Marlene Knaus is the former wife of popular Formula One driver Niki Lauda.
She was a well-known model before she even started dating the Austrian racer Niki Lauda.
Marlene was born in 1956 in the United States to Venezuelan-American parents and later obtained Austrian citizenship before marrying Niki.
She has continued to elude the media and kept details of her life to herself and off the internet, hence much is not known about her modelling career.
Marlene Knaus is very much alive and the controversy surrounding her being alive or dead can be attributed to the passing of her ex-husband Niki Louda, a three-time Formula One champion. He died on 20th May 2019 and was laid to rest a few days later. His funeral service was held in a Cathedral in Vienna on May 29, 2019.
It is estimated that Marlene Knaus has a net worth of $43 million. She earned part of this amount through her successful modeling career and partly through her divorce settlement and inheritance of Niki Lauda’s wealth.
Not much information regarding Marlene’s youth, family, or education, is of public knowledge.
Marlene Knaus met Niki Lauda in the 1970s when Lauda was in the process of ending an 8-year relationship. The two felt a connection which led to a relationship and eventually marriage in 1976. They had two children Mathias Lauda, born on January 30, 1981 (age 39 years) and Lukas Lauda, born 1979 (age 41 years)
They had what the public referred to as a happy marriage until a sudden announcement of their divorce in 1991. The reason for their divorce was not shared with the public but there were allegations that Niki had an extramarital affair that let to his having another Son. Some concluded that may have been the cause of their divorce.