F1 will adjust to 'ugliest' 2012 cars - Lauda

Mar.12 (GMM) Niki Lauda thinks F1 will soon adjust to the unattractive look of this year's cars.

Mercedes front wing and nose cone

Photo by: xpb.cc

Every 2012 car, except the Marussia and the McLaren, features an odd 'step' between the front of the monocoque and the mandatory new lower height of the nose.

The FIA's Charlie Whiting defended the move on safety grounds, conceding however that "they do all look like ducks".

Triple world champion Lauda said: "I think that, this year, we have the ugliest cars we've ever had.

"The look, simply, is a disaster. Why must I look at something ugly, when it could be different?" he complained.

"But, ultimately, it's like my face -- if you see me almost every Saturday and Sunday, as the RTL (television) viewers do, then you get used to it," he told the German-language Speed Week.

"At some point you don't even notice that I'm missing an ear. So it's just the same with these noses -- after three races, it will hardly be talked about anymore.

"But, basically, we should try to have Formula One cars looking more like Angelina Jolie than ugly ducks," added Lauda.