Hill: Red Bull Can Liberate Coulthard

Red Bull Racing can be a liberation for David Coulthard in Formula One after nine years at McLaren, according to former World Champion Damon Hill.

"I think it will be good for David to get out of the McLaren environment," he told Autosport magazine on Thursday.

"He's a very talented driver but for too long he's been concerned about how he comes across," said the Briton, Coulthard's team mate at Williams in 1994.

"He's got an opportunity to stick two fingers up to everything and just drive like he can...he really just needs to be himself and stop worrying about everything else."

Coulthard, 33 and winner of 13 Grands Prix, signed for Red Bull last month just as his Formula One career appeared to have reached the end of the road. Hill, who won the 1996 Championship with Williams aged 36, said Coulthard could still have several years of racing ahead of him.

But fellow-Briton Eddie Irvine, who retired in 2002 after being dropped by the Jaguar team taken over last November by Red Bull, suggested the Scot should resign himself to being an also-ran.

"At the end of the day, he couldn't do a decent job in a McLaren, so what chance is there?" said the former Ferrari driver. "He's been in the best car for most of his career and the lack of results wasn't much down to McLaren.

"Coming from there he's going to get the shock of his lifetime," added the Northern Irishman. "Realistically, though, it's all over. There are too many young guys coming in who are better.

"He's only being hired because he's done 11 seasons of F1. He's not being hired because they think he's God's gift to racing drivers."