Niki Lauda revealed on Sunday his role in luring Lewis Hamilton from McLaren to Mercedes for whom the Formula One legend acts as a non-executive chairman.

Mercedes announced last Thursday that Hamilton would replace Michael Schumacher next season, bringing to an end the Briton’s 14-year association with the British team.

Lauda, 63, told BBC Radio Five: “I spoke to him (Hamilton) a couple of times, but I didn’t have to convince him much.

“He had a clear plan and I didn’t have to convince him of anything.

“I can honestly say I was impressed with his approach to things – very pragmatic, no emotions whatsoever. The real discussion was, ‘Why should I leave a competitive car where my life is easier in the future?’

“My argument was, ‘if you’re looking for a new challenge then frankly the Mercedes team is one’.

“Thinking the other way round, if Michael Schumacher could not get the Mercedes team – for three years running – up front and you next year are doing much better, this makes a huge impact on your personality and people will rate you much higher than you are rated now.”

Lauda has no doubt about the 27-year-old’s speed and quality, but insisted there was no number one driver in the Mercedes team.

“There’s enough money for Mercedes that they can prepare two cars exactly the same way.

“And what I really look forward to is that Hamilton will push Nico Rosberg to go quicker and Nico will push Hamilton to go quicker – and this is really all you need in a team.”

Lauda also dismissed as “absolute nonsense” any suggestion that seven-time former champion Schumacher was at 43 too old to cut it in F1.

“He failed in a car that was never competitive,” Lauda explained in a separate interview with German weekly Frankfurter Allgemeine.