Feature: Coulthard Looks for Extra Lift at Home

If David Coulthard is to win his home Grand Prix for the third time in four years next week, he may need a bit of extra British support at Silverstone.

And should that come at the expense of Ferrari's Michael Schumacher - utterly dominant and heading for a record-equalling fifth title - so much the better, as far as the Scot is concerned.

"Support does help, anything that makes you feel good has a positive influence on your life," Coulthard said. "So the more they boo Michael the better."

The remark was tongue-in-cheek, coming before Schumacher, teammate Rubens Barrichello and Ferrari were fined $1 million this week for their behaviour at the Austrian Grand Prix.

Coulthard does not expect the episode to have much of an effect on how fans behave at Silverstone.

"It might well be that the passing of time will have quietened that whole situation down," he said. "I get the impression that the British fans are much more open to supporting a wide range of teams and nationalities. (Whereas) German fans will tend to support a German driver or something German, whether it be an engine or whatever."

Motivation

Coulthard's team boss Ron Dennis believes the Scot, who won in Monaco, is driving better than ever precisely because Schumacher has the title sewn up.

"When you are not contending for the World Championship, it does reduce the pressure and allows you to drive better," said Dennis.

But Coulthard, who won at Silverstone in 1999 and 2000, retorted: "I disagree completely. I don't know where that came from because it's not something I have ever discussed with him.

"I don't feel any more relaxed today than I was when I was in a position to go for the Championship. It doesn't demotivate me at all to know that I am not going to be on pole position on a normal qualifying run on Saturday."

Coulthard is the only one of the four British drivers in Formula One to have won his home race and the most likely to prevent Schumacher from winning at Silverstone for the first time since 1998.

The central England circuit, a former World War II airfield, is where he won his first road race but, ironically, Ferrari provided one of his strongest impressions as a young spectator.

"I remember standing at the inside of Stowe corner, on the Sunday morning warmup listening to a Ferrari come out of Becketts through the morning mist screaming," he said. "I thought: 'Wow!' It puts shivers down your spine."

Coulthard said it will be tough to win again this year and admitted that winning in Monaco gave him more satisfaction.

"I've won (at Silverstone) a couple of times but I've never actually been that quick. I don't look at it like 'Yes, that's a track I know I could win at,'" he said. "Silverstone is a circuit that we have gone well at in the past but on current form, I would expect Ferrari and Williams to be quicker."