David Coulthard: Didn’t go beyond 4th gear today, at F1 we do seven

Former Formula One driver David Coulthard performs a doughnut in his RB7 car at Bandra yesterday. Pic/Sameer Markande

Thirteen-time Formula One Grand Prix-winner David Coulthard thrilled a 20,000-strong audience at Bandra's Bandstand promenade on Sunday as he revved up the RB7 in which a certain Sebastian Vettel won the Indian GP thrice (from 2011 to 2013).

Coulthard, 51, sped across the refurbished street as part of the Red Bull Showrun, doing multiple up-and-down sprints in his insanely loud machine.

He wowed the audience with his doughnuts across different spots on the promenade before the extreme heat - a soaring 37°C - brought his machine to a grinding halt. A team of Red Bull technicians immediately approached the overheated vehicle and cooled it down even as Coulthard calmly stepped out and waved the Indian flag for the cheering spectators.

Also read: David Coulthard: ‘We should have a Grand Prix here'

"I did not go beyond fourth gear. We go seven gears during F1 races. We don't have a speedometer. In F1, we work with lap times," replied Coulthard when asked about the top speed he clocked here in comparison to the pace that drivers hit in F1 races.

"I have worked with three teams [Williams, McLaren, Red Bull] in F1, who have all been world champions, but what's different with Red Bull is that they came from no success over four years, built a good team and then won the World Championship," added Coulthard, who was joined by Lithuanian freestyle stunt biker Aras Gibieza, who performed some gravity-defying wheelies and acrobatics on his KTM Duke 790 during the two-hour event.