The 31-year-old had arrived in Monte Carlo having won the last race in Austria to close within five points of title pacesetter Michael Schumacher.

Coulthard then produced one of the greatest single laps of his career in qualifying to snatch pole position from his Ferrari rival who was the acclaimed master of Monaco’s mean streets.

The momentum looked to be with Coulthard but his launch control malfunctioned at the start of the race and his McLaren-Mercedes stalled on the grid.

Had he won the race to the first corner, victory would have been well within his sights given the impossibility of overtaking on the tight track.

Forced to start from the back, Coulthard spent half the grand prix forlornly following the slower Arrows of Enrique Bernoldi.

The Scot eventually finished fifth as Schumacher romped to his fifth victory in the Mediterranean Principality. Coulthard has not won a race or been on pole since.

‘‘It went down hill from this point last season,’’ admitted Coulthard, who eventually finished a career-best runner-up in the championship but a record points haul adrift as Schumacher claimed his fifth world title.

‘‘That qualifying lap was a great lap because Monaco is one of the big challenges of the season. The room for error is not there because of the barriers, but you can sense you are on for as fast one.

‘‘When the car stalled I punched the steering wheel in frustration. You curse but that is a ridiculous waste of energy.

‘‘You realise quite quickly that there is nothing you can do and you have to accept you are starting from the back.

‘‘Then I spent 50 laps behind Bernoldi which kept me stewing a bit. Buy you have to keep control of those red mists because it can suddenly end up a disaster.’’

Coulthard knows he is unlikely to produce another pole-winning lap tomorrow when the action resumes after today’s traditional rest day despite finishing third quickest in first practice yesterday.

The Monaco-based driver realises his Mercedes-powered car does not have the pace to match Schumacher’s Ferrari this season or the Williams-BMWs.

‘‘Last year’s pole position is very clear in my mind and in my dreams this week its another pole but the reality is you can’t see a big upset,’’ added Coulthard, who has scored just 10 points this season compared to the 37 he had accrued at the same stage last year.

‘‘This year the sights are set a bit differently because I don’t have a pole position car but I will go out and do the best I can.

‘‘Hopefully we can qualify better here and get on the podium though I would be surprised if Ferrari are suddenly knocked off their perch because they have just got such a strong package at the moment.

‘‘I felt confident going to be Melbourne and it was a bit of a shock that we were not as competitive as we believed the car would be. But I have gone through that initial disappointment now.

‘‘Since then my focus has turned to trying to develop the package. It is not as enjoyable as when you go to a race weekend knowing you will have the chance of pole and the opportunity to win.

‘‘This is a different sort of challenge so I am just getting my head down and concentrating on it. The position is not going to change overnight and it might not change until next season.

‘‘It doesn’t mean you to go a race thinking you can’t win because you can’t lower your sights. Otherwise you accept second best and I wont allow myself to do that.’’

Coulthard, who trails Schumacher by 44 points, added: ‘‘There is a lot of work to be done but complaining about it, then going home is not going to solve the problem.

‘‘I have a responsibility to the team and to myself. This is a prime time in my career and hopefully it will remain so for the next few years.

‘‘It is frustrating what’s happened in the past 12 months but that’s part of the sport. My mind now is on using the experience I have and I have been in this position before with McLaren in 1996 and 1997 to get us through it.

‘‘I want us to be more competitive before the end of the season and then have a winning package next year.’’

Schumacher will resume practice tomorrow lying in 11th spot, but will start favourite to land another pole as he bids to equal Ayrton Senna’s record of six wins in F1’s most famous and prestigious race.

Italy’s Jarno Trulli was quickest in practice yesterday with Renault team-mate Jenson Button 10th.

Allan McNish is highly unlikely to hang onto the second spot for Toyota while Eddie Irvine will be hoping to move up from 20th place in his Jaguar.