Allan McNish has done most things in motorsport, but spending a long time in Formula One does not look like becoming one of them.

McNish did a reasonable job in his first year at the highest level of the sport, but he must have seen the writing on the wall long before Toyota announced that they would not be retaining him for 2003.

The Scot, whose F1 chance came at least 10 years later than it should have done, may have been on the verge of scoring a point in only his second race before his car let him down.

But managing to qualify ahead of Mika Salo – not the world’s fastest man over one lap - only twice in 17 races was, to put it bluntly, not good enough.

It is a shame in many ways that McNish got his chance as late as he did.

This Scot was considered to be Britain's next Grand Prix star as long ago as 1989.

He was winning races in junior categories, and was rising up the sport quickly alongside fellow Marlboro protege Mika Hakkinen.

Thirteen years on, Hakkinen is a double world champion in retirement and McNish has just completed his first – and possibly last - year in F1 at the age of 32.

Somewhere along the line, the momentum went out of his career.

Few have worked harder for it than McNish, who has kept his hand in with spells in Formula 3000 and sportscars - where he won the classic Le Mans 24 Hours.

It was through his sportscar days, in fact, that he finally got his break.

He impressed Toyota with his pace, and they stuck by what they knew.

He gave it all he had in F1, but it looks like sportscars, or perhaps a chance in America, is what he will have to be happy with from now on.