Niki goes ape.

At the Spanish GP two weeks ago, Niki Lauda claimed that now the cars were fitted with all their new electronic toys, 22 monkeys on the grid could do as good a job as the drivers.

Ralf Schumacher's response to what many saw as a crushing indictment of the current state of Formula One was to give the three times world champion a special present.

Lauda was apparently surprised to take delivery of a monkey, albeit not a live one, but there is currently no news as to which car it will drive in the Monaco GP. Given Eddie Irvine's improved performance in Austria, however, the threat may well have been real...