Niki Lauda

Niki Lauda came from a wealthy Viennese family who wanted him to go into business and refused to fund his racing. He took out bank loans, using his life insurance as security, to buy his way into Formula One, and was for a time so deep in debt that he could not afford to fail. He was not a natural showman but was meticulous about setting up a car, and Ferrari signed him in 1974. He won his first world championship the following year.

On 1 August 1976, at the Nürburgring, his Ferrari crashed and burst into flames. He was trapped in the burning car for about a minute before other drivers pulled him out. He inhaled toxic fumes, his face and scalp were badly burned, and in hospital a priest gave him the last rites.

Forty-two days later, still bandaged and with his burns weeping under his helmet, he finished fourth at Monza. He lost the title that year by a single point after pulling out of the final race in torrential rain in Japan, saying his life was worth more than a championship. Some at Ferrari never forgave him. He won the title again the next year anyway.

He retired in 1979 to run an airline, came back in 1982 and won a third championship in 1984 by half a point. Later he ran the Mercedes team that dominated the sport. He had two kidney transplants and, in 2018, a lung transplant, and died the following year.