David Coulthard

David Coulthard

Nation:	United Kingdom
Formula 1 world championship
First start:	1994 Spanish Grand Prix
Last start:	2008 Brazilian Grand Prix
Constructors
1994–1995  Williams  • 1996–2004  McLaren  • 2005–2008  Red Bull
statistics
World Cup balance:	Vice World Champion ( 2001 )
Starts Victories Poles SR 246 13 12 18th
World Cup points :	535
Podiums :	62
Leadership laps :	894 over 4,192.9 km

David Marshall "DC" Coulthard , MBE [ ˈdeɪvɪd ˈkoʊlθɑrt ] (born March 27, 1971 in Twynholm , Scotland ) is a former British racing driver .

Between 1994 and 2008 he competed for Williams , McLaren and Red Bull in 246 Grand Prix in the Formula 1 World Championship . He won 13 of them and was third in the overall World Cup four times. His greatest success in Formula 1 was the vice world championship in the 2001 season behind the German Michael Schumacher . From 2010 to 2012 he took part in the DTM in a Mercedes .

Coulthard has been accompanying Formula 1 reporting as a TV expert for the British broadcaster Channel 4 since 2016 .

Career

Beginnings in motorsport

Coulthard began his motorsport career in karting . In the years 1983 to 1985 he won the Scottish Junior Kart Championship. From 1986 to 1988 he was a Scottish open kart champion. He was also the British Super Kart 1 champion in 1986 and 1987. In 1989 he switched to the single-seater racing and immediately won the championship of the British Formula Ford 1600 . For his good debut he was awarded the McLaren Autosport BRDC Award , which was presented for the first time. In 1990 he competed in the Formula Opel Lotus Euro Series , in which he was fifth overall, and in the Formula Vauxhall Lotus , in which he was fourth. The season was overshadowed by a serious accident in Spa-Francorchamps in which Coulthard broke his leg.

Coulthard's Formula 3000 racing car from 1993

In 1991 Coulthard switched to the British Formula 3 championship and started for Paul Stewart Racing , for which he had already driven in the Formula Opel Lotus Euro Series. Coulthard won five races and was the driver with the most wins. Nevertheless, it was not enough to win the title and he was runner-up behind Rubens Barrichello . Coulthard put himself in the limelight at the prestigious Formula 3 races in Zandvoort and Macau , both of which he won over Jordi Gené .

In 1992 Coulthard switched to Formula 3000 and competed again for Paul Stewart Racing. His teammate was Paul Stewart , his team's racing team owner. Coulthard was third on the podium in the last two races and ended up in ninth place overall. He also got his first experience with a Formula 1 racing car during test drives for the Benetton team . 1993 Coulthard denied his second season in Formula 3000 for Pacific Racing . In Pergusa-Enna he won his first race of this championship and at the end of the season he finished third behind the champions Olivier Panis and Pedro Lamy . In addition to Kenny Bräck, he was a test driver for the Formula 1 racing team Williams .

formula 1

Williams (1994-1995)

Coulthard drove a Williams-Renault in his 1995 home race

Coulthard originally planned to contest his third season in Formula 3000 in 1994 and, at the same time, continue to function as Formula 1 test driver for the Williams team. After finishing second in the first race of the Formula 3000 season, Williams gave him a Formula 1 cockpit that had become vacant after Ayrton Senna's accidental death . On May 29, Coulthard made his Formula 1 racing debut at the Spanish Grand Prix at the Circuit de Catalunya at the age of 23. In the further course of the season he competed in seven Formula 1 races for Williams and scored at the Portuguese Grand Prix in Estoril , which he finished second, his first podium finish in Formula 1. In four races, Coulthard had to hand over his cockpit to Nigel Mansell .

For the 1995 season , Coulthard signed a preliminary contract with McLaren . However, he was already bound by a test driver contract to Williams, who insisted on his services. The Contract Recognition Board decided in this contract conflict that Coulthard had to fulfill his contract with Williams and so he stayed with the racing team and got the second cockpit next to Damon Hill . Having already stood on the podium in a few races, he won his 21st Grand Prix in Portugal, where he had his first podium a year earlier. At the end of the season, he finished third in the championship behind his team-mate Hill, who was runner-up.

