McLaren and Williams failings 'confusing and disappointing' - Coulthard

Former Formula 1 star David Coulthard admits it is "confusing and disappointing" to see two of his former teams, McLaren and Williams, continue to fail in their attempts to get back among the race wins and championships, saying they need to reinvent themselves.

McLaren are currently sixth in the 2018 constructors' championship, despite having aspirations at the start of the campaign to try and break into the triopoly of Mercedes, Ferrari, and Red Bul.

They will also see the end of an era before 2019 as Fernando Alonso is leaving F1 to pursue success in other motorsport disciplines.

Williams, meanwhile, have had a desperate campaign and are only not rock bottom of the 2018 rankings due to Force India being rebranded as Racing Point Force India after being bought over by businessman, Lawrence Stroll.

Coulthard reckons both teams need to start fresh if they are to become contenders again.

"It's confusing and disappointing to see the difficulty they have gone through. Success comes from the people, not the name on the door. It isn't self-sustaining. It is all about the people involved at any given period," Coulthard told BBC Sport.

"Clearly, both those teams have not been able to energise, reinvent and attract young talent and that is what they have to focus on. They need to change the structures they have in place and bring in the young talent. That is where the energy comes from."

Both teams have initiated changes already ahead of the 2019 season, with McLaren bringing in Lando Norris and Carlos Sainz, while Williams have recruited George Russell, with their second seat unconfirmed.

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