The Portuguese driver claimed his first Formula E win in more than a year during the all-electric championship’s inaugural race at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli.
Ahead of the event, da Costa’s place within the Porsche team was thrown into doubt as reports circulated that Abt’s Nico Muller had tested the team’s Gen3 machine with a view to racing for the German manufacturer next year.
While Muller declined to comment on the rumours when asked by Autosport ahead of the event, pressure has been growing on da Costa after a poor start to the season.
The 2019-20 Formula E champion failed to score points in the opening three rounds in 2024, before taking sixth in Sao Paulo and fourth in Tokyo ahead of the double-header in Misano.
“There are a lot of people in this team that are with me and they helped me get to this place and turn it around,” said da Costa after his first Formula E win since Cape Town last year.
“I think the last three weekends we’ve been building nice momentum.
“To be honest I’m not really surprised. I knew we could make this happen, but it’s hard to keep a smile on your face when you’re trying to convince everyone this is possible.
“It came at the right time.”
Oliver Rowland, Nissan Formula E Team, Nissan e-4ORCE 04, Antonio Felix da Costa, Porsche, Porsche 99X Electric Gen3, Jean-Eric Vergne, DS Penske, DS E-Tense FE23
Photo by: Sam Bagnall / Motorsport Images
Da Costa took victory having hit the front of the field three laps from the end with a pass on new championship leader Oliver Rowland.
The 28-lap race proved to be chaotic as drivers attempted to save energy in the slipstream, with multiple position changes occurring almost every lap which meant staying out of trouble was a priority until the closing stages.
“That was exactly what we expected to be honest, you can only foresee so much,” added da Costa.
“Every corner, every lap, every straight you have to be completely on full alert to try and react to what the other 21 guys decided to do.
“Awareness is probably the key word of the day, keeping front wings on the car and at the same time being efficient.
“It went good for us today, very easily can go wrong but I’m pleased with how we approached it.
“I was freestyling out there. There were laps where they didn’t really go to plan, but I guess it was the same for everyone.”
