Three-time Formula One world
champion Niki Laudi has tipped Fernando Alonso to clinch a 16th drivers' title
for Ferrari his season.
Alonso, a double world champion with McLaren in 2005 and 2006,
currently leads the 2012 drivers' standing by 29 point with just six races of
the season to go.
Lauda, a winner of 25 grands prix between 1974 and 1985, says
Alonso's approach this season has been close to perfect, grinding out results
in a car which was considered substandard at the start of the season.
"He
is making all the right moves," Lauda, who won the drivers' title twice
with Ferrari, told the sport's official website.
"He is fast and he is getting the car over the finish line. He
is aggressive when needed. He is Mr Right, right now.
"I say that he will carry on racing the way he has done so far
and then the list of those who count themselves still in the running is
dramatically reduced.
"He will score the most points. He will be champion if he
carries on like he has done up until now."
When
asked what Ferrari, the most successful team in F1 history, would be without
the 31-year-old Alonso, Lauda responded: "Not as good. It is always the combination
of driver and team that makes success."
Rumors have suggested Ferrari may look to replace Alonso's teammate
Felipe Massa for the 2013 season, with Sauber's Sergio Perez mooted as a
potential successor to the Brazilian.
But Austrian Lauda reckons it is too early in the
Mexican's career for him to be a suitable fit at Ferrari.
"I
don't see it," added Lauda. "Perez would be a risk. Massa is
predictable and Alonso likes him, so I say that such a switch is not going to
happen."
Lauda also singled out former Ferrari driver Kimi Raikkonen for
praise.
The Lotus driver sits third in the championship despite only
returning to the sport this season after two years away.
Raikkonen was the last Ferrari driver to win the championship when
he fended off competition from Alonso -- then racing for McLaren -- and Briton
Lewis Hamilton, who is still driving for the British team, to clinch the 2007
crown.
"The fascinating thing with Kimi is that he came back and
didn't need any warm-up time. It's as if he had never been away," said
Lauda.
"Kimi came back as if he hadn't been away for two years. He
was fighting immediately at the top. You cannot ask for more."
Cnn.com September 26, 2012
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