Formula E London ePrix II
Cassidy and da Costa “cried together” after Formula E title-defining clash
Jaguar racer Cassidy suffered puncture in collision when on cusp of Formula E world championship title in London, which ultimately went to Pascal Wehrlein
Stefan Mackley
Edited: Jul 22, 2024, 1:33 PM
Copy link
Share on Viber
Nick Cassidy says that he and Antonio Felix da Costa “just cried together” after their collision in the Formula E London season finale which denied the Jaguar driver the title.
Da Costa’s Porsche team-mate Pascal Wehrlein claimed this year’s Formula E drivers’ title as the German, Cassidy and the second Jaguar of Mitch Evans entered Sunday’s London E-Prix covered by just four points.
Cassidy had started on pole and sat third during the middle portion of the race, but in prime position to cycle back to the front having taken both his Attack Mode activations in comparison with Evans and Wehrlein ahead.
But his title aspirations were shattered when 2019-20 Formula E champion da Costa made contact with the right-rear tyre of Cassidy’s car, which caused a puncture and his eventual retirement.
“He’s [da Costa] a great friend, he’s a world champion, I’m not,” Cassidy told Motorsport.com.
“We just cried together. He’s cost me a world championship but it wasn’t intentional, I know that, it’s just a mistake on his behalf. Big consequences for me.”
Da Costa started 10th for the race and was moving towards the front of the field in an effort to aid Wehrlein’s championship bid.
Nick Cassidy, Jaguar TCS Racing, Jaguar I-TYPE 6, retires the car
Photo by: Alastair Staley / Motorsport Images
Running in fifth behind Nissan’s Oliver Rowland, who eventually won the race from Wehrlein, da Costa went for an overtake on the Briton up the inside into Turn 16 before collecting the helpless Cassidy ahead at the apex of the bend.
After the race, TV pictures showed the pair embraced with da Costa apologetic for his part in deciding the outcome of the drivers’ championship in such a manner.
“I feel horrible, because I’m happy to play a role as a team-mate to Pascal to help him with Attack Modes and influence the result in that way, but never in this way,” da Costa told Motorsport.com.
“It feels horrible, not only of the action itself but also of the consequence that it had to him [Cassidy] because he had both his Attack Modes [done], it was just looking great for him.
“I can only say a massive sorry to him and his family, his team.
“It was a minimal touch which was enough to end in disaster for him and for that I’m really, really sorry.”
Da Costa was handed a five-second penalty for the collision, dropping the Portuguese driver from fifth down to 13th in the final classification.
This had a significant bearing on the new-for-2024 manufacturers’ championship and meant Jaguar took the accolade over Porsche by four points, having easily secured the teams’ championship by the healthier margin of 36 points.
Read Also:
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Evans: "My own team was working against me" as Jaguar miss out on Formula E drivers' title
Next article The 1986 F1 lesson that will overshadow Jaguar Formula E joy
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Stefan Mackley
Formula E’s Pit Boost debut receives mixed response from drivers
Formula E
Formula E
Jeddah ePrix I
Formula E’s Pit Boost debut receives mixed response from drivers
The influencer fishing exercise Formula E hopes can achieve its long-term aims
Formula E
Formula E
The influencer fishing exercise Formula E hopes can achieve its long-term aims
Beckham's son, Aguero amongst celebrities set to drive Formula E cars in Miami
Formula E
Formula E
Beckham's son, Aguero amongst celebrities set to drive Formula E cars in Miami
More from
Antonio Felix da Costa
Cadillac signs Ricky Taylor, Antonio Felix da Costa in refreshed 2027 WEC line-up
WEC
WEC
Barcelona
Cadillac signs Ricky Taylor, Antonio Felix da Costa in refreshed 2027 WEC line-up
Alpine explains decision to drop Antonio Felix da Costa, Fred Makowiecki from Fuji WEC line-up
WEC
WEC
Fuji
Alpine explains decision to drop Antonio Felix da Costa, Fred Makowiecki from Fuji WEC line-up
Antonio Felix da Costa defends Jaguar, says Pascal Wehrlein took Jake Dennis out “on purpose”
Formula E
Formula E
London ePrix II
Antonio Felix da Costa defends Jaguar, says Pascal Wehrlein took Jake Dennis out “on purpose”
Latest news
FIA ratifies key 2027 WRC sporting regulations
WRC
WRC WRC 11 min
FIA ratifies key 2027 WRC sporting regulations
Toprak Razgatlioglu to miss the rest MotoGP season due to shoulder injury
MotoGP
MGP MotoGP
Australian GP
1 h
Toprak Razgatlioglu to miss the rest MotoGP season due to shoulder injury
MotoGP teams told Qatar Grand Prix expected to go ahead
MotoGP
MGP MotoGP
Qatar GP
1 h
MotoGP teams told Qatar Grand Prix expected to go ahead
Honda confirms Diogo Moreira for factory team in 2027; David Alonso heads to LCR
MotoGP
MGP MotoGP 2 h
Honda confirms Diogo Moreira for factory team in 2027; David Alonso heads to LCR
Feature
Discover prime content
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe