At the São Paulo E-Prix, the TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team retained its lead in the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship. With four weeks until the doubleheader event of the innovative electric racing series in Berlin on 22 and 23 April, António Félix da Costa narrowly missed out on clinching a podium result scoring fourth in Brazil at the wheel of his Porsche 99X Electric. His teammate and current championship leader Pascal Wehrlein gained eleven positions in the race on the São Paulo Street Circuit and took the flag in seventh place.

After the events in Hyderabad and Cape Town, the Brazilian financial hub was the third new venue on the 2023 Formula E calendar. On the São Paulo Street Circuit with its characteristic long straights, fans were treated to a race packed with overtaking moves and slipstream duels. After securing three race victories so far this season, the TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team gave an impressive performance in the metropolis with a strong team effort and a solid harvest of points.

In the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, Pascal Wehrlein leads the drivers’ standings with 86 points ahead of Jake Dennis (GBR) from the Porsche customer team Avalanche Andretti, who left São Paulo empty-handed. António Félix da Costa ranks fifth. The TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team leads the team classification with 144 points, 41 points ahead of Envision Racing. After André Lotterer (GER) finished twelfth, Avalanche Andretti occupies fifth place.

Race 6
After scoring his best qualifying result this season, in which he missed out on pole position by just six-hundredths of a second in his Porsche 99X Electric, António Félix da Costa tackled the race from P2. He moved into the lead several times during his race on the 2.933-kilometre circuit. In the final phase, however, the winner of the Cape Town race made a driving error, which thwarted his chance of a podium finish. With fourth place, he still scored crucial points. So did Pascal Wehrlein: Starting from P18, the Diriyah two-time winner put in a strong drive to make up no fewer than eleven positions and ultimately finish seventh.

Comments on the São Paulo E-Prix, Race 6

Florian Modlinger, Director Factory Motorsport Formula E: “These were hard-fought but well-deserved points, which could still be critical for us. Pascal drove a sensational race and extended his lead in the drivers’ standings. It was a particularly strong performance, especially on this track and given the course setup, because he also had to contend with a badly damaged car in the second half of the race. António was on course for the podium for a long stretch but had to drop back due to a braking incident. Today it was particularly important to see that we improved significantly in qualifying. Now, we're working hard towards our home races in Berlin.”

António Félix da Costa, Porsche works driver (#13): “That was a very positive day with decent points for us. I was super happy with my qualifying. Considering where we're coming from, that was a big step forward. It was definitely worth investing so much energy in qualifying. We had a good strategy in the race. Unfortunately, I made a mistake, I had to take a shortcut through the chicane and lost a few positions as a result. Ultimately, that cost us a podium finish.”

Pascal Wehrlein, Porsche works driver (#94): “After a difficult qualifying session, it was more or less about damage control in the race. To move up from P18 to P7 and score important points is something we can be happy with. However, more would have been possible today. If we’d done better in qualifying, the race would’ve been easier too. At least we extended our lead in the drivers’ and team standings. We’re working hard to keep improving from race to race.”

Next up
The next event for the TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team is the Berlin E-Prix on 22 and 23 April – rounds 7 and 8 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship.

Porsche in Formula E
In 2023, the squad contests its fourth season in the world’s first all-electric racing series with the new Porsche 99X Electric. Avalanche Andretti fields two Porsche 99X Electric as the first Porsche customer team in Formula E. As an accelerator for innovative and sustainable mobility technologies, Formula E has brought thrilling motorsport to people living in major cities since 2014. With the all-electric Taycan Turbo S, Porsche again supplies the official safety car and thus underlines the importance of Formula E for Porsche Motorsport.