I Can Beat Schumacher, Says Coulthard

Michael Schumacher and Ferrari can be beaten, rivals say, and David Coulthard believes he is still the man to do it.

Schumacher slammed the door on the Scot's 2001 Championship hopes some months ago but Coulthard hopes to come back stronger next year.

"I can win Grands Prix, I can race and I have improved in qualifying," the McLaren driver said after finishing third in a Japanese Grand Prix won by Ferrari's four-times champion on Sunday.

"If you bring all those factors together then it's a question of 'do you believe you can get the job done if you're given the machinery?'," he said. "And I do and obviously the team do. I feel pretty confident that I can go racing with Michael."

McLaren team boss Ron Dennis seconded that. "Of course," he said when asked if Coulthard, who won two races this year, could beat the German.

"He's done it in the past, there's no reason why he can't do it in the future. Our task is to provide him with the best equipment. If we're in a fortunate position of giving him better equipment it'll be that little bit easier for him. But he's more than capable of beating Michael."

No Illusions

Coulthard's podium in the season-ending race secured him the overall runner-up slot in the standings. But the points tally told the real story - 123 to Schumacher, 65 to Coulthard. In fact, the German alone scored more points than the McLaren team.

Second overall was the highest position Coulthard has achieved in a season but he still won fewer races than Michael's younger brother Ralf in the resurgent BMW-powered Williams. And the Briton was under no illusions about Michael's motivation either, after the German came back strongly from two low-key performances.

"He didn't have to (push) did he? He'd won the Championship and then again, isn't that maturity as well?," asked Coulthard. "The bottom line is that he (Michael) will always be there, getting the maximum he can out of his car.

"We need to have a car which is at least the equal, preferably better, and then we take it from there. We need to develop the car better from a driving point of view, we need to design better parts and create more power. The whole shooting match."

Dominance

Ferrari have now won the past three Constructors' titles in a row, ending Mercedes-powered McLaren's period of dominance. This season, the Italian team have suffered just one engine failure during a race while McLaren have been troubled repeatedly with mechanical gremlins.

The most dramatic failure was that suffered by Finland's Mika Hakkinen in Spain, when his clutch exploded five bends from the chequered flag as he was heading towards a commanding victory. But Coulthard has also been let down by the electronic 'launch control' software used for a quick getaway at starts and by blown engines.

"Ultimately it comes down to getting the package right," said the 30-year-old Coulthard. "If we can just make a car like this but with more grip and more horses then we'll be okay because it's a well-balanced car. It's just not quick enough."

"I want to be better," he said. "I obviously didn't win this Grand Prix but I felt quite good physically in the car. But I don't want to feel quite good, I want to feel easy-peasy."