James Hunt

British · 1973–1979
VS

Niki Lauda

Austrian · 1971–1985
Race H2H
39 49
88 shared
Qualifying H2H
31 56
87 shared
Championship record
1
World titles
3
0
Runner-up
1
1
Top-3 finishes
4
P1
Best championship
P1
Finished ahead in the standings: 2 · 4
1973 P8 1974 P4 1975 P1 1976 P1 1977 P1 1978 P4
Career totals
James Hunt Niki Lauda
Championships
1
3
Wins
10
25
Poles
14
24
Podiums
23
54
Fastest laps
0
0
Career points
179
420.5
Starts
93
173
Rate-adjusted · per start
James Hunt Niki Lauda
Win rate
10.8%
14.5%
Podium rate
24.7%
31.2%
Pole rate
15.1%
13.9%
Points / start
1.9
2.4
Avg grid
P7.0
P8.4
Avg finish
P11.5
P10.8
Finish rate
52.7%
56.1%
Rates reward peak form; totals reward longevity. Avg grid/finish: lower is better.
Why they retired
James Hunt Niki Lauda
Mechanical retirements
25
54
Crash retirements
18
19
Classified from the finishing status. Mechanical covers car failures, crash covers accidents, collisions and damage — fewer is better on both. Retirements with an unclear cause: 1 · 3
Milestones & racecraft
1973
Debut season
1971
1975 · aged 27
First win
1974 · aged 25
1976
First pole
1974
1976 · aged 29
First title
1975 · aged 26
P1
Best finish
P1
-4.4
Avg places gained
-2.3
Season points trajectory
1971 1973 1975 1977 1979 1981 1983 1985
James Hunt Niki Lauda
Final points each season — scoring systems changed over the eras.
Track by track
Circuit James Hunt Niki Lauda
W · Pod · Best W · Pod · Best
Circuit Park Zandvoort 2 · 3 · P1 3 · 6 · P1
Watkins Glen 2 · 4 · P1 1 · 2 · P1
Kyalami 0 · 1 · P2 3 · 3 · P1
Brands Hatch 0 · 0 · — 3 · 4 · P1
Circuit de Monaco 0 · 0 · P9 2 · 4 · P1
Autodromo Nazionale di Monza 0 · 0 · P5 2 · 4 · P1
Circuit Paul Ricard 1 · 3 · P1 1 · 1 · P1
Scandinavian Raceway 0 · 1 · P3 2 · 3 · P1
Zolder 0 · 0 · P7 2 · 3 · P1
Jarama 1 · 1 · P1 1 · 2 · P1
Red Bull Ring 0 · 2 · P2 1 · 2 · P1
Long Beach 0 · 0 · P7 1 · 4 · P1
Dijon-Prenois 0 · 1 · P3 1 · 3 · P1
Autódromo José Carlos Pace 0 · 1 · P2 1 · 2 · P1
Nürburgring 1 · 1 · P1 0 · 1 · P3
Silverstone Circuit 1 · 1 · P1 0 · 1 · P2
Hockenheimring 0 · 0 · — 1 · 2 · P1
Fuji Speedway 1 · 2 · P1 0 · 0 · —
Mosport International Raceway 1 · 1 · P1 0 · 0 · P8
Autódromo Juan y Oscar Gálvez 0 · 1 · P2 0 · 2 · P2
Autódromo Internacional Nelson Piquet 0 · 0 · — 0 · 2 · P2
Circuit Gilles Villeneuve 0 · 0 · — 0 · 1 · P2
Nivelles-Baulers 0 · 0 · — 0 · 1 · P2
Montjuïc 0 · 0 · — 0 · 0 · —
Team history
James Hunt
MAR
HES
MCL
March 1973–1974Hesketh 1974–1975McLaren 1976–1978Wolf 1979
Niki Lauda
FER
MCL
March-Ford 1971March 1972BRM 1973Ferrari 1974–1977Brabham 1978Brabham-Ford 1979Brabham-Alfa Romeo 1979McLaren 1982–1985
19711985
Basis

Head-to-head counts races where both drivers were classified, compared by final position (post-penalty). Teammate section counts only seasons in the same car. Career totals mirror the source data. Data: Jolpica-F1 (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).