Formula 1 is to pay tribute to the late Niki Lauda with a minute’s silence on the starting grid at this weekend’s Monaco Grand Prix.
Lauda, World Champion in 1975, 1977 and 1984, passed away on Monday, having remained active in the sport up until his death, courtesy of his senior management role at Mercedes.
Several teams have sported messages and slogans in memory of Lauda, with Mercedes team members wearing black armbands, while Sebastian Vettel is running a tribute helmet.
A minute’s silence will be held on the starting grid on Sunday prior to the National Anthem, with all 20 drivers and dignitaries set to be present.
Some of Lauda’s contemporaries and peers will also be present and they will hold a red cap in tribute to the ubiquitous headgear sported by Lauda.
In a statement released on Friday, Formula 1, the FIA, the Automobile Club de Monaco and all 10 teams “want to invite all fans attending the race in the Monaco grandstands to pay their own tribute to the driver who won here in the Principality in 1975 and 1976, during the in-lap of this the 90th edition of the race.
“They can either wear a red cap, display a message on a banner, or simply applaud, while those watching from the yachts in the harbour can sound their klaxons, anything appropriate to honour the memory of one of the sport’s true heroes.”
