Lauda thinks Brawn team still favorite to win title

"Believe me, their (Brawn GP) success caught me with the same surprise as everybody else. They have managed to come up with a fantastic package that has to be beaten first," Niki Lauda told the official F1 website.

"But since the start of the season all the others have caught up, especially Red Bull Racing with their new aero package, and to my surprise McLaren, with their win (the first for a KERS car) in Budapest.

"Ross Brawn has to keep up with his development speed, but clearly at the moment they are the favorites for both Championships."

The Austrian, though, warns that Brawn GP could face a massive challenge from both McLaren and Ferrari as the season draws to an end as both teams have put their early season woes behind them.

"Of course both teams will develop their car come hell or high water and at the moment McLaren seem to be on a more promising path, as we saw in Budapest. I expect them to raise their game massively for the upcoming races."