McLaren (1996-2004)

In 1998, Coulthard was third in the McLaren-Mercedes

After Williams had signed Jacques Villeneuve for the 1996 season , Coulthard received from Williams clearance for a team change. Coulthard decided on McLaren, where he became a teammate of the Finn Mika Häkkinen . He was on the podium twice and achieved his best race result in Monaco , where he finished second behind his former Formula 3000 rival Panis. At the end of the season he finished seventh overall behind Häkkinen, who was fifth. 1997 Coulthard denied his second season for McLaren, which started in a silver livery after a sponsorship change from Marlboro to West . Since McLaren was also on the road with Mercedes engines , the bolides were called the “ Silver Arrows ” based on the Mercedes racing vehicles from the 1930s and 1950s . Coulthard won the season opener in Australia and took the first McLaren win since 1993, when Senna also won in Australia for the British racing team. With another win in Italy , he finished third overall as the best McLaren driver at the end of the season.

In 1998 , the McLaren drivers went into the season as favorites for the title. However, it was Häkkinen who won the World Cup. Coulthard scored just one win at the San Marino Grand Prix and finished second on the podium in five McLaren one-two victories. He made headlines in the rain race in Spa-Francorchamps . After the start, after losing control of his racing car in the rain, he hit the boundary wall. Because of the spray, some drivers did not see the wreck and there was a pile-up in which 13 cars were involved. After the race was canceled, Coulthard was able to start again with the replacement car. In the middle of the race there was a collision with Michael Schumacher . Schumacher led the race and ran into the McLaren while lapping Coulthard, lost a front wheel and had to give up the race. When the two met in the pit lane, there was a loud discussion between the racing drivers. At the end of the season, Coulthard was again third overall.

In 1999 McLaren had again built a good racing car. However, as in the previous year, Coulthard did not keep up with Häkkinen and was again overshadowed by his teammate, who won the world championship. Coulthard won two races this season and finished the season fourth in the world championship. The following season went better for Coulthard and after three victories, including the prestigious Grand Prix in Monaco , he was involved in the fight for the title together with Häkkinen and Schumacher. However, he again had to admit defeat to Häkkinen, who was runner-up behind Schumacher, and took third place in the championship. For the first time since 1997 Coulthard prevailed against Häkkinen in 2001 and became Schumacher's world championship rival during the season. However, he had no chance against Schumacher and he won the runner-up title with two wins.

Coulthard completed his final season for McLaren in 2004

After Häkkinen had resigned, Coulthard got a Finnish team-mate again in 2002 with Kimi Räikkönen and became the new “number 1” in the McLaren team. However, McLaren did not manage to keep up with the cars from Ferrari and Williams this season and Coulthard finished fifth overall behind the four drivers of these teams at the end of the season. The highlight of the season was a win in Monaco . 2003 Coulthard started the season with a win in the opening race in Australia . Although he was to be active in Formula 1 for a few more years, this was his last win in the “premier class” of motorsport. In the course of the season he kept up with his younger team-mate Raikkonen, who won the runner-up, and he finished seventh overall. In 2004 it was announced early that Coulthard would be replaced by Juan Pablo Montoya at the end of the season . For the first time in his career, Coulthard was not on the podium in any race and he said goodbye to McLaren with tenth place in the drivers' championship.

Coulthard completed a total of 150 Grands Prix for McLaren and took 12 of his 13 victories for the British racing team. Only Michael Schumacher drove more races for the same team (180 Grands Prix in Ferrari).

