Duarte Félix da Costa

Duarte Félix da Costa
Duarte Félix da Costa
Nationality	Portuguese
Born	31 May 1985 (age 39); Cascais, Portugal
Related to	António Félix da Costa (half-brother)
Previous series
2012; 2011; 2009, 2018; 2009; 2008-09; 2008; 2008, 2010; 2007-10; 2006; 2006; 2004-05	American Le Mans Series; Blancpain Endurance Series; International GT Open; European Touring Car Cup; Portuguese Touring Car Championship; World Touring Car Championship; SEAT León Eurocup; SEAT León Supercopa; Formula Renault 2.0 NEC; Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0; Formula BMW UK

Duarte Maria de Ortigão Ramos Félix da Costa (born May 31, 1985 in Cascais) is a Portuguese auto racing driver and driving coach.^[1] He has spent the majority of his motorsport career participating in touring car racing,^[1] and would also take part in sports car racing later on in his career.

Career history

Félix da Costa began his career in karting and moved into racing cars in 2004 when he competed in the Formula BMW UK championship, where he raced for two years for Carlin Motorsport, finishing 13th and 10th in the championship standings.^[2] He moved to Formula Renault in 2006, competing in the Formula Renault 2.0 Northern European Cup (which his brother Antonio won in 2009) and the Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0.^[2]

Félix da Costa formerly raced in the SEAT León Supercopa from 2007 to 2010.

Having failed to win a race in single-seaters for three years, Félix da Costa moved to touring cars, racing in the SEAT León Supercopa one-make series in 2007, finishing 9th. He would also race in the SEAT León Eurocup in 2008, also finishing the season in 9th.^[2] That same year, Félix da Costa earned a one-off guest drive in the World Touring Car Championship with Sunred Engineering after displaying strong performances at Oschersleben in the SEAT León Eurocup.^[3] He would return to the SEAT León Eurocup in 2010, finishing the season in 6th.

In 2009, Félix da Costa competed in the Portuguese Touring Car Championship and would post a strong campaign, finishing the year in 2nd with three victories. He would also venture into sports car racing for the first time in his career, racing in the International GT Open with Escudería Roger Racing alongside Miquel Julià in a Ferrari F430 GT3. Félix da Costa also competed in the European Touring Car Cup at Braga for British Touring Car Championship team Bamboo Engineering in a Chevrolet Lacetti alongside Harry Vaulkhard. He and Vaulkhard locked out the second row of the grid during qualifying, and Félix da Costa would finish in 8th and 7th for both races.^[4]

Félix da Costa competed in the Blancpain Endurance Series for 2011 with Leipert Motorsport, driving a Lamborghini Gallardo LP600 GT3 alongside fellow countrymen Lourenço da Veiga and Ricardo Bravo. The trio completed the season 3rd in the GT3 Pro-Am class. He would also take part in the 2012 American Le Mans Monterey race at Laguna Seca the following year, finishing 31st in LMP2.

Since 2013, Félix da Costa has dedicated his time to coaching young drivers. He co-founded Synergy Driver Performance with Rodrigo Loyo in 2015 to elevate young drivers through their careers as they go through the categories of junior formula and sports car racing.^[5]

In 2018, Félix da Costa returned to the International GT Open at the Monza round, racing with Drivex School in a Mercedes-AMG GT3 alongside Ricardo Baptista.

Personal life

Félix da Costa's younger half-brother António is also a racing driver best known for competing in Formula E, also to whom Duarte serves as manager.^[6]

Félix da Costa is married to psychologist Carlota Rocha.^[6]

