Coulthard talks up his challenge to Hakkinen

David Coulthard has insisted his championship challenge is still on course despite dropping further behind Michael Schumacher and new championship leader Mika Hakkinen in Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix.

The Scot, who finished third in last weekend's race in Budapest, has slipped to third in the championship standings on 58 points, four points behind Schumacher and six behind his own team-mate Hakkinen, whose initially troubled season has burst back to life after an enforced break prior to victories in Austria and Hungary.

Coulthard believes he is still firmly in contention. "I wasn't really thinking about the championship before this race and to be honest I'm not really thinking too much about it now," said Coulthard.

"There's still five races left and 50 points to go. It's obviously more open now. I've slipped back a little from the leader of the championship but there's still a lot of points available so let's just keep going." The McLaren number two, who has seen his dominance at the team eroded by a resurgent Hakkinen over the past three grands prix - the Finn has taken two victories and one second place to Coulthard's two third places and one second place - said his time will come again as the main contenders trade victories over the remaining races.

"That's definitely the way it will shape up," he said. "And that's what makes it exciting. In Hungary I should have been second, that's the bottom line. I found it difficult out there with traffic and back markers to get the space I needed, but I can't change what happened and I just have to move on. But that's not to underestimate the importance of finishing grands prix. Once again I've had a reliable car but it is impossible to win all the races. The guys I'm competing against have got four world championships between them, so it's going to be tough."

Coulthard's next opportunity to regain the momentum that saw him take victories at Silverstone, Monaco and Magny Cours this year will come in Belgium in two week's time at Spa Francorchamps, a circuit the Scot says is his favourite and one at which he claimed victory last year.

"We should be quick there, but it's going to be a very open race," he said. "There's not as much between the cars there as perhaps we've had in the past, so I'm sure you'll see a good close race again. But hopefully we'll just have the legs on Ferrari." But with Schumacher now relegated to second spot in the race for the drivers' title, it is no longer Ferrari that represents the major challenge for Coulthard but his teammate. He believes that Spa, at which he memorably clashed with Hakkinen last year, favours him.

"It's going to be close but I've been quick there in the past," he said. "To be honest, I've been closer to him there than at any other circuit so I'll definitely feel more confident going there."

Meanwhile, Eddie Jordan has admitted that while the new EJ10B chassis introduced to the Jordan at Hockenheim has been a step forward, he is dismayed at the lack of results achieved by the team.

"On pace we're probably `the best of the rest' but the tables don't show that," he said. "It's like looking at the balance sheets of companies - they're the figures people go by, you can't cash fantasy. The realists are saying the positions is what shows up on the tables.

"You can say what you like about our pace, and I do believe that the current speed of Jordan is not in keeping with our position in the championship, but we still have five races to sort that out. We have to do that. We can't just look for sympathy."