| Director | Ron Howard |
|---|---|
| Genre | action film, biographical film, drama film, sport film |
| Runtime | 123 min |
| Country | Germany, United Kingdom, United States |
| Budget | $38 million |
| Box office | $98.2 million |
James Hunt, a brash and self-confident individual, and Niki Lauda, a cool and calculating technical genius who relies on practice and precision, are exceptional racing drivers who develop a fierce rivalry in 1970 at a Formula Three event in London, where both their cars spin before Hunt wins the race. Lauda takes a large bank loan from Austria's Raiffeisen Bank to buy his way into the BRM Formula One team, meeting teammate Clay Regazzoni for the first time.
Meanwhile, Hesketh Racing, the fledgling racing team Hunt drives for, enters Formula One. Lauda then joins Scuderia Ferrari with Regazzoni and wins his first championship in 1975. Lacking a sponsor, Hesketh closes, so Hunt joins McLaren. He also marries supermodel Suzy Miller, while Lauda develops a relationship with socialite Marlene Knaus.
The 1976 season starts, with Lauda dominating the first two races while Hunt struggles to catch up. Hunt wins the Spanish Grand Prix, but is disqualified after a ruling that his car was marginally wider than permitted. Struggling to comply with F1 rules, McLaren suffers a series of racing setbacks, and Hunt's situation is exacerbated when he separates from Suzy and she starts seeing actor Richard Burton.
Following their divorce, Hunt regains his competitive spirit and, when his disqualification in Spain is overturned, the restored points put him into championship contention. Lauda marries Marlene in a private ceremony, but begins to have concerns about the effects of his newfound happiness, worrying that he has become vulnerable as a racer, as he now has something to lose.
On the day of the German Grand Prix, Lauda calls a drivers' meeting, urging the F1 committee to cancel the race due to heavy rain on the notoriously dangerous Nürburgring Nordschleife; the vote goes against cancellation after Hunt argues that Lauda is trying to personally benefit in competition by reducing the number of remaining races at a time when Lauda already has a significant points lead towards the season's championship.
Most drivers start the race with wet-weather tyres, which becomes a costly tactic due to most of the track quickly drying. They all change tyres during the second lap, pushing Hunt ahead of Lauda; the latter's attempts to catch up result in a suspension arm in his Ferrari breaking, causing a loss of control and crashing the car into an embankment where it bursts into flames. Lauda is airlifted to hospital with third-degree burns to his head and internal burns to his lungs. For six weeks, Lauda is treated for his agonising injuries while he watches Hunt, who is guilt-ridden by Lauda's condition, but dominates the races in his absence. Against doctors' orders, he returns to drive in the Italian Grand Prix, finishing fourth while Hunt fails to finish.
The 1976 season comes to a climax at the rain-soaked Japanese Grand Prix. Hunt's late rally in Lauda's absence has pulled him within three points of Lauda. Hunt argues that the race should be canceled, but since the television rights were sold everywhere around the world, the Grand Prix still takes place. At the end of the second lap, after his car has slid several times, Lauda returns to the pits and decides to retire from the race, considering it too dangerous and opting to stay with Marlene instead. This allows Hunt to win the championship if he can finish third or better. After facing stiff competition under grueling conditions, tyre problems, and a hand injury due to his gear shifter breaking, Hunt finishes third, unaware that he has won the championship by a single point.
Hunt spends the rest of the year reveling in fame, sex, and drugs, while Lauda takes an interest in flying private planes. At an airfield in Bologna, Lauda urges Hunt to focus on the next racing season and defend his title, but Hunt argues that allowing himself to enjoy his victory through his glamorous lifestyle has been his highlight of being world champion, not their rivalry like it has been for Lauda. With this, Lauda realises that Hunt no longer feels he needs to prove himself to anyone.
In voiceover, Lauda reflects on how Hunt's continued hedonism limited his future success and led to his eventual death at age 45, but also on how their great rivalry and personality differences spurred each other on that one season. Lauda closes "He was among the very few I liked and even fewer that I respected. He remains the only person I envied."