Porsche will change its Formula E line-up for the first time in three seasons, and for only the third time ever, ahead of the 2025-26 campaign.
News that Antonio Felix da Costa will not continue into a fourth campaign with the team was revealed by The Race on Tuesday and is expected to be officially communicated next month.
That ends a three-year spell stretching back to the first race of the Gen3 era, da Costa having joined for 2023 in place of Andre Lotterer - who, until the 2022 Seoul season finale, had been an ever-present since Porsche entered in 2019.
Who will line-up with Pascal Wehrlein next season? It's a question everyone in the Formula E paddock is currently asking.
The (overwhelming) favourite: Nico Mueller
It says something about his 2024-25 campaign that a year ago Nico Mueller was more of a favourite (results- and momentum-wise) for this drive for the 2025-26 season than he might be considered right now. Nevertheless, he still remains very much the most likely driver to fill the seat.
There are several obvious reasons for this. Firstly, he is a factory Porsche driver and has been since the summer of 2024. For the most recent campaign, he was seconded to Porsche customer team Andretti where he lined up against 2023 champion Jake Dennis.
The stats from the 2024-25 season are not flattering for Mueller. Beaten in qualifying and in the points, it was a bruising season, of which the first half was punctuated by several costly mistakes.
That apart, Mueller, in the context of a team-mate for Wehrlein, makes a lot of sense. Balanced in approach, usually consistent, a top team player and quick enough to keep Wehrlein honest, Mueller is a slam-dunk-on-paper da Costa replacement.
He's also well-known to some elements of the team, notably its leader Florian Modlinger, who worked with him at Audi and Abt for several seasons in DTM and Formula E.
But Porsche has not rushed to Mueller with the same glee it might have done several months ago. That is a legacy of some questions still to be answered from Mueller's season with Andretti, which will have baffled some members of the Porsche squad.
That won't exactly fill either side with confidence but some intensive pre-season preparation, which Mueller is expected to start shortly, will include a recalibration of sorts and there is a very high likelihood that he will join Wehrlein on the grid in Sao Paulo in early December.
If there was a bet available on this, the odds would be barely worth investing in.
The 'controversial' wildcard: Dan Ticktum
The Race understands that there was genuine interest in Dan Ticktum but a holding pattern about whether the British firebrand can successfully be integrated into a corporately aware manufacturer is still holding back a potential swoop (for now).
That means 2026 will be crucial for Ticktum, who generated interest via his performances in the older-spec Porsche equipment used by his Cupra Kiro team last season, notably in Tokyo, Jakarta and London.
Ultimately, Porsche hasn't yet seen enough of Ticktum, both in consistent results and in a predictable nature in which its own corporate responsibilities have assurance that some of his more volatile traits are under control.
Another season at his present team could answer those questions, making him a possibility for Gen4 and beyond.
But make no mistake: even at the very top of Porsche, Ticktum has gained some serious admiration this last year or so.
"He's doing a very good job and he's a very special person," Porsche motorsport chief Thomas Laudenbach told The Race.
"I still like that we have characters in the series and he's for sure one of them. I think if he works for you, in some way you've got to work with him. But he's doing a good job and obviously, he's very talented.
"He's one of the guys you have to look at. I just can say it is great what he's done this season."
The 'safe' wildcard: Mitch Evans
Could another wildcard option really be a sensational swoop for Mitch Evans?
The Jaguar driver was in talks with Porsche in 2021 about a possible move but instead elected to stay put. He tested for Porsche's LMP1 team on two occasions in 2015 and has a link of sorts through Porsche ambassador Mark Webber, who has been his long-time manager and advisor.
A swoop for Evans would be audacious. But it would also be unlikely, unless there is a forward facing plan for Gen4 in 2026-27 that has to be activated right now.
Evans is under contract with Jaguar until the summer of 2026 and it will not even countenance losing two Kiwis in one summer after Nick Cassidy's exit to race for a Stellantis brand next season. Losing both Cassidy and Evans would clearly be unfortunate, disastrous and costly on all fronts.
The Race understands that Jaguar - which has been linked with da Costa - has recently been wooing Evans for a Gen4 commitment. This intricate diplomacy will be sensitively done because Evans is still reasonably fresh from a coruscating end to the season with his team, when he felt slighted and blindsided in the penultimate race via a messy strategic play-out.
In reality, Evans was also complicit in that particular mess, as a confused strategy meant his race began to unravel when he got stuck behind Cupra Kiro driver David Beckmann and was eventually hit by Ticktum.
It's history now but from Evans's side, might it be the right time to jump? And will his perceived bad experiences at London's ExCeL races in 2024 and 2025 have any bearing on a decision?
"I really want to be in Gen4, where that is we have to wait and see. It's still up in the air," Evans told The Race at Tokyo in May. "I've had an amazing run with Jaguar, and there's no reason why that can't continue, but I'll have to cross that bridge when we come to it."
Porsche, and maybe others, will be tracking Evans's every move even more forensically than usual right now and in the coming months.
The stop-gap choice: Jake Hughes
There are potentially some third-step options for Porsche, although these are not believed to include a potentially available Stoffel Vandoorne or Robin Frijns, the latter of whom would have brand issues with his BMW work in the World Endurance Championship.
Jake Hughes, however, is a relatively free agent and could be a stop-gap choice to take Porsche up to Gen4.
Hughes is in talks with Cupra Kiro and Andretti presently and should Mueller become Wehrlein's team-mate next season, then a berth for Hughes at the former of those options is a very realistic option.
The Race outlined Hughes's worth earlier this month and Porsche will likely have studied what the former McLaren and Maserati driver could bring to the team.
The ultra-bold gamble: Ayhancan Güven
Do not underestimate how highly key people at Porsche rate current DTM frontrunner and recent race winner at the Sachsenring, Ayhancan Güven.
The Turkish driver also impressed in the Berlin rookie test after posting the second-fastest time in his first proper run in Porsche's car.
But a race seat feels like a step too far at this stage for a driver who has zero single-seater experience.
It would be a sensational leap of faith to even consider him for a drive at this stage. Much more likely is a further integration into the team as a simulator, reserve and development driver with more test opportunities ahead of him.
