Antonio Felix da Costa is one of the most experienced Formula E drivers on the grid, having been a popular fixture in the series since Season 1.
Da Costa grew up in family of racers and started karting at the age of nine, competing in a number of domestic series in his native Portugal. In 2007, he progressed into single-seaters, in Formula Renault 2.0, and after catching the eye in both Formula 3 Euro Series and GP3, he would eventually join the Red Bull Junior Team. After making his Formula 1 test debut for Force India in 2010, the Portuguese took his testing skills to Red Bull Racing, where he went on to pilot four of legendary car designer Adrian Newey's title-winning machines.
Making a move to Formula E in the inaugural season, da Costa started out his all-electric journey at the second round at Putrajaya as a driver for Team Aguri, where he raced for two seasons - securing an early maiden victory in his first three races at Buenos Aires.
The Lisbon-born driver moved to American outfit Andretti for two seasons, benefiting from the team's technical partnership with BMW in 2017/18. For Season 5 and the new Gen2 era, Andretti's relationship with the German marque blossomed into a full manufacturer effort, with team newly-christened BMW i Andretti Motorsport. The top step of the podium had proved elusive since his first taste of the winner's Moet & Chandon champagne in 2014/15, until his win at the opening round of the 2018/19 season in Saudi Arabia.
He mounted a title charge with BMW as the season went on, eventually falling by the wayside, and Da Costa made his move to pastures new for Season 6 as he joined DS TECHEETAH alongside double champion Jean-Eric Vergne. Both drivers were gunning for the crown, but it was Da Costa that made the most headway, eventually storming to a record-equalling three wins on the spin between Round 5 in Marrakesh and Round 7 in Berlin - enough to steer him to the Drivers' Championship in dominant style.
With competition hotter than ever in Season 7, da Costa was the man with the target on his back. A single podium in Diriyah was the only silverware the Portuguese could accrue in the first half of a hard-fought campaign.
Three non-scores - including a disqualification for running out of usable energy having led an extraordinary encounter in Valencia - was not what the Portuguese would have hoped for but a statement victory via a last lap overtaking manoeuvre in Monaco provided a season-high.
Still in the famous black and gold of DS TECHEETAH in 2021/22, da Costa had a slow start to the season but came alive in Marrakesh with a pole and a podium with a return to the top step two races later in New York City. In a neat and fitting bookend to the Gen2 era, da Costa claimed the first and final pole positions on a competitive period of Formula E.
Shifting across to the factory Porsche outfit for the debut of the high-powered Gen3 in Season 9, da Costa will be looking for more title success at the wheel of the 99X Electric.