Formula E: Porsche appeals London penalty against Antonio Felix da Costa

As already announced on Saturday evening when asked by e-Formula.news, Porsche has now officially appealed the controversial time penalty against Antonio Felix da Costa at the Hankook London E-Prix. The Portuguese had crossed the finish line in second place on Saturday, but was only 16th and last due to the time penalty of three minutes.

Porsche had 96 hours to make good on the announcement and officially appeal against the punishment of his driver. Within this deadline, which expired on Wednesday evening, Porsche has now actually appealed. A decision on the final outcome of Saturday's race will thus now be made off-track.

Should the FIA's Court of Appeal uphold the appeal and Felix da Costa get his second place back, this would have far-reaching consequences: Porsche would swap places in the teams' championship with its customer team Andretti and occupy third position in the final standings. In the drivers' standings, Felix da Costa would move up from ninth to fifth place, as only 14 points separate him from Jean-Eric Vergne.

A final decision, however, is not expected for several weeks at the earliest.

The full Porsche statement

On Saturday, July 29, after Race 15 of the London E-Prix, the TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E team announced its intention to appeal the FIA's Decision No. 10 and the penalty imposed on Antonio Felix da Costa.

After filing, the team had 96 hours to confirm the appeal before the FIA's International Court of Appeal (ICA).

Today we can confirm that the official appeal against decision No. 10 was filed within the deadline.

Antonio suffered a slow puncture due to debris on the track, which meant that the pressure from his front right tyre fell below the prescribed minimum. The damage occurred due to an external impact; it was not our fault. For us, this decision is incomprehensible and unacceptable. Our primary concern is a fair equal treatment in the spirit of the sport.

Due to the ongoing proceedings, we will not make any further statements on this incident until a final decision is made by the ICA (International Court of Appeal).