly
signed Hunt after losing one of its drivers abruptly to another team.
Hunt’s first win was in 1975, while he was still with
Hesketh, at the Dutch Grand Prix, in which he beat Niki Lauda’s Ferrari
to take the checkered flag, a feat some say showed his driving genius. Lauda
went on to win the World Championship that year, thus began the heated rivalry
between Lauda and Hunt.
Lauda was a self-confident Austrian and arguably everything
Hunt was not. Lauda worked, and bought his way into both Formula 2 and Formula
1, taking out loans along the way to make that happen. He eventually landed at
BRM in a sort of rent-a-ride deal in 1973. After proving himself, he was made
an offer to forgive his loans if he would sign on with BRM for another two
years. He refused and immediately bought his way out of his contract. He was immediately
picked up by none other than Enzo Ferrari for the 1974 season. Lauda quickly went to work
perfecting the lackluster Ferrari into a championship-winning machine. His work
would pay off the following year, in which he would win the World Championship.
By the 1976 season Lauda was a proven winner. His methodical
style had earned him the nickname ‘the computer,’ the stage was set for a
battle of epic proportions.
Hunt began the ’76 season as a talented but unproven pilot.
His driving was often as unpredictable as his life off the track. A known
womanizer, Hunt was best known for his carefree attitude and self-destructive
behavior, but this season would see the source of his fame change forever. 16
races over the course of nine months would redefine Hunt as a racing
legend.
Lauda was favored to win the championship again in 1976, but
as the season would unfold it would become clear that Hunt was a competent and
determined adversary.
Lauda and Hunt’s first close encounter would come at the
Spanish Grand Prix. Hunt initially won the race but was disqualified because his car did not meet specifications, handing
the win to Lauda. However, the ruling was eventually overturned a month later
on appeal, giving Hunt back a substantial amount of points toward the
championship, and awarding him the win in Spain.
Hunt went on to win the French Grand Prix, further widening
the gap between himself and Lauda in the point standings.
The British Grand Prix would see yet another controversy
between Hunt and Lauda. After Hunt won the race in England, Ferrari appealed
his victory, citing the fact that Hunt drove on an access road while returning
to the pits, which was against the rules. This technicality disqualified Hunt
and awarded his rival the win in England.
West Germany would become the stage for which the rivalry
between the drivers would arguable reach its climax. Lauda would crash heavily
while racing in the German Grand Prix, held at the Nurburgring, after
petitioning other drivers to boycott the race, due to its perceived lack of
safety arrangements on several of the faster corners. Lauda’s Ferrari swerved
off the road after reportedly suffering a rear suspension failure. The car then
skidded back onto the road in front of traffic and was struck. The car
immediately burst into flames, Lauda was unable to escape from the tangled
wreckage until several other drivers stopped their cars and pulled him from the
flames. He suffered massive burns to his head and neck while inhaling toxic
fumes that damaged his lungs. Hunt would continue on to win the German Grand
Prix.
Many thought that Lauda would succumb to his wounds after
slipping into a coma, but after being treated for his burns and undergoing
plastic surgery to reconstruct his eyelids Lauda returned to the paddock, a
mere six weeks later.
While Lauda was in the hospital Ferrari boycotted the
Austrian Grand Prix, claiming that the governing body was showing preferential
treatment to Hunt.
Lauda would return for the Italian Grand Prix, finishing in
an astonishing fourth place only several months after his life-threatening
accident in Germany.
After Hunt won the next two races, in Canada and the United
States, he was a scant three points behind Lauda in the drivers’ championship
heading into the Japanese Grand Prix, the last race of the season.
The race was to be the decisive battle between the two
entrenched competitors after Hunt and Lauda qualified second and third
respectively. But on the day of the race rain began coming down in torrents.
The race continued but Lauda, after completing only two laps, felt that the
conditions were unsafe to continue and retired from the race. Hunt, after
suffering a puncture, eventually worked his way back up through the field to
take third place, with first going to none other than Mario Andretti. This
awarded Hunt enough championship points to beat out Lauda by a single point.
This would be the first, and only, drivers’ championship for
Hunt. He would continue racing for
several years to come with McLaren, with sporadic success. He would never again
see the success that he experienced in the ’76 season. He would eventually retire mid-way
through the 1979 season. Hunt would go on to be a successful broadcaster,
providing commentary, and criticism, for Formula 1 years after his racing
career ended. He would, however, suffer a fatal heart attack at age 45.
Lauda would continue on to win the World Championship twice
more in 1977 and 1984, after his initial win in 1975.
An upcoming movie, entitled Rush, is set to portray the
story of the dramatic 1976 season. Director Ron Howard has gone to great length
to ensure the movies authenticity, using cars originally used in the ’76 season
for many of its scenes. And if you don’t enjoy Formula 1 you should go see it anyway…
It’s got Chris Hemsworth (Thor) in it.
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