Lauda 'wakens from coma' after lung transplant
Lauda 'wakens from coma' after lung transplant
Reports from Austria have claimed that Niki Laua is now awake and breathing on his own after being in a serious condition following his lung transplant, which left him breathing via a heart-lung machine and deemed to be in an extremely critical condition.
Lauda underwent the surgey in Vienna on Thursday and doctors were realistic about his chances, with patients only expected to live for a short period after such a serious operation.
But yesterday head of the Department of Thoracic Surgery, Walter Klepetko, said: "Considering the not very easy circumstances we are very, very happy with the developments", leading to optimism about his condition.
Now Austrian channel OE24 has confirmed that Lauda is awake, and though a little confused is breathing normally and so the apparatus attached can be removed, and he can begin his long road to recovery, one that looked most unlikely just a few days ago.
Lauda had been suffering from a severe form of pneumonia, and as his condition worsened it became clear that a new lung was required - one that was swiftly found, on Wednesday.
Doctors believe that Lauda will be able to breathe, speak and eat normally within a few weeks, but it is unlikely that he will be present at any Formula 1 action until October at the very earliest. Klepetko is confident that the 69-year-old should be able to work at the same capacity as previously, saying: ""He will be an old man again, [but] he will be able to fly again, even work as before."
Members of the Mercedes team including Toto Wolff and Lewis Hamilton issued messages of support to their stricken colleague, with Wolff saying: "The world knows Niki as an F1 legend with incredible power and resilience.
“For all of us at Mercedes he is our chairman, our mentor and our friend. We have missed him by our side in Hockenheim and Hungary and can’t wait to have him back with us on the grand prix tracks of this world.”
Change your timezone:
Latest News
Haas announce Hulkenberg EXIT as F1 star's new team confirmed
- 3 hours ago
F1 champion claims Drive to Survive success was 'very lucky'
- 45 minutes ago
F1 franchise welcomes return of INCREDIBLE feature
- 1 hour ago
F1 News Today: Red Bull star set to QUIT team as F1 driver role CONFIRMED for 2025
- 2 hours ago
F1 team set to axe BOTH star drivers
- 2 hours ago
Red Bull to lose F1 MVP as true cost of Horner saga hits
- Today 09:57
F1 Standings
Drivers
- Oliver Bearman
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
- Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2024
- Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Australia 2024
- MSC Cruises Grand Prix of Japan 2024
- Grand Prix of China 2024
- Miami Grand Prix 2024
- Gran Premio dell'Emilia Romagna 2024
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2024
- Grand Prix du Canada 2024
- Gran Premio de España 2024
- Grand Prix of Austria 2024
- Grand Prix of Great Britain 2024
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2024
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2024
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Italy 2024
- Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2024
- Grand Prix of Singapore 2024
- Grand Prix of the United States 2024
- Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2024
- Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2024
- Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024
- Qatar Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2024
About GPFans
GPFans is a multi-platform, multi-language brand dedicated to Formula One coverage. We bring you all the ins and outs of the sport, 24/7, everything from up-to-the-minute news and features to the latest viral stories and clips.We believe that a new generation of exciting, outspoken drivers will make F1 more popular than ever before, and we want to give our users access to as much of their heroes as possible, on and off the track. From Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo to Sebastian Vettel, we provide in-depth analysis of every every Grand Prix in the season, from Australia to Abu Dhabi.
With Formula One under the new ownership of Liberty Media, how the sport is being covered is evolving, and GPFans will look to be at the heart of this progression into new media, as one of the fastest-growing sites covering the king of motorsports.
Follow us on your favorite social media channel
Corporate & Media
Innovatieweg 20C7007 CD, Doetinchem, Netherlands
+31645516860