Ericsson triumph a result of Andretti momentum and team chemistry

Both Marcus Ericsson and Andretti Global team principal Ron Ruzewski believe that the team’s second win of the season, in Markham, is a result of the team gelling together better than ever and the three drivers pushing each other.

For Ericsson, in his third year for the team, this delivered on the promise he had shown with pole position at Arlington – a race won by one of his teammates, Kyle Kirkwood. That same day, series veteran but team newcomer Will Power scored his first podium for the team, and yesterday at Markham he achieved his fourth top-three of the season.

Power himself has been threatening all year that Andretti Global is coming and momentum is building, and it’s an opinion with which his team principal and fellow ex-Penske employee agrees.

Said Ruzewski: “After Portland, where we had all three cars in the top eight, I said, ‘This is the expectation. It shouldn't be the exception, it should be the expectation of us every week.’

“I think we stubbed our toe a little bit yesterday in qualifying on a couple of the cars [Power spun, causing a red flag that also disrupted Kirkwood’s flying lap], but we certainly showed the pace we had today. There was a point today where we were sitting there 1-2-3 trying to figure out at the halfway point how to not mess things up! A lot of curve balls thrown at us.

“As a team, Marcus, Kyle and Will are gelling well together. The engineers, really all the staff, everybody is getting a taste of success. I think it's just going to keep building momentum the rest of the year.”

With Ericsson having recently had his contract with the team renewed, Ruzewski said it was important to maintain the current personnel line-up and avoid upheavals.

“Certainly my experience before Andretti was all about continuity,” he said. “I learned a lot of lessons from that. Trying to bring that here. Obviously, there's a lot of people here that have been together.

“Now it's [about] just trying to give everybody a little bit of a bump, a little bit of a nudge to really take everything to the next level. I think we're in a good spot going into the rest of the season. Looking forward to '27.”

Ericsson echoed his boss’s sentiments, and expressed his relief at the turnaround in his form, after a wretched 2025 season in which he finished 20th in points with one fifth and one sixth as his only top 10 finishes.

“I had a terrible season last year,” said the Swede, whose victories comprise 2022 Indy 500 victory and four street course races. “I lost a lot of confidence in myself and struggled with the car. It was a big reset over the winter. I worked very hard on myself, but also within the team, with my guys, to sort of try and get the car more to my liking, more in a window where I feel I can perform and get the most out of myself.

“I think Will Power has been a big part of that, as well. Really driving the development on the setups in a certain direction, as well. That's been really, really good.

“Also the fact, like Ron touched on, we are – Will, Kyle and myself – three really fast drivers that work really well together pushing the team forward. I think that's been paying off a lot, as well. It makes me really excited to know we're going to continue that into next year with the momentum we have right now.”

Despite it being more than three years since his previous victory – St. Petersburg in 2023 with Chip Ganassi Racing – Ericsson remained confident he could get back to his best.

“That's the thing in racing, you have to believe in yourself, right?” he remarked. “I went eight years without a win when I went from F2, went in F1, then came to IndyCar. It's easy to give up and do something else.

“I always feel like mental strength and that ability to push myself, even when things doesn't go your way, it's been one of my biggest strengths as a driver. Even last year with the year we had, I don't think there was any scenario last year where I would have won a race because I just wasn't fast and I wasn't happy with the way the car felt. It was no one's fault. Things didn't work out, we were in a bad spiral.

“Again, it comes from working hard, putting the work in. There's nothing coming for free. You can't, after a season like last year, sit around and think, ‘Hopefully next year will be better.’ You have to put in hours with the team, with the personnel, with yourself. That's where I really did that over the winter and that's been paying off.

“So yeah, I knew I could do it. I just needed the right sort of scenario around me really to get back into that space. I think now I'm driving better than I've ever been in IndyCar. I had three years with Ganassi where I finished at the top of the championship and won races. I think the pace we've had this year every weekend, with every track – I think it's better than that.”