Red Bull Racing (2005-2008)

"DC" drove for Red Bull at the end of his career (2007)

Coulthard finished third in Canada in 2008

In 2005 Coulthard switched to Red Bull Racing , which emerged from Jaguar Racing , and received two pilots, Christian Klien and Vitantonio Liuzzi , who shared the second cockpit. Coulthard left his team mates well behind and achieved twelfth place overall with fourth place as the best result. In 2006 he was again faster than his teammates Klien and Robert Doornbos , who competed in the last three races in place of Klien. The highlight of the season for Coulthard was a third place in Monaco , which was Red Bull Racing's first podium finish. In 2007 , Coulthard got a new teammate, Mark Webber , who put him under pressure. However, Coulthard kept his team-mate behind him at the end of the season and achieved tenth place in the championship, the best overall placement of his Red Bull time. In 2008 the tide turned at Red Bull within the team and Coulthard was no longer able to keep up with Webber. At the Canadian Grand Prix , Coulthard was third for the last time in his Formula 1 career on the podium. Two races later, at his home Grand Prix at Silverstone, Coulthard announced his retirement from Formula 1 at the end of the season. He finished his last season in 16th place overall.

In addition to the runner-up in 2001, Coulthard won 13 Grand Prix victories in Formula 1 and was third in the world championship in 1995, 1997, 1998 and 2000. At the 2005 Malaysian Grand Prix he caught Nigel Mansell (482 points), the most successful British driver by points. However, both pilots were rated according to different point systems. He would also top the list of British racing drivers according to the 2010 points system. He is thus in the tradition of statistically significant "non-world champions" such as Stirling Moss , Carlos Reutemann , Gerhard Berger or Ronnie Peterson and, according to popularity, Gilles Villeneuve .

Since his retirement from Formula 1, he has accompanied the Formula 1 races as a TV expert for the British broadcaster BBC . He also stayed with Red Bull as a consultant and test driver. In 2009 , he was a substitute driver for Red Bull Racing and its sister team, Scuderia Toro Rosso, for the last seven races of the season . In 2010 Coulthard took over this position when both regular substitute drivers, Brendon Hartley and Daniel Ricciardo , were prevented from doing so.

DTM

Coulthard at his first DTM race at the Hockenheimring (2010)

After taking part in DTM test drives in winter , he was signed by Mercedes-Benz for the 2010 season three weeks before the start of the season . As a team mate of Maro Engel , who like Coulthard is a former runner-up in British Formula 3, he started for Mücke Motorsport in an AMG-Mercedes C-Class from 2008 . After missing points in the European races, he scored his first point in eighth place at the season finale in Shanghai and also drove the fastest lap. Coulthard finished the season one position behind Engel in 16th. In 2011 Coulthard contested another DTM season for Mücke Motorsport. He scored his first point of the season in eighth place at the Norisring . In Valencia he finished in sixth place, but because his car did not meet the rules in qualifying, he was disqualified. Within the team, Coulthard was again defeated by Engel and came in 16th overall.

In 2012 Coulthard completed his third DTM season for Mücke Motorsport. With the DTM AMG Mercedes C-Coupé , he received a current Mercedes DTM model for the first time. In the race at the Norisring, he achieved his best DTM position to date with fifth place. Coulthard scored 14 points and was 15th overall. It was his best overall result in the DTM. At the end of the season he announced his retirement from the DTM.

Personal

Coulthard has a brother and a sister and was with the Boy Scouts when he was a child .

On November 27, 2013, he married Karen Minier, a Belgian Formula 1 reporter, in Monaco . They have a daughter together. There he owns and operates a hotel together with a business partner. Since December 2005 he also owns shares in another hotel; another of the Dakota chain is currently being built in Scotland.

Coulthard's father Duncan opened a David Coulthard Museum in the family's hometown, Twynholm , in 1999 . All trophies, helmets and some of the karts that David Coulthard drove are on display . The museum also had a restaurant. At the end of Coulthard's Formula 1 career in 2008, the museum was closed.

On May 2, 2000, Coulthard survived the crash of a Learjet 35 he had rented . On the flight from Farnborough to Nice, problems with the left engine forced the pilots to make an emergency landing at Lyon Saint-Exupéry Airport (France). On landing, the plane touched the runway with the left wing, turned left, broke and caught fire. Both pilots were killed. Coulthard, his fiancée Heidi Wichlinski and his personal trainer and bodyguard Andy Matthews survived the accident. The BEA blamed the pilot for the unfortunate outcome of the emergency landing. Despite the crash and cracked ribs, he competed in the Spanish Grand Prix three days later and took second place.

