Coulthard disappointed to miss podium

The Scot finished fourth, less than a second behind the Colombian, while his McLaren-Mercedes team-mate Kimi Raikkonen retired with an engine failure after a weekend that had promised much more.

"It's a pity that we couldn't achieve a better result today," said Coulthard. "My car was not so good in the middle sector and that's why I couldn't get close enough to actually get past Montoya.

"The grip improved after my second stop when there was more rubber on the track and I had a low fuel load, which was why I set my fastest lap times towards the end. A very fast second pitstop by the team enabled me to close right up to Montoya, but unfortunately it was not enough."

Team boss Ron Dennis explained that the "low ambient temperature" was the primary reason why McLaren and its Michelin tyres lost performance compared to qualifying, when Raikkonen was only beaten by Michael Schumacher.

The Finn lost a place to Rubens Barrichello at the start, then almost spun out on lap two and dropped to fourth behind Montoya. He was fifth when his engine failed on lap 36.