"I misjudged the situation" - Felix da Costa loses further ground in Formula E title fight after Tokyo mistake

In Sunday's race of the "double-header" in Tokyo, Porsche driver Antonio Felix da Costa made a serious error of judgement: at the start of the full-course yellow phase on lap 12, he drove into the rear of Edoardo Mortara's Mahindra in front of him. The resulting suspension failure meant the end of the race for the Portuguese. He only has himself to blame for the incident. Has his dream of a second Formula E title already been dashed?

Until the collision, everything was still going as planned for the Portuguese driver. "The race was going pretty well. I was able to work my way up to behind the top 5", he recalls. The trigger for the following full-course yellow phase was Nyck de Vries' front wing lying on the track, which he had lost through contact with Sam Bird's McLaren. "When everyone slowed down to 50 km/h due to the full-course yellow, I misjudged the situation and touched the car in front of me."

"That was enough to damage the suspension of my car," the 33-year-old analyses the situation. "I apologise to the team and everyone at home." So Felix da Costa left Tokyo with only six points from Saturday's race. "That was not an easy day", he summarises and adds: "Today I raise my hand for a mistake."

💬 An unfortunate glitch for @afelixdacosta during the race, but watch until the end ... 😉 pic.twitter.com/qiNhSf1noh

- TAG Heuer Porsche FE Team (@PorscheFormulaE) May 18, 2025

Dream of the title already over?

Looking at the drivers' standings of the current season, Felix da Costa is still in a reasonable third place, but the gap to the leader Oliver Rowland is now an impressive 88 points. With seven races still to go, he can't really afford another mistake or retirement - especially as the points haul in Saturday's race was already not great with seventh place. Added to this is the outstanding form Rowland is currently in.

Felix da Costa, on the other hand, suffered his third retirement of the season after Jeddah (race 2) and Monaco (race 1). Looking ahead to the upcoming races in Shanghai, he nonetheless gives a glimpse of hope for better results and makes it clear: "We were able to win there last year, so I am very confident. We will regroup and get some more podiums."

Felix da Costa has also entered the crucial weeks when it comes to extending his contract. According to The Race, Porsche will decide as early as next month whether to take up the option to keep Felix da Costa for another year. So far this season, he has secured three podiums - just like Pascal Wehrlein. In third place in the championship, he is eleven points behind his team-mate.