Red Bull Racing's David Coulthard was a frustrated man after failing to break into the top 10 during today's qualifying session ahead of his final British Grand Prix.
The veteran Scot, who will retire from Formula One at the end of the year, had to settle for 11th place on the grid after an oil leak saw him miss most of this morning's final practice session.
Heavy rainfall on Saturday morning meant the track conditions at the Northamptonshire circuit had changed markedly from Friday, with much of the rubber laid down in practice washed away.
Coulthard took to the track in wet conditions this morning but only completed a handful of laps before he was forced back into the pits, leaving the 37-year-old a frustrated observer as the racing line dried out and the lap times tumbled towards the end of the 60-minute session.
"It's disappointing to finish 11th," said Coulthard. "If we'd done some more running this morning, I think we'd have been in better shape.
"But we had a problem with an engine oil leak so we were using the first qualifying session to get up to speed in the dry today. Changing conditions are always a big factor around this track.
"On other tracks a loss of running time wouldn't really be an issue, but this one is very open to the wind, so every day is different."
Coulthard's disappointment will have been increased by the storming performance of team-mate Mark Webber, who has struck a rich seam of form this season with six points finishes in eight races.
But the Australian surpassed all his previous achievements with a magnificent late lap to claim second on the starting grid behind McLaren's Heikki Kovalainen, a performance that left Coulthard to reflect on what might have been.
"The reality is we've got the pace to be in the top 10, we just didn't deliver it on the lap that counted today," he added.
Coulthard's problems at his home grand prix were nothing to those of Honda driver Jenson Button, who finished a lowly 17th.
Button admitted, however, that there was little he could have done to improve his lap times despite being hindered by a light shower towards the end of the opening 20-minute qualifying segment.
"I'd like to say [the low grid slot was due to] getting caught out by the rain - it might have cost us a tenth or two, but that's about it really," he said.
"I think if we could have got a lap together, I think we could possibly have scraped into the top 15, but we still would have been 15th after qualifying two.
"We haven't got a lot of pace in qualifying at the moment."
Button's only win in Formula One came in wet conditions at the 2006 Hungarian Grand Prix from 14th on the grid, but he insisted a repeat performance on Sunday is unlikely, even if the heavens open - as forecast - over Silverstone.
"We're a long way off that pace," he said. "Even if it is wet tomorrow, we're not going to win the race and we're not going to get on the podium I shouldn't think.
"But we could scrape into the points. A lot can happen in the wet, and there are a few people out of position which will make it extra exciting."
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