Racing record

Career summary

Season	Series	Team	Races	Wins	Poles	F/Laps	Podiums	Points	Position
2004	Formula BMW UK Championship	Carlin M/sport - Team Portugal	18	0	0	0	0	31	13th
2005	Formula BMW UK Championship	Carlin Motorsport	20	0	0	0	1	64	10th
2005	Formula BMW UK Winter Series	Motaworld Racing	2	0	0	0	0	15	18th
2006	Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0	AR Motorsport	8	0	0	0	0	0	32nd
	Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0	Koiranen Bros Motorsport	2	0	0	0	0	0	32nd
	Formula Renault 2.0 NEC	AR Motorsport	15	0	1	1	0	140	12th
2007	SEAT León Supercopa	Bastos Sport	15	0	1	0	1	45	9th
2008	SEAT León Supercopa	Bastos Sport	3	0	0	0	0	5	25th
	SEAT León Eurocup	Bastos Sport	10	0	0	0	2	31	9th
	FIA World Touring Car Championship	SUNRED Engineering	2	0	0	0	0	0	NC
	FIA World Touring Car Championship – Yokohama Independents' Trophy	SUNRED Engineering	2	0	0	0	0	2	24th
2009	Portuguese Touring Car Championship	Bastos Sport	16	3	1	1	8	81	2nd
	International GT Open	Escudería Roger Racing	4	0	0	0	0	10	36th
	European Touring Car Cup	Bamboo Engineering	2	0	0	0	0	3	9th
2010	SEAT León Eurocup	Zengő Motorsport	12	0	0	0	3	28.5	6th
2010	SEAT León Supercopa	Zengő Motorsport	3	0	0	0	0	1	29th
2011	Blancpain Endurance Series – GT3 Pro-Am Cup	Team Rhino's Leipert	5	0	0	0	2	55	3rd
2012	2012 American Le Mans Series – LMP2	Project Libra	1	0	0	0	0	0	NC
2018	International GT Open	Drivex School	2	0	0	0	0	7	13th

Complete World Touring Car Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Team	Car	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	DC	Points
2008	SUNRED Engineering	SEAT León TFSI	BRA 1	BRA 2	MEX 1	MEX 2	ESP 1	ESP 2	FRA 1	FRA 2	CZE 1	CZE 2	POR 1	POR 2	GBR 1	GBR 2	GER 1	GER 2	EUR 1	EUR 2	ITA 1 Ret	ITA 2 20	JPN 1	JPN 2	MAC 1	MAC 2	NC	0

References

^ ^a ^b Wood, Ida (2020-10-20). "The junior racing that kept Portugal entertained between grands prix". Formula Scout. Retrieved 2024-04-16.
^ ^a ^b ^c http://www.driverdb.com/drivers/2892/career/ Career statistics at Driver Database
^ Meissner, Johan (2008-09-26). "Duarte Félix da Costa joins WTCC". TouringCarTimes. Retrieved 2024-04-16.
^ "TouringCarTimes - ETCC: Michelisz takes last second pole". 2011-10-01. Archived from the original on 2011-10-01. Retrieved 2024-04-16.
^ "Duarte Félix da Costa e Gonçalo Gomes criaram a Synergy Driver Performance". AutoSport (in European Portuguese). 2020-04-22. Retrieved 2024-04-16.
^ ^a ^b "Duarte Félix da Costa, antigo piloto de automóveis, casou-se com Carlota Rocha no Alentejo". www.flash.pt (in European Portuguese). Retrieved 2024-04-15.

External links

Official website

[:1-1] Wood, Ida (2020-10-20). "The junior racing that kept Portugal entertained between grands prix". Formula Scout. Retrieved 2024-04-16.

[db-2] ttp://www.driverdb.com/drivers/2892/career/ Career statistics at Driver Database

[3] Meissner, Johan (2008-09-26). "Duarte Félix da Costa joins WTCC". TouringCarTimes. Retrieved 2024-04-16.

[4] "TouringCarTimes - ETCC: Michelisz takes last second pole". 2011-10-01. Archived from the original on 2011-10-01. Retrieved 2024-04-16.

[5] "Duarte Félix da Costa e Gonçalo Gomes criaram a Synergy Driver Performance". AutoSport (in European Portuguese). 2020-04-22. Retrieved 2024-04-16.

[:0-6] "Duarte Félix da Costa, antigo piloto de automóveis, casou-se com Carlota Rocha no Alentejo". www.flash.pt (in European Portuguese). Retrieved 2024-04-15.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]