"DC" - as Coulthard is called by friends - also became known in the press through affairs and relationships with models. Coulthard was engaged to Heidi Wichlinski and Simone Abdelnour. Since June 2006 Coulthard is engaged to the Belgian Karen Minier, a former Formula 1 reporter. She brought a daughter from a previous relationship into the connection. In November 2008 Coulthard became a father and Minier gave birth to a son.

In his 2007 autobiography "It is what it is" (translated: "It is what it is") Coulthard wrote that he suffered from bulimia in his youth .

Coulthard is a second cousin of the New Zealand racing driver Fabian Coulthard .

In 2010 he was honored by Queen Elizabeth II with the inclusion in the fifth highest order of knights in the British Kingdom and is a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) .

social commitment

Coulthard is an ambassador for the Wings for Life Foundation. The foundation, established in 2004, is dedicated to the research and healing of paraplegia.

statistics

Career stations

1982–1988: karting 1989: British Formula Ford 1600 (champion) 1990: Formula Vauxhall Lotus (4th place) 1990: Formula Opel Euroseries (5th place) 1991: British Formula 3 (2nd place) 1992 : Formula 3000 (9th place) 1993 : Formula 3000 (3rd place) 1993 : Formula 1 (test driver) 1994 : Formula 3000 (9th place) 1994 : Formula 1 (8th place)

1995 : Formula 1 (3rd place) 1996 : Formula 1 (7th place) 1997 : Formula 1 (3rd place) 1998 : Formula 1 (3rd place) 1999 : Formula 1 (4th place) 2000 : Formula 1 (3rd place) 2001 : Formula 1 (2nd place) 2002 : Formula 1 (5th place) 2003 : Formula 1 (7th place) 2004 : Formula 1 (10th place)

2005 : Formula 1 (12th place) 2006 : Formula 1 (13th place) 2007 : Formula 1 (10th place) 2008 : Formula 1 (16th place) 2009 : Formula 1 (test driver) 2010 : Formula 1 (test driver) 2010 : DTM (16th place) 2011 : DTM (16th place) 2012 : DTM (15th place)

Statistics in the Formula 1 World Championship

Grand Prix victories

1995:  Portugal  ( Estoril ) 1997:  Australia  ( Melbourne ) 1997:  Italy  ( Monza ) 1998:  San Marino  ( Imola ) 1999:  Great Britain  ( Silverstone )

1999:  Belgium  ( Spa-Francorchamps ) 2000:  Great Britain  (Silverstone) 2000:  Monaco  ( Monte Carlo ) 2000:  France  ( Magny-Cours ) 2001:  Brazil  ( Interlagos )

2001:  Austria  ( Spielberg ) 2002:  Monaco  (Monte Carlo) 2003:  Australia  (Melbourne)

general overview

season	team	chassis	engine	run	Victories	Second	Third	Poles	nice Race laps	Points	WM-Pos.
1994	Rothmans Williams Renault	Williams FW16  /  FW16B	Renault 3.5 V10	8th	-	1	-	-	2	14th	8th.
1995	Rothmans Williams Renault	Williams FW17  /  FW17B	Renault 3.0 V10	17th	1	4th	3	5	2	49	3.
1996	Marlboro McLaren Mercedes	McLaren MP4 / 11	Mercedes 3.0 V10	16	-	1	1	-	-	18th	7th
1997	West McLaren Mercedes	McLaren MP4 / 12	Mercedes 3.0 V10	17th	2	2	-	-	1	36	3.
1998	West McLaren Mercedes	McLaren MP4 / 13	Mercedes 3.0 V10	16	1	6th	2	3	3	56	3.
1999	West McLaren Mercedes	McLaren MP4 / 14	Mercedes 3.0 V10	16	2	4th	-	-	3	48	4th
2000	West McLaren Mercedes	McLaren MP4 / 15	Mercedes 3.0 V10	17th	3	3	5	2	3	73	3.
2001	West McLaren Mercedes	McLaren MP4-16	Mercedes 3.0 V10	17th	2	3	5	2	3	65	2.
2002	West McLaren Mercedes	McLaren MP4-17	Mercedes 3.0 V10	17th	1	1	4th	-	1	41	5.
2003	West McLaren Mercedes	McLaren MP4-17D	Mercedes 3.0 V10	16	1	1	1	-	-	51	7th
2004	West McLaren Mercedes	McLaren MP4-19  /  MP4-19B	Mercedes 3.0 V10	18th	-	-	-	-	-	24	10.
2005	Red Bull Racing	Red Bull RB1	Cosworth 3.0 V10	18th	-	-	-	-	-	24	12.
2006	Red Bull Racing	Red Bull RB2	Ferrari 2.4 V8	18th	-	-	1	-	-	14th	13.
2007	Red Bull Racing	Red Bull RB3	Renault 2.4 V8	17th	-	-	-	-	-	14th	10.
2008	Red Bull Racing	Red Bull RB4	Renault 2.4 V8	18th	-	-	1	-	-	8th	16.
total				246	13	26th	23	12	18th	535

