Hamilton will be destroyed
Writing in his column in Sunday's News of the World the Scot said, “Lewis Hamilton's career could be destroyed before it has a chance to develop."
The 35 year old said that at 21 years of age Hamilton is too young. He believes instead McLaren boss Ron Dennis should have given him a test role to build his confidence in the car.
“There is no doubting his potential…[But] the first person you are compared to is your teammate and if Lewis struggles alongside Alonso it could destroy his confidence."
Coulthard, who raced for McLaren between 1996 and 2004, says that although Hamilton was desperate to be in the seat, he has plenty of time.
“He is still only 21 and has plenty of racing years ahead of him.
“I was 24….I still made mistakes on the track, as well as in my life, because I was still trying to live my life and race cars."