DSJ on the other hand, reckoned he did so by stealth and consistency. In other words, “playing the points game”. For the record, Mario Andretti won four races in 1977 to Lauda’s three, although the charismatic Italian/American driver went on to take the title the following summer.
Now the question this is all leading round to is: “If AH was such an enthusiast for Lauda’s way of doing things, why doesn’t he approve of the way in which Nelson Piquet won the 1987 title?” Or, to put it another way: “If Jenks disapproved of the way in which Lauda won in 1977, why doesn’t he disapprove of Piquet’s title success in 1987?”
I suppose it all comes down to some sort of personal “sixth sense”. Lauda won in 1977 against the backdrop of Mario’s efforts — and if there was ever a universally popular Grand Prix ace, it was Andretti. Piquet won his title in a straight fight against Nigel Mansell, his Williams-Honda team-mate.
