Antonio Felix da Costa is back for Formula E’s second season, driving for the same squad he won a race with in the first season. Pausing in the intense heat and humidity of Malaysia, he explains what happened in Beijing and why he’s more confident than ever that he can bag some decent results with Team Aguri.

Did Beijing pan out as you expected?

AFdC: To be honest, it was disappointing. The final result wasn’t what we were looking for and in the end we all made a lot of mistakes. We need to correct those mistakes very quickly, because this is a short season and there’s not much time at each race weekend. The final result was also compromised because we had a bad start with my first car not being fully charged. This is an electric racing series, so if your battery isn’t fully charged, then you start on the back foot. I was inside my energy target for a full battery, but I lost time as a consequence of something not being done right in the background.

What happened with Villeneuve?

AFdC: Like I said straight after the race, I put my hand up straight away and admitted I made an error. It was a combination of things; when I swapped cars and came off the pit limiter at the pit exit, I realised the steering wheel motor map was in the wrong position. That’s not where it had been when we’d set it up before the race. I looked down at the steering wheel to check what map I was in, and Villeneuve was in front, making a careful exit from the pitlane. I wasn’t looking forwards, and when I did he was too close, I was too quick, and I ended up hitting him. Straight after the race, I went to his garage and apologised – he’s a gentleman and he wasn’t mad at all.

Can Team Aguri keep the manufacturer teams in sight?

AFdC: This is a championship where the driver can make a big difference, and that’s something that really makes me happy. In the end, I was trying to make too much of a difference in Beijing and messed up my qualifying lap. If we’re realistic about qualifying and make a good lap with what we have, we can be in a great position. In terms of energy management, it’s not a problem for me. I think I’m quite good at it; it’s something I’ve been doing for a long time in the simulator with the F1 team. I know that for some drivers it’s frustrating to lift and coast but at the end you just have to be smart about it. I enjoy the challenge.

As a chassis, we improved a little on the damping side and optimised the package. There’s still work we can do throughout the season and we’re keeping up the effort on that side. On the powertrain side, we have made some steps with software which are making a big difference in helping us with our energy management during the race, which is very good. The basic unit behind my back is the same as last season, where a lot of other teams have made big changes. That’s no reason to throw in the towel – we can have some very good results this season.

How competitive can you be in Putrajaya?

AFdC: It’s hard to say. I think we should have qualified between P10 and P14 in round one, and we were P16, which was a mistake from my side. We have to see where we can be, and then I have to put it there. It’s hard for me to say right now; we’re still learning about everybody’s relative position in the pack, and what they can do. I expect race-by-race improvements from everyone; we just have to do the best we can and not focus on the competition. I think every Formula E track, barring Monaco, was good for overtaking. This is a track where you can go forwards. We have to worry about qualifying first, but if we do well there we have the tools to make a good result.