ONE of David Coulthard’s most prized possessions isn’t one of his 13 race winners’ trophies… but a helmet (and no, not just that one).
This item was gifted to him in a surprise act of kindness that showed how much respect one of his great F1 rivals had for him in their heyday.
The 1996 Monaco Grand Prix was one of the craziest in F1 history[/caption]
He had to ditch his iconic helmet for the famous race in Monte Carlo[/caption]
The Scot has kept it safe at his family home ever since – so imagine the shock he had when a fan asked if he would sign a “fake” so that he could sell it as the real thing!
Coulthard was one of only THREE drivers to finish the chaotic 1996 Monaco Grand Prix, and the event holds extra significance for him due to the gift he received on the day.
The historic circuit was hit by torrential rainfall just before it was due to start and the wet conditions led to several crashes as the racers struggled to maintain control of their cars.
Reigning world champion Michael Schumacher of Ferrari qualified on pole but hit the wall on the first lap after being overtaken by Damon Hill.
Drama continued to unfold as Hill suffered an engine failure, Jean Alesi had suspension problems before a three-car pile-up on lap 70 of 75 ended the races of Eddie Irvine, Mika Salo and Mika Hakkinen.
The race was won by Frenchman Olivier Panis in the Ligier, his first and only career victory.
Panis, Coulthard’s McLaren and Johnny Herbet’s Sauber (in that order) were the only three cars to cross the finish line (six drivers were classified as having finished as they had completed 90 percent of the race distance).
Despite being sworn enemies on track, Schumacher showed his true colours by helping out Coulthard in the moments before the race.
Coulthard’s trademark helmet, with a Scotland flag emblazoned on it, made him easy to spot on track.
He was even offered of $1 MILLION to ditch the saltire during his career but he turned it DOWN – and this is the story of the one time he did race without it.
In the warm-up, Coulthard’s helmet visor kept steaming up and with the wet conditions leading to excessive water spray, he effectively couldn’t see as he made his way around the twists and turns of the Monte Carlo venue.
But left with no other option in this situation, Coulthard knew he’d have to leave the Scotland flag behind and he approached Schumacher asking if he could borrow his spare helmet for the event.
The German kindly agreed to lend him it and after the race, Coulthard sought out his rival to return it.
But Schumacher insisted Coulthard could keep it.
Speaking on the most recent episode of the Formula For Success podcast alongside the late Eddie Jordan, the Scot recalled: “In the warm-up, I just couldn’t see. My helmet at the time did not have the double visor which helped with fogging.
“I asked Michael if I could keep it and he said yes and then that helmet travelled with my parents back to Scotland.
“Michael, despite all the times we disagreed and fell out, he was a good off-track friend.
“It showed the respect I feel he had for my efforts, the fact he was prepared to not only lend me a helmet but let me keep it afterwards.
However, fast forward to today and there’s been a bizarre twist in the tale.
A Formula 1 fan got in touch with Coulthard asking him to sign the helmet – despite the rare piece of memorabilia still being in his family’s possession.
The 53-year-old said the fact a punter was trying to pass off a fake version of the item as “a bit disappointing”
“I do still have the helmet. Somebody who deals in memorabilia reached out to me to ask me to sign that very helmet because he was selling it!
“I said ‘I think you’ll find that the helmet that you think you’re selling is not the original’.
“The helmet’s with my parents, and I got a picture of my father holding it.
“Somebody out there has been creating replicas of the original and trying to flog it, which is a bit disappointing.
“I can assure you that the original went off my head, into my trainer’s hands and back to Scotland.”
Schumacher and Coulthard were rivals on-track, but good friends off it[/caption]
Coulthard felt Schumacher’s gesture in Monaco showed the respect he had for him[/caption]
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