Biography
Karting
Coulthard began karting at an early age, graduating to Formula Ford in 1989. His performance was so impressive that he won the first ever McLaren/Autosport Young Driver of the Year award. In 1990, he suffered a broken leg at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, yet still came back the following year to win Formula 3 races at Zandvoort, Netherlands and Macau, China. In 1992, he raced in the Formula 3000 series, finishing ninth, and in 1993 he improved to third overall.
To F1
In 1993, Coulthard became test driver for the world champion Formula One team Williams-Renault and played an important role in advancing the car's technology. For 1994 he stayed with Williams as tester, but following Ayrton Senna's tragic death at Imola, was promoted to the race team alongside Damon Hill for the Spanish Grand Prix. He spent much of the season driving the second car, but had to step aside for ex-champion Nigel Mansell on four occasions. Renault were keen to have a big name in the second Williams, and Mansell, at that time reigning Indycar champion, fitted the bill. Coulthard showed flashes of speed, but errors and bad luck saw him take just one podium, a second-place finish at Estoril. For the last three races he had to sit back and watch Mansell take his place, but it was he, and not Nigel, who would race for Williams full-time in 1995.
Williams
The season saw him demonstrate his undoubted pace, and he won the 1995 Portuguese Grand Prix. There were races where he could have won, but poor luck and mistakes once more cost him. He did score five pole positions, four of them consecutively. However, some unforced errors tarnished his season: at Monza he spun off on the formation lap, whilst in Adelaide he crashed coming into the pits.
McLaren
In 1996, Coulthard contracted with McLaren to drive alongside future champion Mika Häkkinen. His first season with McLaren was unremarkable, as the Mercedes-powered team struggled to find speed. He led at Imola and lost out to an inspired Olivier Panis at Monaco. In 1997, in his second year with McLaren, he finished the drivers championship tied with Jean Alesi for third place (after the disqualification of Michael Schumacher). He had taken two wins and could have added more, but for problems. At Jerez he was on course to win after Jacques Villeneuve moved over, but McLaren ordered him to surrender the win to Häkkinen. In 1998, the McLaren was consistently the fastest car on track, but it was Häkkinen who made the most of it, winning the title. Coulthard took just one win and spent most of the year in a supporting role.
In 1999, a combination of under-performance and bad luck saw him finish the season in fourth place, and McLaren lost the constructors title to Ferrari. Häkkinen became champion, whilst Coulthard won twice. In 2000, he was involved in a tight battle for the drivers championship with Schumacher and Häkkinen, but eventually fell out of contention into a disappointing third place finish. In 2001 he finished the year in second place, but with barely half the points (65) tallied by runaway winner Schumacher (123).
Coulthard's subsequent years at McLaren, from 2002 through 2004, were disappointing as well, as he was regularly out-paced by younger teammate Kimi Räikkönen. Many of Coulthard's critics argue that his decline began in 2003, when the FIA introduced the single-lap qualifying format, causing David to freeze up (i.e. develop stage-fright) during his hot lap. He openly admitted that he did not like the format and was a vocal opponent of the format. With the announcement that Juan Pablo Montoya was to join McLaren in 2005 alongside Räikkönen, 2004 was to be Coulthard's last year with the team. A poor ninth place finish in the final 2004 standings (24 points, equal with the injured Ralf Schumacher) hadn't helped Coulthard's cause for 2005 either.
Red Bull
Signed by Red Bull Racing for 2005, the team were attracted by Coulthard's experience. He was teamed with the inexperienced Christian Klien and Vitantonio Liuzzi. Coulthard's contract at Red Bull Racing was also extended prior to the 2005 British Grand Prix, to prolong Coulthard's Formula One career to at least the end of 2006. David's stint at Red Bull was a renewal for the Scottish driver scoring points in many races and becoming one of the more outspoken and media savvy drivers.
For 2006, he continued at Red Bull, partnered with Christian Klien. For 2006, Red Bull Racing were powered by Ferrari engines, with a contract for Renault engines agreed for 2007 during the 2006 season. Technical director Adrian Newey joined the team from McLaren to design the 2007 car. These positive developments led Coulthard to state that he wished to remain with the team after the 2006 season, and to add to his victory tally with them. On August 7, 2006, the day after the Hungarian Grand Prix where Coulthard finished 5th, it was announced the he had extended his contract with Red Bull Racing for 2007 and is teamed up with Mark Webber.
Among active F1 drivers, Coulthard has the third most wins (13), behind his former teammate Kimi Räikkönen and Fernando Alonso. Coulthard is the highest-scoring British driver ever with 527 points (as of the 2007 Chinese Grand Prix), beating Nigel Mansell's previous record of 482 points. At the 2006 Spanish Grand Prix he also became the 8th member of Formula One's "200 Club", joining Riccardo Patrese, Michael Schumacher, Rubens Barrichello, Gerhard Berger, Andrea de Cesaris, Nelson Piquet and Jean Alesi in the list of drivers to have competed in 200 Grands Prix. In the 2006 Monaco Grand Prix, David Coulthard scored his first podium finish with Red Bull Racing, his best result with the team and also the teams first podium finish. During the trophy presentation, Coulthard wore a red cape as the team was promoting the film "Superman Returns". His impressive form in the 2006 season saw him secure a contract extension for the 2007 season, during which he was partnered by Australian Mark Webber who joined from Williams.
After a slow start to the 2007 season, Coulthard delivered two strong drives at the Bahrain Grand Prix and the Spanish Grand Prix where he picked up the team's first points of the season. On July 6 2007, Red Bull Racing announced that Coulthard's contract had been extended to the end of 2008, meaning he will likely enjoy a second season as F1's 'elder statesman'.
Personal life
Coulthard has lived for some time in the tax haven principality of Monaco, and also owns homes in London and Switzerland. He owns several luxury hotels in Britain and Monaco, including the Columbus, which is located in Monaco's Fontvieille.
On 2 May 2000, while leasing the Learjet of friend David Murray, the aeroplane developed engine trouble while on route to Côte d'Azur International Airport in Nice, and crashed while attempting an emergency landing at Lyon-Satolas airport, France. Coulthard, his then girlfriend the American model Heidi Wichlinski and personal trainer/bodyguard Andy Matthews survived; whilst Murray's personal pilot David Saunders and co-pilot Dan Worley were killed.
Coulthard has a tabloid chequered history in his personal relationships: according to tabloid reports, he has been associated with a number of women. However, in a BBC interview, Coulthard vigorously denied these claims, stating that the tabloid reports were "out of date and inaccurate." He has been associated with a string of women, including supermodel Heidi Klum, Lady Victoria Hervey, and models Andrea Murray and Ruth Taylor. He has been engaged to models Heidi Wichlinski and Simone Abdelnour.
On 2 June 2006, He became engaged to Karen Minier, a Belgian Formula One correspondent for French TV channel TF1, after a whirlwind romance. The couple plan on "marrying in the near future"
The museum in his home village is currently independently run by local fan Wendy McKenzie after previously being run by his family. It continues to attract many visitors from all over the world. It is now the home of the "Twynosi" (A cross between Twynholm and Italian Ferrari fans, the Tifosi. They gather on race days to celebrate (or commiserate) David's result and motorsport in general.
On 7 August 2007, Coulthard released his autobiography, entitled "It is What It Is". In it, he admits that he suffered from bulimia as a teenager.
Coulthard's second cousin, the New Zealander Fabian Coulthard, is also a racing driver.
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