How David Coulthard’s lap times compared to Max Verstappen in Red Bull filming day 14 years after he retired

Follow us on Google Discover

David Coulthard was one of Red Bull’s first-ever Formula 1 drivers. Christian Horner recruited him for the brand-new team in 2005 after he left McLaren.

Coulthard would race for the team until retiring at the end of 2008, partnering Christian Klien, Vitantonio Liuzzi, Robert Doornbos and Mark Webber. He ranks sixth on the team’s all-time appearance list.

The Scotsman only scored two podiums across his 71 Grands Prix, including the team’s first-ever top-three finish in Monaco (2006). Back then, the Bulls were a midfield outfit.

Coulthard has remained involved with the team since he stopped racing, alongside his punditry duties. As part of his ambassador role, he’s often involved in the team’s marketing events and still drives their cars in show runs.

David Coulthard reacts to being five seconds slower than Max Verstappen

Back in 2022, Coulthard and Max Verstappen each drove a V8-era Red Bull for a single flying lap of the Imola circuit. The duo were filming for a documentary.

51 years old at the time, Coulthard says he was five seconds off the pace of Verstappen. He was satisfied with that effort, given his relative lack of fitness and sharpness.

With more time in the cockpit, he’s confident he could lower the gap to two seconds. Coulthard won 13 Grands Prix during his career – only Stirling Moss (16) has taken more victories without becoming a champion.

“I did it actually last year – I filmed for a documentary where I jumped in one of the V8 Formula 1 cars and did a single flying lap at Imola, and Max jumped in and did a single flying lap,” Coulthard said on the Formula for Success podcast.

“I should say I was 51 at the time, I didn’t race Imola the last 15 years… I’m giving you all the excuses!

“His one flying lap versus my one flying lap, he was five seconds faster. I was happy! I don’t race anymore, therefore your mind goes into a different place, I don’t have the need to hang it all out.

“If I was to jump in a car now, maybe I could get that down to a couple of seconds off the pace, but there is no way I could do the same lap times as I used to do.”

Yuki Tsunoda is emulating David Coulthard in the worst possible way at Red Bull

Coulthard says he wasn’t consistent enough to win a title and also admits that Mika Hakkinen had the edge in qualifying. He was the Finn’s teammate for both of his title-winning seasons at the end of the 1990s.

Yuki Tsunoda is scoring similar results to Coulthard at Red Bull in a car, that based on Verstappen’s performances, is much faster. It’s the first time since 2008 that one of the team’s drivers has entered the summer break with 10 points or fewer.

There were far fewer points on offer when Coulthard was racing, which makes that statistic even more damning. The second drivers at Red Bull have recently regressed to the team’s mid-to-late-noughties level.

On average, Tsunoda has been 0.6 seconds slower than Verstappen in qualifying. With the field spread smaller than ever, this often equates to a lower midfield position.