Why Vettel missed Lauda's funeral

Sebastian Vettel was a notable absentee from Niki Lauda's funeral in Vienna last week, and reports in the Ferrari driver's native Germany have explained why. According to sport.de, Vettel had previously been signed up to help launch the latest Ferrari supercar, preventing him from travelling to Austria.

Vettel paid tribute to Lauda at the Monaco Grand Prix, racing in a helmet borrowing the F1 legend's famous red design after he passed away in the week before the race aged 70.

After coming second in the race, Vettel offered kind words to Lauda: "I think he will always be around. We will definitely miss him. I think he's been an icon in the past and will be in the future. So, my thoughts are with his family, and with him.”

The likes of Lewis Hamilton, Nico Rosberg, Toto Wolff and Alain Prost were all at the funeral ceremony at St Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna as last respects were paid to Lauda.

However, Vettel was reportedly in Italy, helping to launch the SF90 Stradale – a road-legal car that borrows technology from the Maranello outfit's 2019 F1 car.

The event in Maranello featured a minute's silence to honour Lauda, who won two of his three world titles with the Scuderia, in 1975 and 1977.

The #FerrariSF90Stradale is an encapsulation of @ScuderiaFerrari’s iconic performance: hybrid architecture, unprecedented aerodynamic efficiency and an outstanding powertrain. #Ferrari

Emissions under homologation. pic.twitter.com/aPVnN0us9u

— Ferrari (@Ferrari) May 30, 2019

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