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F1: Better To Be Fast and Fragile, Says Coulthard
Written by: Adam Cooper
RACER Magazine   http://www.racer.com/speedtv
04/18/2007 - 07:00 PM
Manama, Bahrain
 


The RB3 proved fast but unreliable in Bahrain. (LAT Photo) ยป More Photos

David Coulthard says he was happier to retire a competitive car in Bahrain rather than plod around outside the points.

The Red Bull driver was one of the surprises of the Sakhir race. He charged through the field after gearbox problems put him near the back in qualifying, before ultimately succumbing to a driveshaft problem when destined for a top eight finish.

"We've got to be realistic," he told SPEEDtv.com. "Painful as it is to park the car, I would rather park the car having had a good race, than have what we had last year, which was a slow car that wasn't good for anyone.

"I'm happy to have had the opportunity to go racing. Obviously I've always felt that's my strength, to race. I had the strategy and the car to use the braking, and I benefited a little bit from the safety car, because it bunched everyone up. Nevertheless, before the safety car I gained places at the start."



Catch up on the latest in Formula 1 each month in RACER. Scott Speed relates the story behind his turbulent off-season with the Toro Rosso team in our May issue, on sale now!


Despite starting near the back DC bucked the usual strategy trend by taking a relatively light fuel load rather than running as long as possible. That helped him to overtake the midfield runners ahead.

"I think
we got the fuel strategy just right, because more fuel would have made the car more nervous. The circuit is a very oversteery circuit, and with the wind as well, it was very unpredictable. But I just have enough to be able to slide it and bring it back, and that enabled me to get in a position to overtake."

In the end Coulthard was stopped by a driveshaft failure, which might have been related to the transmission problem he had in qualifying.

"We kept the suspension, but we were allowed to change the gearbox. Maybe something was damaged, but whatever happened, at the end of the day, if it fails, it's not good."

Coulthard says he was pleased with the overall pace of the car: 'I was disappointed to have another failure, but we have to look for the positives, and we were quicker than Renault, and they're the current World Champions. As quickly as they've gone backwards, we've gone forwards.

"Obviously we're still a long way from Ferrari and McLaren and BMW Sauber, but I believe we are better than last year, and there are still improvements to come. It's race three, our goal has got to be trying to be the fourth team by the time we get into the middle of the season.

"You just need to look at the history of F1. The teams that are winning are those that have been around for several years, and they've had the same people in place for several years. We're a relatively young team still, and at certain points we're in front of Renault and Toyota, two big manufacturers."