Lauda hails Schumacher

Niki Lauda, the three times Formula One world champion, today dismissed suggestions Michael Schumacher's complete dominance of the season was bad for motor racing.

Ferrari's incredibly reliable car is helping Schumacher's relentless march towards a record seventh world title. But Lauda, who won two of his titles with Ferrari in 1975 and 1977, said: "In my time there was a year when McLaren won 15 out of 16 races. So teams can dominate.

"This is impressive because they are doing a better job than the others.

"If you are an insider, like me, it is impressive what they are doing. So you have to agree with it."

The Austrian praised McLaren's second place with Finn Kimi Raikkonen.

He said: "McLaren were impressive. They were the closest to Ferrari than any other team so far. It was the biggest surprise for me that they got as close as that."