Rush Page #8

but it's not enough,

and this race is running out.

And Watson has spun.

Watson has spun.

Hunt manages to weave his way

between that back marker

and the stationary Penske.

He's catching Regazzoni

but, in these conditions,

it's one thing to catch up,

it's quite another to overtake.

He's alongside Clay Regazzoni.

This could be the world championship.

He's got him!

Hunt crosses the line.

Now, he needed to finish third to score

enough points to be World Champion,

and in the confusion here, we're being

told that he may have finished fifth.

He finished fifth?

Our lap charts

show Hunt in third place.

Well, if the scoreboard's right,

it means he's just missed out

on the championship.

Crushing defeat for Hunt

after such a heroic drive.

I can see the race stewards conferring,

examining the official lap charts.

We're just going to have to wait

for their verdict here.

Let's get you out of there, buddy.

I'm sorry, Teddy. I'm sorry.

I thought I could make up the ground.

Sorry? What are you talking about?

You did it.

- Did what?

- Jesus. You crazy bastard.

You came third. You got the points.

You're champion of the world!

James Hunt

is now officially confirmed

as finishing third here in Japan,

and that means

he is champion of the world.

Our new World Champion,

James Hunt, by just one single point.

Did we really win?

World bloody Champion!

Tell us, James,

what are you going to do now?

I shall be getting drunk.

It's wonderful,

an absolute dream...

And our special guest,

Formula 1 champion James Hunt.

Wait. Come on.

There's no better motor oil

than Havoline.

Yes, me, too.

Where are we going?

Anywhere I want to go.

And I don't have to hijack it, either.

As long as I pay for it.

I'm starving.

Let's get some food.

- Where are we going?

- You lot go ahead.

I won't be a minute.

Good to see you.

I heard you were spending

more and more time in one of these.

- Do you fly?

- No.

I don't think they'd insure me.

You should try.

It's good for discipline.

You have to stay within the rules,

stick to regulations,

suppress the ego.

It helps with the racing.

And there I was thinking

you were about to wax lyrical

about the romance of flight.

No, that's all bullshit.

So, what brings you here?

A friend's wedding.

At least I think it was a wedding.

Might have been a birthday or something.

It's all a bit of a blur.

How about you? Have you been at Fiorano?

Pre-season testing.

- You're relentless.

- Thank you.

I'm not sure that was meant

as a compliment.

When do you start testing? Next week?

No. What, are you nuts?

I didn't just win

the biggest thing of my life

so I could get right back to work.

Why? You have to.

To prove to all the people who will

always say you just won it because...

Because of what?

Because of your accident?

Niki, is that other people,

or is that you?

I won, okay? On the all-important day,

when it came down to it,

we raced on equal terms,

equally good cars.

And I put my life on the line,

and I saw it through.

- And you call that winning?

- Yes.

The risks were totally unacceptable.

You were prepared to die.

To me, that's losing.

Yes, I was. I admit it.

I was prepared to die

to beat you that day.

And that's the effect you have on me.

You'd pushed me that far.

And it felt great.

I mean, hell,

isn't that what we're in this for?

To stare death in the face

and to cheat it?

Come on, there's nobility in that.

It's... It's like being knights.

You English, you're such a**holes.

You know my position.

Twenty per cent risk.

No, no, no, Niki, don't bring the

percentages into this. Don't be a pro.

The minute you do that,

you kill what's good about this.

You kill the sport.

James!

- James!

- Come on!

I've got to go.

Careful in this thing.

James.

You know, in hospital, the toughest part

of my treatment was the vacuum.

Pumping the sh*t out of my lungs.

It was hell.

And while doing it,

I was watching television.

- You winning all my points.

- Your points?

"That bastard Hunt," I would say.

"I hate that guy."

And then one day

the doctor came and said,

"Mr Lauda,

may I offer a piece of advice?

"Stop thinking of it as a curse to

have been given an enemy in life.

"It can be a blessing, too.

"A wise man gets more from his enemies

than a fool from his friends."

And you know what? He was right.

Look at us. We were both

a pair of kids when we met.

Hot-headed jerks in Formula 3.

Disowned by our families.

Headed nowhere.

And now we're both

champions of the world.

It was not bad, huh?

No, it's not bad.

So, don't let me down now.

I need you busting my balls.

- Get back to work.

- I will, Niki, I will.

But I intend to enjoy myself first.

Some of life needs to be for pleasure.

What's the point of having

a million cups and medals and planes

if you don't have any fun?

How is that winning?

- James!

- We're gonna leave without you!

James!

I'll see you on race day, champ.

You will... champ.

You look good, Niki.

The only guy to have his face burnt off

and it be an improvement.

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 champion again,

him as broadcaster,

he was barefoot

on a bicycle with a flat tyre.

Still living each day like his last.

When I heard he'd died,

aged 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.

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