Earlier in 2019, the Formula One world lost the legendary Niki Lauda at the age of 70. The Mercedes team was heavily affected by his tragic passing, as was Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas. According to the 6-time world champion, Lauda’s absence is still felt within the Mercedes team and himself.
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“I miss getting the texts. I miss sharing those videos, and I still have a lot of our conversations and every now and then I revisit it,” Hamilton told the media about how he reminisces the Austrian.
“But again, without his support, I probably wouldn’t have made the switch to come to this team. Without his support, I wouldn’t still be with this team. I don’t think this team would have had success without his support.
According to the British driver, Lauda acted as a bridge between Toto Wolff and the Mercedes board, who had very little idea about racing.
How Did Lewis Hamilton React in the Final Days of Niki Lauda
For a long time, Lauda suffered from respiratory conditions and even had a lung transplant, which seemed to suggest that he would make a full recovery. Unfortunately, everything unraveled courtesy a bad case of influenza last Christmas, and it forced another hospital visit.
Tragically, Lauda would succumb to his illness in May 2019 ahead of the Monaco Grand Prix weekend and it was an emotional blow for the team.
As it turns out, Lewis Hamilton was one of the last people to see Lauda before his passing and the British driver could not stop getting teary-eyed in their final meeting.
Hamilton confessed that the two of them often shared videos, and he saw Niki through his biggest dip. Sadly, things took a turn for the worse after the 3-time world champion suffered a fall, which prompted Hamilton to drop everything and see him.
Months later, Lewis Hamilton seized his sixth world championship and one can be sure that Niki Lauda was looking down from heaven and smiling proudly.