Reigning FIA Formula E champion Antonio Felix da Costa has been fitted for an IndyCar seat with the Rahal Letterman Lanigan team ahead of a single-day test on November 2, 2020 at Barber Motorsports Park in Alabama. While it doesn’t mean da Costa is actually moving to the IndyCar series next year, it does bode well for a cross-series swap.
In the RLL press release, da Costa sounded positive about his opportunity.
I have never hidden the fact that it’s a big dream of mine to come try out an Indy car. I am a big fan of how America, and IndyCar in particular, goes about the sport and have been a huge fan for many years. I have known Bobby for a few years. We always met at the BMW Christmas dinners and every year I kept saying ‘Come on, let me have a go’ and finally now I got the call to come meet the team and test. It’s very exciting times for me and something I have been looking forward to a lot. The first contact with the team has been very positive and everyone has been friendly. I can see there is a high level of professionalism in the team which was to be expected. I’m excited to get on track.
The main reason that da Costa is able to take advantage of this seat time is because Graham Rahal will be unable to take advantage of the test. He and wife Courtney Force are waiting on their first child, which is due around the time of the November test.
da Costa has been racing since he was nine years old, and ahead of the most recent Formula E season, he joined up with the championship-winning DS Techeetah team. He won three races in a row and took three second places, which offset his non-points finish and disqualification. He’s been with FE since the very start of the series. He’s a Macau Grand Prix champion and a DTM competitor with BMW.