Monaco resident and Formula One driver David Coulthard will be driving the last race of his career soon - the Scottish born driver has had a long, often tumultuous career full of drama and danger.
As a teenager, Coulthard won the first ever McLaren/Autosport Young Driver of the Year Award, before moving on to Formula 3 racing. Despite a broken leg early in his racing career, he quickly earned championships in Formula 3 races. After this, he moved up to Formula 3000 racing, eventually reaching third place.
Coulthard became the test driver for Williams-Renault and helped to improve the technology behind the car. Though he intended to remain a tester for the team, a tragic accident brought him to the track as a racer. Aryton Senna was a former world champion who joined the team in 1994, only to be killed in a fatal crash three races into the season. Senna's death is the last driver to be killed while driving a Formula One car.
After Senna's death, Coulthard was promoted to the racing team, alongside teammate Damon Hill. He drove second car most of his first season, even stepping aside for Nigel Mansell to drive four races. Over the following seasons, he would join several different teams, though he had ups and downs in the races. After several disappointing seasons on the McLaren team, he joined Red Bull racing for his final seasons.
Coulthard is fourth on the highest all-time scores list, and is the top British scorer - though he never won a world championship, he is a legend in Formula One racing. His score is higher than many drivers who have won championships, yet the title eluded him his entire career. He says that he had a world-championship winning car, but he failed to win it.
He was nearly killed in an airplane crash in 2000. Engine trouble caused the private plane to crash during an emergency landing in France. The pilot and co-pilot were killed, while the other three passengers survived.
His off-track exploits are notable, as the photogenic driver has been romantically linked to models from all over the world, though he denies many of these accounts. There is a museum dedicated to him in his hometown of Twynholm, which is run by a local fan. Around the time of his retirement, he announced that he is going to be a father in December.
Coulthard has lived in Monaco for some time now, since he enjoyed both the landscape and the tax-free status. He helps run and partly owns a popular Monaco hotel, which fills up a year in advance of the races in Monaco. The hotel has a great location in Fontvieille, as it is perfect for traveling back and forth to the paddock.
While in Monaco, David Coulthard will remain with Red Bull Racing, though he won't be on the team. He'll work within the sport in some capacity, and may return to some form of racing in the future. He plans to remain in Monaco for the time, while he awaits the birth of his first child.
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Monaco Grand Prix information is available with your monaco.com at yourmonaco.com and includes details of how to buy official Monaco F1 tickets.
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