Coulthard calls for mandatory pitstops

The Scot also hit out at former FIA president Max Mosley for the raft of changes he introduced during his tenure, and which Coulthard reckons have not worked to make racing better.

"I hope Max Mosley, watching from his ivory tower after relinquishing his post as president of Formula 1's governing body last autumn, enjoyed the Bahrain Grand Prix on Sunday," wrote Coulthard in his column for the Daily Telegraph.

"Revs limited to 18,000rpm, the ban on in-race refuelling, standardised gearboxes and engines, a single tyre supplier; all initiatives introduced during his tenure at the FIA, all of which appear to have done little for the show if Bahrain is anything to go on."

He added: "I don't want to sound too melodramatic as I'm sure that given different conditions - rain at Interlagos, say - the race might well have been the classic we all hoped for. But in truth it was processional; a test of reliability rather than racing."

Coulthard believes the teams have to take part of the blame for the lack of action too, as they had the chance to make a minimum of two pitstops mandatory, but they passed on the opportunity before the start of the season.

"The teams must take their share of the blame as well," he added. "A mandatory two-stop rule was discussed over the winter but some teams felt their machines would go easier on the tyres than others and would not sign up to it.

"It was a prime example of engineers being unable to put aside their competitive instincts for the greater good. Let's hope they start thinking clearly now."

The former F1 driver was also critical of the performance of the new teams, as he believes they should be aiming for more than just finishing races.

"A quick word on the newbies. The weekend, I felt, was a reality-check for Sir Richard Branson, who following the fanfare of his backing Brawn to championship success last year had to settle for a walk down to the back of the grid to see his two Virgin racers.

"And before people write in to say how great it was that both Lotus drivers finished the race; yes it was but should we not expect an F1 car to be able to complete a race? Surely that is a minimum expectation? That said I was impressed by the commitment of all three new teams.

"I wish them luck in their quest to become serious contenders. They are at the equivalent of Everest Base Camp. Now the real challenge begins."