Feature: Crunch Time for Coulthard

Whither David Coulthard?

The question already looks likely to trouble the Scot for much of the Formula One season, just as former champion Jacques Villeneuve's increasingly doomed search for a job provided endless speculation last year.

McLaren have announced the arrival of Colombian Juan Pablo Montoya from Williams in 2005 and it would be surprising if his partner was anyone other than last year's runner-up Kimi Raikkonen.

A report in Autosport magazine last week that McLaren had taken up an option on Raikkonen was hardly a stunning revelation.

Given that the team see the Finn as a future champion and would have wanted Montoya this year had he been available, one did not need a crystal ball to figure out that Coulthard's future looks to be elsewhere - unless something entirely unpredictable happens.

This year is a make-or-break one for Britain's top driver, a man who has won more races than many a champion of the past while failing to land the big prize. While he is in a far stronger position than Villeneuve, having won races recently for a top team, the 32-year-old still needs to perform if he is to stay in a competitive car.

Good Enough

Former mentor and champion Jackie Stewart is confident Coulthard, who raced well enough last season but had a bad case of the yips when it came to one lap qualifying, can do it and possibly even take the title.

"He has got a lot to offer as a driver. He has immense experience and when everything is working for him he's as good as it gets," Stewart said.

The question remains whether the Monaco resident, whose plush hotel is full of Monte Carlo rally people this weekend, can get everything working for him at a team awaiting the arrival of another man. His friend Villeneuve, without a drive after being replaced at BAR, cast doubt on that soon after McLaren announced Montoya's signing.

"How can David perform next season, how can he feel wanted now?," asked the Canadian.

But Coulthard must. Otherwise, as Britain's Sun newspaper declared in a headline last month, "You'll be staring at the chop if you flop."

The last week has focused attention on his options, with teams launching new cars and discussing their aims and ambitions. Toyota and Jaguar, the teams that most pundits agree would be a good bet for him, did little to fuel the speculation.

"If Ralf (Schumacher) or David came knocking at my door then I would look more seriously at Ralf," said outgoing Toyota principal Ove Andersson, now a team advisor.

Jaguar could have a vacancy were Australian Mark Webber to be lured away by Williams or if Austrian rookie Christian Klien proved a disappointment. At the moment, they want to hang on to both and Jaguar's managing director David Pitchforth said on Sunday he had not thought about Coulthard.

Last Race

Williams, where Coulthard started in 1994, have a declared vacancy but they have rejected one swap for Montoya suggested informally last season by McLaren boss Ron Dennis.

"There was never a chance we would let him go early. Juan's a winner. Why would we want to oblige Ron, to take David Coulthard?" said Frank Williams, whose team launched their car at the beginning of the month.

The Scot's manager Martin Brundle, the former Grand Prix racer turned television commentator, admits that his man must drive well all season to impress the right people. He also revealed last month how Coulthard turned to him after the season-ending Japanese Grand Prix in October and said: "This must not be my last race in 2004."

On that, at least, the Scot can be reassured, since Brazil ends the season this year rather than Suzuka. The rest is still up in the air.