Wehrlein 'not entirely happy' despite taking championship lead

Pascal Wehrlein is the new Formula E championship leader after finishing fifth in the inaugural Tokyo E-Prix, although the Porsche driver was "not entirely happy" with his result.

The German driver progressed to the duels and started the fifth round of the season in sixth, before quickly making his way into the top five in the opening laps.

However, he lost a few positions during the race following multiple minor collisions, ending his chances of a podium.

This left him frustrated as the factory Porsche package was impressive in Japan, although he does now lead the standings by two points.

"Despite taking over the lead of the drivers’ standings, I’m not entirely happy with my race," said Wehrlein. "I lost positions due to a few incidents.

"Otherwise, a podium result would’ve been on the cards today. Our qualifying wasn’t quite as strong and that made it difficult to progress further in the race. Still, we earned vital points.”

'I was forced into the barrier'

Wehrlein was not the only frustrated figure amongst the Stuttgart-based squad, as Antonio Felix da Costa was also annoyed.

The Portuguese driver looked quick all race and sat on the fringes of a podium. He attempted to snatch a podium from Oliver Rowland in the closing stages but felt he was "forced into the barrier".

Da Costa called for the Nissan driver to be penalised, although the stewards disagreed. His move actually allowed Jake Dennis to steal third place, resulting in da Costa finishing fourth.

“To lose a podium finish so close to the chequered flag is obviously disappointing," said da Costa. When I tried to go for second place, I was forced into the barrier.

"Overall, it was a great race. We implemented a strong strategy. At the end of the day, we’re still bringing important points home from Tokyo.”