Antonio Felix da Costa’s third win in the United States has ignited the drivers’ championship battle, setting the stage for a thrilling finale in the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship. The Portuguese driver secured his victory with his team, TAG Heuer Porsche, following two consecutive wins in previous rounds.
Da Costa’s skill and Porsche’s strategies were pivotal over the weekend, placing him in strong contention for the drivers’ championship against the current leader, Jaguar’s Nick Cassidy, fellow Jaguar driver Mitch Evans, and Porsche teammate Pascal Wehrlein.
Da Costa started the race well, beating polesitter Jean-Eric Vergne (DS Penske) on turn one to take the lead. Fighting off teammate Werhlein and Jaguar’s Mitch Evans, Da Costa held on at the front of the pack despite a struggle and safety car-induced strategy shifts that occurred later in the race.
“I mean, firstly, got to say congrats to Mitch because he did win this one on the track and I know how it feels to get one taken away. So, you know, hats off to him,” Da Costa told Formula E.
“Obviously, we’ll take it. We did everything right today. It’s always hard fighting against two cars of the same team [in Jaguar], but we were able to put them under pressure and then Nick made a mistake at the end.”
A collision with Edoardo Mortara on lap 17 left Mortara with a puncture, but Da Costa managed to retake the lead even with a missing front wing, closely followed by his teammate. After a safety car deployment on lap 19 to clear debris, Da Costa held his lead, fending off Envision’s Robin Frijns, while Wehrlein battled Evans for third.
Unfortunately, Wehrlein’s dislodged front wing hit the McLaren of Sam Bird, which led to a disastrous outcome for Bird when he was forced off track and onto the grass.
Da Costa clinched the win at the chequered flag, with Frijns in second and Evans in third. Wehrlein secured fourth place, and Vergne followed in fifth at his team’s home race.
As for the championship leader Nick Cassidy, his efforts for the top spot of the podium were skewed by a damaged front wing that required him to pit, returning to the grid in 17th position.
He reached 13th place by the chequered flag, with his championship lead dropping to 33 points ahead of the final two rounds in London, England.
The current standings show Cassidy leading with 167 points, followed by Evans and Wehrlein tied at 155 points, and da Costa following in fourth with 134 points. A championship contender who’s challenge has drowned in the challenge of the season is that of the defending champion, Jake Dennis of Andretti Racing.
The Andretti driver struggled throughout the weekend in his team’s home race, ending sixth in the round 13 and eleventh in round 14, behind teammate Norman Nato, who came in seventh respectively. Dennis sits in seventh place with 122 points in the championship standings.
FE teams will undoubtedly regroup ahead of the season’s final two rounds on July 20 and July 21, with only a few points separating the top contenders in each category. The tension is mounting as the drivers and teams prepare for the crucial races in the streets of London.
The upcoming races promise to be fiercely competitive, with every point being crucial in determining the ultimate drivers’ and teams’ champions of the season.
