Coulthard takes pride in F1 record

David Coulthard climbed out of a Formula One car for potentially the last time after 11 seasons claiming his success has been undervalued.

The Scot is sixth in Formula One’s all-time points-scoring list, putting him above multiple world champions such as Sir Jackie Stewart, Niki Lauda and Juan Manuel Fangio.

Coulthard’s 11th place in yesterday’s Brazilian Grand Prix was his last race for McLaren after 150 for the team and he is facing an uphill battle to find a new seat for next season.

He will be replaced by Juan Pablo Montoya at McLaren but has to hope he is chosen to fill the Colombian’s vacancy at Williams, who are on the look-out for a new driver after Jenson Button’s move there was blocked.

Coulthard finds himself up against the likes of Antonio Pizzonia and Nick Heidfeld in the race for the Williams seat, drivers who have between them scored just 37 world championship points.

Coulthard has led more races than any driver in history without winning a world championship and feels his record is often forgotten.

“You’re either a world champion or you’re not,” he told the Press Association.

“But I’ve got 13 wins, 60 podiums, sixth in the all-time points list. The reality is those are the facts, they say who has succeeded, so those numbers are relevant.

“A lot of these guys here are behind me, with only Michael in front of me in terms of the drivers in Formula One now. They would be quite happy if you offered them that record.

“Given that I’ve never been into self-promotion, my motivation has never been to be a star or a publicly-recognised figure, those stats are probably not that well known.

“I’ve won in pretty much every season I’ve been in Formula One and I’ve won on all the classic tracks, Monte Carlo, Silverstone, Monza and Melbourne.”

Coulthard’s desire to continue in the sport is borne out of a love for Formula One and he is prepared to drive just for bonuses to extend his stay at the top.

Formula One is notoriously political and the 33-year-old states his only regret since making his debut in 1994 as being the win he was forced to concede to title-chasing team-mate Mika Hakkinen in 998.

However, despite the off-track distractions, Coulthard’s love affair with Formula One is still going strong.

“My only regrets in my career are maybe allowing Damon (Hill) to win in Monza or Mika to win in Melbourne, because I won those races in reality but the record books say I was second,” he said.

“I was a fan of the sport before I was involved. Obviously when you get on the inside you see the realities and your view changes with all the politics, rumours and all that kind of thing.

“Otherwise I am a fan of motor racing and I enjoy very much the opportunity to go out there battling.”

McLaren boss Ron Dennis, who is replacing Coulthard with Montoya for next season, paid tribute to Formula One’s most loyal driver.

No racer in the sport’s history has stayed with a team for as many races as Coulthard and Dennis hailed his on and off-track performances.

“His results in the car are apparent, they are a matter of record,” Dennis said.

“I think the most impressive statistic in looking at the fact sheet is every third race he has been on the podium since he joined the team and that’s a pretty incredible achievement.

“It’s also very apparent to anybody who has worked with him is that he’s a gentleman, he has been a fantastic ambassador to our team and to the sport.

“When you look back on his years with us I think I can count on one hand the times I have seen him annoyed and I can’t ever remember him losing his temper. He is a tremendous, talented, well-rounded racing driver.”