Coulthard still has it

Red Bull Racing boss Christian Horner believes David Coulthard still has "a great deal to offer" Formula One as he heads into his 13th season at the top. The Scotsman won 13 grands prix during his time at Williams and McLaren before switching to Formula One rookies Red Bull last year.

Despite arriving on the back of a downbeat 2004 campaign, Coulthard was the surprise of last season to inspire a better-than-expected performance from Red Bull.
He was quickly retained for this year, to partner youngster Christian Klien, and team boss Horner is tipping the 34-year-old as a force to be reckoned with for some time yet.
Christian Horner, team boss "I think David really enjoyed driving for Red Bull Racing and that was reflected in his performances. He is more relaxed, has tremendous experience and is one of the most successful drivers out there. He has been an asset and has led development for us. His performances last year were very strong and he was unlucky not to get on the podium in Monaco, Australia or the Nurburgring. So we are looking to build on that for next year. David is only 34 and he still has a great deal to offer."

One of Coulthard's most significant moves last season was to convince design guru Adrian Newey to swap McLaren for Red Bull. Coulthard won all his grands prix in Newey-designed cars and the Scotsman's reassurances helped convince Newey to join the ambitious Red Bull outfit.

Horner is keen to praise Coulthard's contribution off-track as well as on it, pointing to his input into the team's long-term planning.
"He was giving us direction and with his wealth of experience he helped identify what we needed to do. Our engineers worked well with him during the year, we managed to strengthen the team, and that has been a good part of the process."