Niki Lauda quotes from Rush (2013)

Niki Lauda

Twenty-five drivers start every season in Formula One, and each year two of us die. What kind of person does a job like this? Not normal men, for sure. Rebels, lunatics, dreamers. People who are that desperate to make a mark, and are prepared to die trying. My name is Niki Lauda, and racing people know me for two things. The first is my rivalry with him. [frame in on James Hunt] I don't know why it became such a big thing. We were just drivers busting each other's balls. To me this is perfectly normal, but other people saw it differently. That whatever it was between us went deeper. The other thing I'm remembered for is what happened on 1st August 1976, when I was chasing him like an asshole…

Niki Lauda

Of course he didn't listen to me. For James, one world title was enough. He had proved what he needed to prove. To himself and anyone who doubted him. And two years later, he retired. When I saw him next in London, seven years later, me as a champion again, him as broadcaster, he was barefoot on a bicycle with a flat tire, still living each day like his last. When I heard he died age 45 of a heart attack, I wasn't surprised. I was just sad. People always think of us as rivals but he was among the very few I liked and even fewer that I respected. He remains the only person I envied.

Niki Lauda

Your fan belt is loose.

My what?

Lauda

And when you brake your foot goes all the way down, which means there's air in the system.

Anything else?

Lauda

No... Apart from the rear brakes are worn out, the front right tire's a bit soft, which explains why you're weaving so much.

How can you tell?

Lauda

My ass.

Sorry?

Lauda

God gave me an okay mind, but a really good ass, which can feel everything in a car.

Niki Lauda

There's no need to drive fast. Just increases the percentage of risk. We're not in a hurry, I'm not being paid. Right now it's zero incentive or reward. Why would I drive fast?

Because I'm asking you to.

Lauda

And do you always get what you want?

Yeah. Usually. [suddenly pushed back against her seat as Niki steps on the gas]

James Hunt

I feel responsible for what happened.

Niki Lauda

You were.

Hunt

I swayed the room and the race should never have went ahead.

Lauda

You did, but trust me. Watching you win those races while I was fighting for my life. You were equally responsible for getting me back in the car.

What did your wife say when she saw your face?

Niki Lauda

She said, "Sweetie, you don't need a face to drive, you just need a right foot." [reporters laugh]

I'm being serious. Do you think your marriage can survive... with the way you look now?

Lauda

And I am being serious too... [points index finger at him] **** you! Press conference over. [storms out of room]