Saturday May 6th, 2000

Mercedes-Benz sporting director Norbert Haug paid tribute on Saturday to David Coulthard's behaviour since the Briton survived a fatal air crash in France.

Speaking at a news conference organised by the McLaren Mercedes-Benz team, Haug said he had received a lot of calls from Formula One drivers and others immediately after news of Tuesday's accident had been released.

"There were a lot of people calling and it made me realise how many good caring people there are in this business," he said. "That impressed me, but not as much as the way in which David has handled himself.

"He has been 100 per cent committed to his job and done a great job and I have to say I really admire the way in which he has dealt with all the pressures around him. The same thing goes too for Heidi (Wichlinski) and Andy (Matthews).

"They have all been fantastic in a very difficult situation."