It was an incredibly mixed Cape Town E-Prix for the TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team, with António Félix da Costa having claimed his first victory for the team, whilst championship leader Pascal Wehrlein retired.
The inaugural race in South Africa will go down as one of the greatest in the history of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, with Team Principal Florian Modlinger having hailed the event as “great advertising” for the all-electric series. Da Costa’s magic victory means the factory Porsche outfit have won three out of five races this season, highlighting their supremacy when it comes to races.
Wehrlein would’ve been in contention for the win presumably had he not ploughed into the back of Sébastian Buemi on the opening lap, after out-braking himself in dramatic fashion. Thankfully for the German, his lead in the standings remains at eighteen points, after Jake Dennis failed to finish in the points.
Considering Da Costa started in eleventh, the Portuguese driver certainly wasn’t expected to fight for the win; however, he showed excellent racecraft to work his way to the front. His overtake on Jean-Éric Vergne for the race win was breathtaking, after he dived down the inside of the Frenchman at the insanely fast Turn Eight on the penultimate lap.
Da Costa’s special win means Porsche actually extended their lead in the Constructors’ Championship considerably, with the Germans now boasting a forty-two point lead over Envision Racing.
Modlinger reflected on both Da Costa’s victory and Wehrlein’s retirement, with the team boss having labelled the E-Prix as “sensational”.
“The Formula E debut in Cape Town was a great event. Fantastic circuit, great racing, avid fans and victory for António – this was the best advertising for Formula E. I’m delighted for António. He made a minor error in qualifying but made up for it with a sensational race.
“On the flip side, I’m very sorry for Pascal. But we’re a team. We win together and we lose together. He’ll be back at the next races to show what he’s capable of. Now, for the first time this season, we have a four-week break. The team will use this time to recharge our batteries. And then we’ll be back at full revs in Sao Paulo.”
