"I'm pleased to have equalled my previous best podium finish from Australia," remarked Raikkonen in a press release.

"There was a lot happening at the start, but I managed to retain sixth place. I was pushing hard, but then I outbraked myself and lost a position to Button. However I wasn't too worried because I knew that he was on a two-stop strategy.

"After David and Montoya's incident I caught Ralf Schumacher and we had a good battle where I tried to outbrake him on a number of occasions. I was just about to have another go when the team told me on the radio that he would be coming in for his pitstop.

"I was able to stay out for a few more laps and could open up enough of a gap. We had the right strategy today and whilst we were not as quick as Ferrari we were definitely faster than Williams- BMW which is good news."

Despite being frustrated by the outcome of his day, Coulthard has accepted Montoya's apology and vows to put the incident behind him. "I'm seriously disappointed about what happened because the car felt really good. It was obvious that we were quicker than both the Williams-BMW cars so things were looking positive," the Scot explained.

"Montoya was a lot slower than me in the corners, but he was fast in a straight line so the one opportunity I had to overtake him would be to get in his slipstream as we approached the first corner. He pushed me to the outside, but I gave him room on the inside so we could do the corner together.

"My plan was that I would then be on the inside for the next corner and take fourth. Unfortunately Montoya lost the back end of his car and went into the side of me and that was it. I know that it wouldn't have happened if I had not been on the outside but if I hadn't been there I wouldn't have been able to overtake and there was plenty of room.

"Montoya came to apologise and I know these sort of incidents are part of racing but it's a shame as none of us gained anything."

Team boss Ron Dennis added: "Our performance in the race was satisfying in view of our lack of competitiveness in the early part of the season. Having said that, we are here to win and the gap to Ferrari is still too big.

"Nevertheless great drives by both David and Kimi. Racing incidents are just part of the sport, but of course we share David's frustration. Again, well done Kimi."

Norbert Haug, Mercedes vice-president of motorsport, was pleased to see a McLaren driver on the podium of the company's home race. "We made a step forward and were the fastest Michelin team. A fine drive by Kimi whose podium finish is a nice reward for him and the team at the Mercedes-Benz home Grand Prix.

"A shame for David who could have increased his position in the point standings in the Drivers' World Championship if it hadn't been for Montoya's spin. Juan Pablo apologised to David, which is fine."