– Second-place finish for António Félix da Costa
– Pole position sees Pascal Wehrlein claim first points of season
– Wehrlein okay after on-track accident
António Félix da Costa finished second in a dramatic race for the TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team at the ABB FIA Formula E season opener in São Paulo. The Portuguese started the race from fifth place and fought for a podium finish for much of the race. After the second of two red flags, a four-lap sprint to the line saw da Costa pushing hard for the lead but ultimately he ran out of opportunities to take win. He also scored a championship point for fastest lap.
Reigning champion Pascal Wehrlein claimed pole position and earned three valuable championship points. The São Paulo E-Prix marked the new Porsche 99X Electric’s first race appearance, the strength of which was tested with an incident that ended Wehrlein’s race. The German was taken to the medical centre. He was initially cleared but attended hospital for further checks as a precaution.
Cupra Kiro’s Dan Ticktum scored points for eighth place in the Porsche customer team Porsche 99X Electric WCG3. Ticktum’s teammate David Beckmann retired from the race after sustaining damage.
Andretti Formula E, as the other Porsche customer team, had a difficult start to the season with two retirements due to a no-fault accident and a technical issue. During the race, Jake Dennis had been in podium-contending positions.
Comments on the São Paulo E-Prix
Florian Modlinger, Director Factory Motorsport Formula E: « A very turbulent first race in Sǎo Paulo. The most important message of today is that Pascal is okay after that accident. Antonio in P2 brings the first podium of the season and after a great qualifying result, both cars were good for a top spot. We had in general really strong pace with all Porsche cars. Dan Ticktum for Cupra Kiro takes four points for P8. Now we need to work hard to get the car in shape again for Mexico and then we try to keep the performance that we showed in qualifying and collect the points we deserve. »
António Félix da Costa, Porsche works driver (#13): « Well, firstly just happy to hear that Pascal is okay. That was an ugly crash and I’m happy to see that our cars are safe and I wish a speedy recovery now for him. From my side, I am super happy with the result and to start the year with a podium. We’ve been struggling to kick off a season like this in a strong way and that was really my focus here – to go home for Christmas with a good handful of points in the bag. »
ABB FIA Formula E World Championship – standings after 1 of 16 races
Drivers’ classification : 1. Mitch Evans (NZL), 25 points ; 2. António Félix da Costa (POR), 19 points ; 3. Taylor Barnard (GBR), 15 points… 8. Dan Ticktum (GBR), 4 points… 9. Pascal Wehrlein (GER), 3 points…
Teams’ classification : 1. NEOM McLaren Formula E Team (GBR), 27 points ; 2. Jaguar TCS Racing (GBR), 25 points ; 3. TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team (GER), 22 points… 6. CUPRA KIRO (USA), 4 points…
Manufacturers’ classification : 1. Jaguar, 31 points ; 2. Nissan, 27 points ; 3. Porsche, 22 points…
Holger Eckhardt,