Schumacher is feeling the heat

David Coulthard capitalised on Schumacher's bad luck to finish second for McLaren and visit the podium for the first time since the opening day of the season when he won in Australia.

Unlike the Scot, who is well out of the title race, Kimi Raikkonen and Ralf Schumacher are still within striking distance despite failing to pick up points here after mayhem at the start which left the young Finn battered and bruised in his wrecked McLaren-Mercedes.

Rather than curse his fate, perhaps, Raikkonen was wise to be grateful for escaping serious injury from the accident which was later attributed to the careless driving of the younger Schumacher.

After careering at high speed into the tyre-wall crash barrier at the first right-hand bend and spinning like a top as parts flew off his racer, the McLaren driver received treatment at the track hospital for minor neck and leg injuries.

He said: 'I'd made a good start and was past Rubens Barrichello on the outside when he hit my rear tyre. There was nowhere for me to go except into the tyre-wall. At least I'm OK even if I'm a little sore.'

The primary crash was followed by a series of concertina collisions which claimed more victims, among them English rookies Ralph Firman (Jordan) and Justin Wilson, who had made a sensational debut for Jaguar on Friday only to be brought swiftly down to earth.

Firman kept going after a crash with Heinz-Harald Frentzen's Sauber, only to run into Wilson's car as he disentangled himself from a shunt with the BAR of Jacques Villeneuve.

Wilson, who has made a good early impression on Jaguar, said: 'It's been quite a weekend all in all. I've learned a lot and there's so much more I need to do. The car, the team and everyone involved are great to work with and I can only hope for better joy in Hungary.'

It was not a good day for either Schumacher. Michael, having avoided the clutter and debris because of a relatively poor start, spent much of the race behind the impressive Renaults of Fernando Alonso and then Jarno Trulli.

He made his scheduled two pitstops before eventually catapulting himself into second place on lap 59 with a bold overtaking manoeuvre on Trulli after the Spitzkehre hairpin.

Coulthard, who had an excellent race that may well have clinched his team place for another year, did the same thing against the tiring Italian a lap later.

Schumacher said: 'It was an obvious disappointment but at least I'm still leading the championship. As I expected, Williams are emerging as the main rivals.

'It's going to be very close, the title battle will be very exciting as I've always imagined it would be and I'm looking forward to the fight.'

Perhaps so, and he will have to earn every penny of the £20m pay-packet he gets annually from the Italian grandees if he is to keep the Williams-BMW hounds at bay.

They have a distinct edge, particularly shod with the Michelin tyres that seem to operate so well in the sort of high temperatures we had at Hockenheim and are likely to encounter in Hungary in three weeks, when F1 resumes after a short summer break.

Many of the mechanics, engineers, public relations and motor-home personnel will be on holiday with their families from today.

But both Schumacher brothers, Montoya and Raikkonen will have plenty of things to ponder beyond the sun, sea and sand.