Formula E: Da Costa wins Monaco ePrix

DS TECHEETAH’s António Félix da Costa sealed victory in a last lap thriller on the legendary streets of Monaco in Round 7 of the 2020/21 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, ahead of Robin Frijns (Envision Virgin Racing) in second and Mitch Evans (Jaguar Racing) in third.

Da Costa, who started the race on Julius Baer Pole Position, played a pivotal role in an ever-continuing rotation for the lead, but made “one of the riskiest moves of his Formula E career” half way around the final tour of the race, taking home victory around the Principality.

Frijn’s second place takes him to the top of the Drivers’ standings ahead of previous points leader Nyck de Vries (Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team), with five points separating the pair going into the mid-season break.

Antonio Felix da Costa (PRT), DS Techeetah, DS E-Tense FE21, leads as Mitch Evans (NZL), Jaguar Racing, Jaguar I-TYPE 5, battles with Robin Frijns (NLD), Envision Virgin Racing, Audi e-tron FE07

Evans came home in third, although he was leading the race until the very last moment. As he sought to conserve usable energy with Da Costa on his tail, the Kiwi fell off the pace but managed to secure the final podium position.

Mitch Evans (NZL), Jaguar Racing, Jaguar I-TYPE 5, leads Jake Dennis (GBR), BMW I Andretti Motorsport, BMW iFE.21

Da Costa’s team-mate, Jean-Éric Vergne (DS TECHEETAH), took the checkered flag fourth, having missed one Attack Mode Activation Zone. Maximilian Günther (BMW i Andretti Motorsport), Oliver Rowland (Nissan e.dams), Sam Bird (Jaguar Racing), Nick Cassidy (Envision Virgin Racing), André Lotterer (DS TECHEETAH) and Alex Lynn (Mahindra Racing) rounded out the top-10.

Quotes

Da Costa

“Winning a race in Formula E this year is very tricky. We all have a very good understanding and make each race more challenging for each other. Mitch lost a lot of time fighting with JEV and that helped me a lot. There were different factors that led me to the first step of the podium. It was a pleasure racing against Robin and Mitch – they raced super fairly. I put a lot of pressure on myself to win this race, we haven’t excelled this year and this weekend I worked a lot to get in the right mindset and come here and be successful.”

Antonio Felix da Costa (PRT), DS Techeetah, DS E-Tense FE21, celebrates on the podium with a Portuguese flag

Robin Frijns

“I am frustrated I didn’t get the extra three points from the Julius Baer Pole Position but I think I can be happy with this result. Today I felt strong and confident in the car and this showed in our performance. We all enjoyed ourselves today and it was a good race. In Season 5, I was in the same situation at this time in terms of points. I need to keep the momentum going and maximize our potential for the reminder of the season.”

Mitch Evans

“I am really gutted but I got myself into that position because I used energy during the race. I had track position, but Antonio was very strong. I knew he was going to overtake me so I was only trying to delay it as much as I could. This result hurts because it’s Monaco and everyone wants to win here. It felt like a very good race in the car and I look to forward watching the replay!”

Race Results

 

Pos Driver Time/Behind Points
1 António Félix da Costa 47:20.697s (28)
2 Robin Frijns +2.848s (19)
3 Mitch Evans +2.872s (15)
4 Jean-Éric Vergne +3.120s (13)
5 Maximilian Günther +3.270s (10)
6 Oliver Rowland +3.865s (8)
7 Sam Bird +4.150s (6)
8 Nick Cassidy +4.752s (4)
9 Alex Lynn +5.759s (2)
10 Lucas di Grassi +6.225s (1)
11 Sébastien Buemi +6.567s
12 Edoardo Mortara +7.097s
13 Norman Nato +8.507s
14 Tom Blomqvist +9.240s
15 Sérgio Sette Câmara +9.499s
16 Jake Dennis +9.822s
17 André Lotterer +10.503s
18 Nico Müller +11.450s
19 Oliver Turvey +12.067s
DNF Nyck de Vries 23 Laps
DNF Pascal Wehrlein 21 Laps
DNF Stoffel Vandoorne 21 Laps
DNF René Rast 18 Laps
DNF Alexander Sims

 

Point Standings

Pos Driver Team Points
1 Robin Frijns Envision Virgin Racing 62
2 Nyck de Vries Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team 57
3 Mitch Evans Jaguar Racing 54
4 António Félix da Costa DE TECHEETAH 52
5 Sam Bird Jaguar Racing 49
6 Stoffel Vandoorne Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team 48
7 Jean-Éric Vergne DS TECHEETAH 46
8 René Rast Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler 39
9 Oliver Rowland Nissan e.dams 35
10 Jake Dennis BMW i Andretti Motorsport 33
11 Edoardo Mortara ROKiT Venturi Racing 32
12 Pascal Wehrlein TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team 32
13 Nico Müller DRAGON / PENSKE AUTOSPORT 30
14 Alexander Sims Mahindra Racing 24
15 Alex Lynn Mahindra Racing 23
16 Maximilian Günther BMW i Andretti Motorsport 22
17 Nick Cassidy Envision Virgin Racing 19
18 André Lotterer TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team 18
19 Lucas di Grassi Audi Sport ABT Schaffler 14
20 Oliver Turvey NIO 333 FE Team 13
21 Sérgio Sette Câmara DRAGON / PENSKE AUTOSPORT 12
22 Sébastien Buemi Nissan e.dams 11
23 Norman Nato ROKiT Venturi Racing 11
24 Tom Blomqvist NIO 333 FE Team 5
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