The Brazilian Grand Prix at Sao Paolo not only the Formula 1 came to an end but also something of an era. David Coulthard, one of the last drivers to take part in Formula 1 races in the last millennium, was going into well-earned racing-driver retirement – after no less than 15 years in the Formula 1 circus. ‘I’m really looking forward to my new life,’ says the 37-year-old, who, instead of wind canals will be dealing with wind-breaking and feeding times instead of lap times: ‘Becoming a father and having a baby at home – that’s going to be something totally new for me.’
The blackest day of early Formula 1 history marked the beginning of David’s Formula 1 career. Aged 23, one month after Ayrton Senna fatal accident, on May 29, 1994, David Coulthard took over the Williams cockpit at the Grand Prix in Barcelona. One year later he celebrated his first Formula 1 victory in Estoril. Changing to McLaren in 1996, the aspiring Scotsman then celebrated his greatest successes. With McLaren David Coulthard won 12 Formula 1 races; was runner-up champion in 2001, and three times finished third in the overall table. In 1998 he and Mika Häkkinen were instrumental in securing the last constructors’ title to date for McLaren. In 2005, following nine years as ‘water carrier’ with McLaren, it was time for David Coulthard to look for a new challenge.
The newly-founded Red Bull Racing Team gave David Coulthard the opportunity to start afresh. Right from the beginning he consistently collected points for the new Formula 1 team. At the Monaco Grand Prix in 2006 David surprised the majority of his competition with a one-stop strategy, and was rewarded with his first podium for Red Bull Racing. In the VIP box David appeared wearing a Superman cape – the Red Bull Racing Team was promoting the movie ‘Superman Returns’ in Monte Carlo. For Adrian Newey, whose way of working was familiar to David from his McLaren times, David provided valuable help in developing the car. And he’s remained fast right up to the end, winning the last podium to date at the Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal.
But Coulthard won’t be losing touch with the Formula 1 scene; he’s staying on as the Red Bull Racing Team’s consultant. ‘I’ll be able to pass on my experience from the times when we used slicks, for example – or be coaching the juniors,’ he said. The change behind the scenes of a Red Bull team is a reminder of many other similar situations that connect David to Gerhard Berger. Both were long-time drivers (Coulthard: 15 years, 246 GPs; Berger: 14 years, 210 GPs) and were directors of the drivers’ union GPDA, thus also being responsible for safety issues. David (McLaren, Williams) as well as Gerhard (Ferrari, McLaren) have spent the majority of their time in top teams and have also brought another team to the front mid-field (Coulthard: Red Bull Racing, Berger: Benetton). Neither of them ever won the World Championship title, but over the years both the Tyrolean and the Scotsman got to see the world from the top step of the podium more times than many others could ever dream of.
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