Coulthard proud of his 500 points

"A point is a point, it doesn't change anything," said the Scot, who had finished the race in ninth but was elevated to eighth when Speed was handed a penalty for overtaking under yellow.

"I've lost so many points in my career because an engine has blown up or because of a situation beyond my control, front wings cracking and being illegal after the event, that you have to accept that you lose points.

"But those are the rules and I've very proud of that achievement," Coulthard told reporters at Imola."

Coulthard become only the fourth driver in history to reach the 500-point mark, only behind Michael Schumacher, Alain Prost and the late Ayrton Senna.

The Scot is the only of the four who never won a title.

"I'm sure that most people in the paddock would imagine that I don't deserve to be there," added Coulthard, "but the reality is, that statistics can be adapted to tell a different story, but in my 198 Grands Prix I've scored those points and you can't take that away.

"I'm proud that of those 500 points I'll be adding more to them."