David Coulthard offered a fascinating insight into his infamous confrontation with Michael Schumacher at Spa, and the road to recovery in their relationship after that “unfortunate blip”.

It was at a rain-soaked 1998 Belgian Grand Prix that Schumacher, leading comfortably in his Ferrari, hit the back of Coulthard’s McLaren as he came up to lap him, costing Schumacher a wheel and his front wing. But, with both drivers out of the race, the drama had only just begun.

David Coulthard faced ‘Killer Coulthard’ banners and booing

An enraged Schumacher would charge down the pit lane to McLaren’s garage, confronting Coulthard, as a sea of mechanics from both teams looked to keep the drivers apart.

And in an appearance on the Red Flags podcast, Coulthard revealed what was being said between himself and Schumacher in that clash.

He began: “Well, I remember there was a wall of McLaren mechanics between me and him, and one of those mechanics, his name was Steve Morrow. Sadly, he’s no longer with us, but his nickname was forklift, and anyone who knows what a forklift is, he was a big guy…

“And I’m thinking, ‘Hey, Michael’… I had my helmet on, and I remember shouting back at him… He’s shouting at me, ‘Were you trying to f***ing kill me?’ And I’m shouting back at him, ‘You ran into the back of me!’

“So, it was the aggressive exchange, rather than, ‘I’m going to run away’.

“I’m not a fighter, look, and I don’t think Michael would have fought. I think he would have got a hold of me, maybe by the scruff of the neck, and we would have, you know, exchanged our opinions.

“But look, he was an amazing champion, an amazing driver. This was an unfortunate blip in our relationship. We kissed and made up. And what it has done, it guaranteed me a place in the Schumacher documentary! And it always gets brought up every year we go to Spa.

“But what was incredible, Michael, with no front wing and three wheels, was still incredibly quick in the wet. That’s how talented he was.

“And actually, you can’t see, but behind this wall, I’ve got a collection of different helmets from drivers that I’ve raced against, and one of them’s from Michael, and he wrote on it, ‘so many great battles on track, some of them harder than others, so many great parties off track. Enjoy retirement’, because I’ve retired before he did.

“And so I cherish those thoughts and those memories, because, you know, you go into battle, but it’s a bit like the boxers, isn’t it? They beat the hell out of each other, and then they hug and say nice things about their family.”

More on seven-time World Champion Michael Schumacher

👉 Michael Schumacher’s 10 iconic Formula 1 grand prix victories

👉 Michael Schumacher accident: Separating facts from fiction 11 years on

But it was not an easy road to the point of making up for Coulthard and Schumacher.

Shortly after that Spa incident, Coulthard and McLaren headed for Monza, where the Italian crowd were far from welcoming after what had gone down between the Scott and the Ferrari icon.

“That was the Sunday of the Belgian Grand Prix, on the Tuesday, we are in Monza, testing ahead of the Italian Grand Prix,” Coulthard continued, “which would have been two weeks later or one week later, I don’t recall exactly, but certainly, you know, the coming week or the week later.

“And there were banners in the grandstand that Italian fans had made up, the tifosi, that said, ‘Killer Coulthard’.

“And every time I pulled out of the garage, they were booing. And if I walked to talk to my engineer, they were… It was pretty enthusiastic dislike!”

After that, former F1 chief Bernie Ecclestone stepped in to get Coulthard and Schumacher to put the incident behind them.

That end goal was achieved, though Coulthard never managed to get Schumacher to accept it was possible for him to be wrong.

“It was an uncomfortable two or three days of testing, and Bernie Ecclestone found out,” said Coulthard.

“And when we turned up at the Italian Grand Prix, he organised for us to sit down in his motorhome and clear the air, just Michael and I, and that’s where the conversation was born out of me going, ‘Michael, I accept my part in that accident. You’ve got to accept yours’. He wouldn’t accept it. And I asked him, ‘Surely you must be wrong sometimes?’ And he went, ‘No’.

“And I went, ‘Come on, when you’re at home with your wife, you must be wrong’. He went, ‘No’. And, ‘Have you ever been wrong?’ And he paused, and went, ‘Not that I remember’. And at that point, I just gave up and went, ‘Right, that’s why he’s a World Champion and I’m not, because I know when I’m wrong’.

“We shook hands and moved on.”

Read next: Red Bull owner snaps up $650million Bernie Ecclestone car collection