David Coulthard, who made his F1 race debut at the age of 23, has warned of the peril of drivers entering the pinnacle of motorsport at too early an age.

As an example, the Scot, now the third oldest driver on the grid - behind Michael Schumacher and Pedro de la Rosa - referred to current teammate Christian Klien, who looks to be without an F1 drive next season. The Austrian entered F1 in 2004 with Jaguar, aged 21.

"I feel sorry for Christian because he has been unfortunate this year," Coulthard told reporters. "I think he has good speed and he's still very young. People have to remember than when you start at 19 or 20 and you're put in that spotlight with that pressure, you are still a young man, probably still living at home with your parents. We all can remember the transition we go through when we start to stand on our own two feet.

"My opinion is that he's been rushed through too quickly and therefore he hasn't had the chance to show his talent," the Scot continued. "Therefore his period with Red Bull Racing has come to an end too quickly and that makes it difficult for him to find a drive elsewhere in Formula One and that is Formula One's loss because he drives well and his feedback is good.

At a time when the average ago of the (current) F1 grid is 28 years and 9 months, this weekend sees 19-year-old Sebastian Vettel make his debut, thereby becoming the youngest F1 driver in the 56-year history of the F1, while Nico Rosberg and Robert Kubica are both only 21.