Single results

season	1	2	3	4th	5	6th	7th	8th	9	10	11	12	13	14th	15th	16	17th	18th	19th
1994
					DNF	5		5	DNF	DNF	4th	6 *	2
1995
	2	DNF	4th	DNF	DNF	DNF	3	3	2	2	DNF	DNF	1	3	2	DNF	DNF
1996
	DNF	DNF	7th	3	DNF	2	DNF	4th	6th	5	5	DNF	DNF	DNF	13	8th
1997
	1	10	DNF	DNF	DNF	6th	7th	7 *	4th	DNF	DNF	DNF	1	2	DNF	10 *	2
1998
	2	2	6th	1	2	DNF	DNF	6th	DNF	2	2	2	7th	DNF	3	3
1999
	DNF	DNF	2	DNF	2	7th	DNF	1	2	5	2	1	5	DNF	DNF	DNF
2000
	DNF	DSQ	3	1	2	3	1	7th	1	2	3	3	4th	DNF	5	3	2
2001
	2	3	1	2	5	1	5	DNF	3	4th	DNF	DNF	3	2	DNF	3	3
2002
	DNF	DNF	3	6th	3	6th	1	2	DNF	10	3	5	5	4th	7th	3	DNF
2003
	1	DNF	4th	5	DNF	5	7th	DNF	15th	5	5	2	5	DNF	DNF	3
2004
	8th	6th	DNF	12	10	DNF	DNF	6th	7th	6th	7th	4th	9	7th	6th	9	DNF	11
2005
	4th	6th	8th	11	8th	DNF	4th	7th	DNS	10	13	7th	DNF	7th	15th	DNF	DNF	6th	9
2006
	10	DNF	8th	DNF	DNF	14th	3	12	8th	7th	9	11	5	15 *	12	9	DNF	DNF
2007
	DNF	DNF	DNF	5	14th	DNF	DNF	13	11	5	11	10	DNF	DNF	4th	8th	9
2008
	DNF	9	18th	12	9	DNF	3	9	DNF	13	11	17th	11	16	7th	DNF	10	DNF

Legend
colour	abbreviation	meaning
gold	-	victory
silver	-	2nd place
bronze	-	3rd place
green	-	Placement in the points
blue	-	Classified outside the point ranks
violet	DNF	Race not finished (did not finish)
	NC	not classified
red	DNQ	did not qualify
	DNPQ	failed in pre-qualification (did not pre-qualify)
black	DSQ	disqualified
White	DNS	not at the start (did not start)
	WD	withdrawn
Light Blue	PO	only participated in the training (practiced only)
	TD	Friday test driver
without	DNP	did not participate in the training (did not practice)
	INJ	injured or sick
	EX	excluded
	DNA	did not arrive
	C.	Race canceled
		no participation in the World Cup
other	P / bold	Pole position
	SR / italic	Fastest race lap
	*	not at the finish, but counted due to the distance covered
	()	Streak results
	underlined	Leader in the overall standings

