Will Andretti Motorsport finally be able to consistently run at the front of the field in the fifth Formula E season with new backing from BMW?
The Andretti name has graced nearly every avenue of open-wheel racing with a storied career of participation in IndyCar, CART and Formula One, but Formula E is a new challenge to tackle.
The Andretti Motorsport team have been a part of the Formula E series since its conception in 2014, but they have not seen the consistent results one would expect from an organization with as much pedigree as “Andretti”. But will season five be the year that the pieces fall into place for the American outfit?
Season five will see the addition of BMW as the team’s title sponsor as well as significant technical assistance with the German manufacturer having experience with high-tech electrical systems. The combined work of Andretti Motorsport and BMW has produced the Gen2 BMW iFE.18, which will be driven by series veteran Antonio Felix da Costa and BMW factory driver Alexander Sims.
The drivers
Antonio Felix da Costa, #28
Antonio Felix da Costa stands as one of the veteran drivers of the sport having participated full-time in the series in each of the previous four seasons. The Portuguese driver started his racing career racing go-karts at the age of nine and progressed up to Formula Renault 2.0, Formula 3 Euro and GP3, and he even gained access to the Formula 1 testing program for Red Bull Racing.
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Da Costa found success early in his Formula E career with Team Aguri by winning the 2015 Buenos Aires ePrix, but he has been unable to replicate that success since. While he has previous experience in the sport, will it transfer over into the new generation of Formula E competition?
Alexander Sims, #27
Alexander Sims joins the BMW i Andretti Motorsport organization for his first season of Formula E competition. Sims has had success driving for the BMW factory effort in the World Endurance Championship and the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship as well as driving for the BMW factory effort in GTE and GT Le Mans. While this will be his first experience in Formula E, it will not be his first experience in open-wheel racing. He started his racing career in Formula 3 Euro, GP3 and Formula 3 while earning podium finishes in each series.
The newly branded BMW i Andretti Motorsport have some things working for them. They have an experienced series driver in Antonio Felix da Costa and a young talent in Alexander Sims. They are also one of the organizations that have been in Formula E since the beginning. But will the reshuffling of the car knowledge deck work in favor of the BMW factory-supported effort?
The wait to find out will be over soon as the first round of the fifth season is scheduled to kick off on Saturday, December 15 from the Riyadh Street Circuit in Ad Diriyah, Saudi Arabia. Tune into Fox Sports 1 for live race coverage starting at 6:30 a.m. ET.