Da Costa Fired Up for Le Mans Return After 2024 Absence

Antonio Felix da Costa has explained the background to his call-up to drive for the AF Corse LMP2 team in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, as he makes his return to the FIA World Endurance Championship’s blue riband after a year’s absence.

Announced in March, the Portuguese driver will drive the No. 183 Oreca 07 Gibson with Francois Perrodo and Matthieu Vaxiviere, having been given Porsche’s blessing to return to La Sarthe this year after controversially being blocked from racing in 2024.

Da Costa last raced in the WEC for the Hertz Team JOTA in its first season of running a customer Porsche 963 in 2023, but a difficult year in Formula E racing for the Weissach marque’s factory team meant he had to relinquish his seat the following year.

On how the chance to drive last year’s LMP2 Pro-Am winning car came up, da Costa explained that he had been offered the same seat by Perrodo last year, but was forced to decline it owing to Porsche’s insistence that he focus on Formula E — and was delighted to accept the Frenchman’s offer this time around.

“Last year, when I wasn’t allowed to do Le Mans, Francois had called me and I had to say no,” da Costa told Sportscar365. “But I thanked him for it and we built a small relationship through that. Then he called me again and I got the green light from Porsche.

“It’s cool. Obviously you always want to be in the top class, but I understand that it’s hard to be in the top class for two reasons: in the full-season teams, nobody is going to drop out for that one race, and being a Porsche driver, the only car I can be in is a Porsche.

“There was only one seat available and it went to Pascal [Wehrlein]. But I had the green light to find a seat myself, which I did. Francois has won the race before, they won the first round of the ELMS [at Barcelona], so the team is in good shape.

“I tested with them the other week, so I am excited to be there. It’s one of the best races in the world and I’m keen to go back.”

Da Costa described being on the sidelines for last year’s Le Mans race as “massively” frustrating, even though he did visit the Circuit de la Sarthe and was spotted at the JOTA hospitality greeting his former teammates.

“I was doing a Formula E test in France on the Thursday or the Friday, and I decided to pop down,” he recalled. “It was good to show my face and speak to some people.

“I crashed in Norman [Nato]’s motorhome! And then I went home the day after. It was weird to be there but not racing.”

Da Costa’s return to Le Mans comes at a time when he has been linked to a return to full-time WEC competition in 2026, with his works Porsche contract set to expire at the end of the current Formula E season.

He was close to a reunion with JOTA for the current season before ultimately committing to seeing out his existing deal with Porsche.

“My goal is to try and go back to a double program [in WEC and Formula E] full-time,” clarified the 33-year-old when asked about his future plans.

“I don’t know how many years of this I have left, maybe five, 10, 15, I really don’t know. I don’t want to look back with any regrets. I just want to be racing every weekend and be as active as possible.

“That’s the message I have passed to my management, that I want to be in both series.”