Fans, drivers attend funeral of legend Lauda

Hundreds of racing fans have queued in the rain to pay tribute at the funeral of Formula One legend Niki Lauda, who died aged 70.

The three-time world champion died in Zurich last Tuesday after a long stint in hospital.

He is being laid to rest with full state honours at St. Stephen’s Cathedral in his home city of Vienna, Austria. World champion Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes boss Toto Wolff are among those expected to attend.

Members of Lauda’s family accompanied pallbearers carrying his remains into the gothic cathedral in the morning before hundreds of fans who had queued for hours in Vienna were allowed to file past his coffin.

Lauda’s wife and two sons had placed a red and white helmet on top of his casket.

A private requiem mass will take place after the funeral with Hamilton and Austrian racing icon Gerhard Berger among the mourners honouring the F1 icon.

Lauda’s former McLaren teammate Alain Prost will give a reading at the ceremony, while Austria’s president Alexander Van der Bellen and recently ousted chancellor Sebastian Kurz will give short speeches at the end of the service.

Lauda won the world championship in 1975 and 1977 with McLaren and went on to win a third title with Ferrari in 1984, becoming the first and only driver to achieve the feat with both leading teams.

But he is mainly remembered for making a remarkable and quick comeback from a horrific crash at the 1976 German Grand Prix which left him with serious burns and life-changing injuries.

Lauda battled health problems throughout his life as a result of the crash, twice undergoing kidney transplants in 1997 and 2005.

In August 2018, he underwent a lung transplant after a serious lung illness. Lauda was survived by his second wife, Birgit, and their twin children Max and Mia. He had two adult sons, Lukas and Mathias, from his first marriage.