Niki Lauda, who defied death so long in a life that elevated him to the status of motor racing legend, has finally succumbed to the crash that by all the laws of science should have killed him 43 years ago. The Austrian, who won world titles in 1975, 1977 and 1984, died aged 70, eight months after lung transplant surgery that was the belated result of the German Grand Prix at which his Ferrari burst into flames. It was at the Nurburgring that Lauda swerved off track, hit the embankment and sat trapped inside his car that had turned into a fireball. He lost the top of his left ear and his eyelids and breathed in the toxic fumes that finally did for his fighting spirit on Monday. Niki Lauda has passed away aged 70 after, eight months after having lung transplant surgery The surgery was a belated result of a crash in 1976 in which his Ferrari burst into flames The Austrian, somewhat incredibly, added two more world titles after the harrowing incident In the intervening years, Lauda wore the scars on a face that had only partially been restored by taking skin off his thighs and applying it to his scalp. The rest of the damage was hidden under a ubiquitous red cap on which he sold advertising space for a million pounds. But a heaving cough that intermittently interrupted his fast flow of direct, never-a-wasted word conversation told of the problem that even the cosmetic surgeons could not fix. And last August he had lung surgery to put him right supposedly. He had planned to be back at the track for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in late November last year but that target proved too ambitious for even such a battler as Lauda. He was well enough to post a video of himself, a little frail of voice but with a reassuring message for fans: I’m getting well. Lauda, pictured with his wife Birgit, wore a ubiquitous red cap to cover the scars Lauda (R) pictured in 1975, the year after he won his first drivers' championship Lauda pictured during the Argentine Grand Prix in Buenos Aires in 1975 Just weeks after his horrific crash in 1976, Lauda was back behind the wheel of his Ferrari The former driver sports the scars of his near-fatal crash during a press conference It took tremendous will and courage for Lauda to get back behind the wheel And, so he was, until flu struck while on a Christmas holiday in Ibiza. He was taken back to hospital. His progress since had been shaky, with Bernie Ecclestone, his former Brabham boss and close friend, kept in touch by telephone through the worrying months. It is almost impossible to think of that giant defeated. After all, less than six weeks after being read the last rites following his incineration in Germany, he returned for the Italian Grand Prix. He was terrified, he later admitted, but he qualified fifth and finished fourth. His great friend James Hunt went on to take the title, racing on in blinding spray in the Japanese Grand Prix of 1976. Lauda pulled out muttering that it was ‘insanity’ to race on. He could not blink – the fire had seen to that – and for him it was impossible to see the track. The following year Lauda won the second of three world championships. They were both for Ferrari. His last title came for McLaren, nine years after his first and following two seasons away. The following year, Lauda won the second of three world championships Lauda pictured alongside his former Brabham boss and good friend Bernie Ecclestone in 2013 By now he had started his airline, Lauda Air, one of several entrepreneurial forays into business. As a friend of his once told me: ‘Niki is the only person I ever met in my entire life who didn’t give a ‘s*** about anything.’ Lauda’s family issued a statement, saying: ‘With deep sadness, we announce that our beloved Niki has passed away peacefully with his family on Monday. ‘We remember his unique achievements as an athlete and entrepreneur… and his tireless zest for action, his straightforwardness and his courage. ‘A role model and a benchmark for all of us, he was a loving and caring husband, father and grandfather away from the public eye, and he will be missed.’ Lauda also went into the airline business and started his own company, Lauda Air Born in Vienna in 1949, Lauda went into motor racing against the wishes of his family, taking out personal loans to fund a shot at his dreams. He made his debut in 1971 with March, later with BRM, Ferrari, Brabham and McLaren. He competed in 171 races and won 25. An exceptional driver, he was calculating in style, a Geoffrey Boycott rather than a Brian Lara. Post-racing, he briefly ran the Jaguar F1 team before taking on the non-executive chairman role at Mercedes, where he was instrumental in signing Lewis Hamilton, clinching the deal in a Singapore hotel, in 2012. His certainty, experience and straight-talking were imperishably important to Mercedes’ remarkable achievements in the past few years, namely five drivers and five constructors titles, and counting. He was a man without malice. Lauda also stayed in racing and took on the non-executive chairman role at Mercedes He was instrumental in signing Lewis Hamilton, clinching the deal in a Singapore hotel, in 2012 Lauda won a revival of wider global fame through Daniel Bruhl’s portrayal of him in the 2013 film Rush, which detailed his fight with Hunt, his adversary and great friend. ‘When I heard James had died of a heart attack I was not surprised,’ said Lauda of the big-living Englishman who burned out aged 45 in 1993. ‘I was just sad.’ Giants both. And even if we are not entirely surprised by news of Lauda’s demise after the worsening medical bulletins of the last few months, we are saddened. Sport has lost a bigger character than it can afford to. Lauda lost his good friend James Hunt, who was just 45, in 1993. Both were giants of the sport All rights reserved for this news site dailymail and under his responsibility