Coulthard, who had finished second here in the previous four years, won by just 2.1 seconds from Schumacher who passed Ferrari team-mate Rubens Barrichello on the final lap to take second.

The flying Scot’s second win of the season and 11th of his career left him just four points behind the reigning champion with 11 races left.

Sauber’s Kimi Raikkonen was fourth with Olivier Panis fifth for BAR while Jos Verstappen scored Arrows’ first points of the season with sixth place.

Eddie Irvine was seventh for Jaguar Racing while Jenson Button retired with a blown engine in his Benetton when lying 12th and last with seven laps left.

Coulthard’s win lifted the gloom in the McLaren camp following the death of Paul Morgan, who co-founded the Ilmor company that builds the F1 engines for Mercedes, in a plane crash in Northamptonshire.

But Coulthard, who maintained his record of finishing in the points in every race this season, would not have won but for pole sitter Schumacher’s tangle with Montoya.

The German ended up in the grass after being forced wide while attempting to overtake the Williams driver who had overtaken him at the start and dropped from second to seventh.

Coulthard went on to win after overtaking Barrichello in the pit-stops late in the 71-lap battle that began in farcical fashion.

Four cars stalled on the grid as they probably hit problems with the computer software of their launch control systems.

The unlucky quartet included Mika Hakkinen who is now 34 points behind McLaren team-mate Coulthard and virtually out of title contention.