Le Mans results

year	team	vehicle	Teammate	Teammate	placement	Failure reason
1993	TWR Jaguar Racing	Jaguar XJ220	David Brabham	John Nielsen	Disqualified	Exhaust

Individual results in the DTM

season	team	Manufacturer	1	2	3	4th	5	6th	7th	8th	9	10	11	Points	rank
2010	Mücke Motorsport	Mercedes	HO1	VAL	LAU	NOR	ONLY	ZAN	BRH	OSC	HO2	ADR	SHA	1	16.
			12	13	DNF	13	10	12	12	14th	DNF	10	8th
2011	Mücke Motorsport	Mercedes	HO1	ZAN	SPI	LAU	NOR	ONLY	BRH	OSC	VAL	HO2		1	16.
			10	16	9	13	8th	17th	12	10	DSQ	17th
2012	Mücke Motorsport	Mercedes	HO1	LAU	BRH	SPI	NOR	ONLY	ZAN	OSC	VAL	HO2		14th	15th
			8th	12	15th	DNF	5	20th	DNF	DNF	11	DNF

Legend
colour	abbreviation	meaning
gold	-	victory
silver	-	2nd place
bronze	-	3rd place
green	-	Placement in the points
blue	-	Classified outside the point ranks
violet	DNF	Race not finished (did not finish)
	NC	not classified
red	DNQ	did not qualify
	DNPQ	failed in pre-qualification (did not pre-qualify)
black	DSQ	disqualified
White	DNS	not at the start (did not start)
	WD	withdrawn
Light Blue	PO	only participated in the training (practiced only)
	TD	Friday test driver
without	DNP	did not participate in the training (did not practice)
	INJ	injured or sick
	EX	excluded
	DNA	did not arrive
	C.	Race canceled
		no participation in the World Cup
other	P / bold	Pole position
	SR / italic	Fastest race lap
	*	not at the finish, but counted due to the distance covered
	()	Streak results
	underlined	Leader in the overall standings

Web links

Commons : David Coulthard  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

 Wikinews: David Coulthard  - on the news

• Official website of David Coulthard
• Career statistics from David Coulthard
• Literature by and about David Coulthard in the catalog of the German National Library

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Davidcoulthard - website: Career highlights. Archived from the original on November 15, 2008 ; Retrieved December 7, 2012 . 
2. ^ "David Coulthard soon in the DTM?" ( Memento from January 31, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) (speed academy on January 26, 2010)
3. ↑ "December 1994" (teamdan.com; accessed April 24, 2010)
4. ↑ "August 1995" ( Memento of the original from May 5, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (teamdan.com; accessed April 24, 2010) 
5. ↑ "David Coulthard announces resignation"  ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) (Auto-motor-und-sport.de on July 3, 2008)
6. ↑ "Coulthard back in action in Shanghai?" (Motorsport-Total.com on April 15, 2010)
7. ^ "Mercedes confirms Coulthard deal" (Motorsport-Total.com on April 4, 2010)
8. ↑ "DTM - Coulthard & Schumacher remain DTM" (Motorsport-Magazin.com on April 6, 2011)
9. ↑ "Coulthard and van der Zande: Relocation or not?" (Motorsport-Total.com on October 1, 2011)
10. ↑ "DTM - Coulthard also drives for Mercedes in 2012" (Motorsport-Magazin.com on February 29, 2012)
11. ^ "Coulthard resigns at the end of the season". focus.de, October 18, 2012, accessed October 24, 2012 . 
12. ↑ Interview with José Redondo-Vega, in: Focus Style No. 2, July 2020, p. 38.
13. ↑ BEA Report g-ri000502a
14. ^ "Coulthard's son is called Dayton" (Motorsport-Total.com on November 24, 2008)
15. ^ "Coulthard Mk II makes his mark" (bbc.co.uk on January 7, 2002)
16. ↑ Christian Nimmervoll: “British Order of Merit for Coulthard” , Motorsport Total, June 12, 2010
17. ↑ Sportmeetscharity - Internet site: David Coulthard. (No longer available online.) At: www.sportmeetscharity.de , formerly in the original ; Retrieved December 7, 2012 .  ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )