page_title: David Coulthard
section_title: Driving style
hierarchical_section_title: David Coulthard / Driving style
caption_attribution_description: David Coulthard's helmet as a Williams driver.
context_page_description: David Marshall Coulthard, MBE, known as DC, is a British former racing driver from Scotland, later turned presenter, commentator and journalist. He competed in 15 seasons of Formula One between 1994 and 2008, taking 13 Grand Prix victories and 62 podium finishes. He was runner-up in the 2001 championship, driving for McLaren.
  Coulthard began karting at the age of eleven and achieved early success before progressing to car racing in the British Formula Ford Championship and the Formula 3000 series. He first drove in Formula One with Williams in the 1994 season succeeding the late Ayrton Senna. The following year he won his first Grand Prix in Portugal, and then for the 1996 season he moved to McLaren. After winning two races in the 1997 season, he finished 3rd in the World Drivers' Championship in the 1998 season.
  He won five races throughout 1999 and 2000 before finishing 2nd in the Drivers' Championship to Michael Schumacher in 2001. Two more victories followed between 2002 and 2003 before he left McLaren at the end of 2004. He moved to Red Bull in 2005 and secured their first podium a year later. Coulthard retired from Formula One racing at the end of 2008.
context_section_description: Coulthard became known for having a smooth driving style. This style allowed him to perform at circuits where chicanes are common. However, this also meant that he was not suited to modern-day circuit configurations where a majority of the corners are taken at a medium-speed.
  During his Formula Ford career, Coulthard gained a reputation of performing better at races than during qualifying sessions. The problem became particularly prevalent during 2003, when one-lap qualifying was introduced, in an effort for smaller teams to gain more television exposure. Coulthard became an open vocal opponent of the format, saying: "I just don't like the single-lap qualifying format, I don't think it's right that one lap judges whether you are fast or not."
caption: Coulthard's helmet when driving for Williams
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