Three-times Formula One world champion Niki Lauda has praised the work of Ferrari's pit-crew in putting out the fire that engulfed Michael Schumacher's car during Sunday's Austrian Grand Prix.

Austrian Lauda suffered lasting scars after being burnt in a major accident at the 1976 German Grand Prix at the Nurburgring when driving for Ferrari.

He was present at the Austrian Grand Prix's A1-Ring on Sunday and praised Ferrari's handling of the situation, which arose when Schumacher's car caught fire following problems with the fuel rig during his first pit-stop.

"It was sensational how Ferrari handled the incident," Lauda said in an interview with Monday's Swiss daily Blick. "First, they had refuelling problems, and then the fire.

"Usually the Italians panic in such situations. This time they remained cool and solved it perfectly, just like Michael did in the car.

"Michael knew that his overalls would hold the fire much longer than the ones I had in my days. He could have stayed in the cockpit for much longer before he would look like me."