Coulthard's prayers answered with wet win

The race winner gambled on a set-up for rain before the race as the only chance of beating the German.

"I was praying for the rain because we had made some changes to the car for the rain. The team kept saying on the radio 'It's coming, its coming'," said Coulthard.

In a breath-taking mirror of Hakkinen's Spa-winning manoeuvre last year, Coulthard dived down the inside of Tarso Marques to reclaim the lead as Michael Schumacher went around the outside on lap 50.

At the same time he gave his sister the birthday present she had asked for after taking a risky gamble on setting the car up for the rain - and it came.

The Scot notched up the 10th win of his career and closed within six points of Michael Schumacher, who still finished second. In winning, Coulthard brought an end to Schumacher's run of six successive victories from pole.

In a dramatic race, Coulthard kept his cool in the changing conditions to take the lead when Juan Pablo Montoya was punted out by Jos Verstappen on lap 39.

He lost the lead in the pits when the leaders pitted for intermediates, but while Schumacher went off twice in the rain, Coulthard never put a foot wrong.

"It meant an awful lot for me to win this race," said Coulthard

"Winning feels great. I can't remember the last time I won a Grand Prix," he said (the figure's actually 10 races). "I enjoyed this victory a hell of a lot. After the first two races I didn't think wins were going to come that easily. When you start in fifth you don't expect to win the race - you hope but you don't expect to win it."

The Scot mastered the difficult conditions to win while Schumacher faltered. "It was incredibly difficult conditions and in all that traffic you couldn't see anything of car in front," he acknowledged. "You just had to trust other drivers."

Of his dramatic overtaking move he said: "Michael must have lifted slightly in the left kink of the straight, so I was able to slipstream past him on the straight. I was struggling to stay with them at the start of the race but in the damp the car was working very very well."

However, Coulthard acknowledged that but for bad luck, Williams driver Juan Pablo Montoya would have taken the win.

"I am very satisfied to win this race but we were slightly fortunate because Montoya was so strong," he said, before adding: "It was my sister's birthday and she asked me for a win for a present and I am delighted to be able to give it to her."

Schumacher has 26 points and Coulthard 20, while Mika Hakkinen, who stalled on the grid, has only one.

For full results, click here.