Ericsson "knows how to get it done" in bid to return to Victory Lane at St. Petersburg

Credit: Joe Skibinski

After a self-described year of frustration and disappointment in 2025, Marcus Ericsson's 2026 season could not have gotten off to much of a better start after qualifying second for IndyCar's season opener on the Streets of St. Petersburg.

"Yeah, great way to start. I worked extremely hard over the winter to come back and be strong and be on the level we should be at. All weekend it's been strong, but to go out in qualifying and do that through all the segments and put it on the front row feels really, really good."

Ericsson still remains without an IndyCar pole, but he equals the best qualifying position of his IndyCar career and will share the front row with Scott McLaughlin for Sunday's 100-lap race around the Florida streets.

It sets a strong tone for what is a crucial 2026 campaign for Ericsson's future. After two highly disappointing seasons with Andretti Global, Ericsson approaches his third and final contracted year with the team with the Swedish driver having limited races to prove he is still worthy of driving the No.28 car for 2027 and beyond.

The pressure mounted on Ericsson was only further intensified in the off-season when Andretti's Indy NXT Champion Dennis Hauger was placed at Dale Coyne Racing, with the two teams forming a technical partnership as part of Hauger's move. It's a very similar approach to what Andretti did with AJ Foyt Racing in Kyle Kirkwood's rookie year in 2022 before he moved to the senior team, where he has since claimed five career victories.

But despite that pressure looming over Ericsson's shoulders, there's no doubting that both him and Andretti have full intentions to make 2026 a success together.

"Dan [Towriss, Andretti Global CEO] has been, I feel like, my biggest supporter since I've been at the team, and he's really been backing me. Last year things didn't go my way, and it looked really bad during the end. There was no doubt from him, speaking to me, he had full confidence in me, and he knows what I can do behind the wheel. I think performances like that show that."

Credit: Joe Skibinski

2025 was clearly a year that frustrated Ericsson. A driver who was renowned within the series for incredibly consistency and being ultra-reliable only achieved two top 10 finishes across the course of the 17 races, whilst his teammates continued to mix it amongst the very best in the series.

"I've been really pissed off last year with my performance, and that's not the way I want to show, and I know I can do so much better.

"This winter it's been a lot about digging deep, working extremely hard on all areas, and just feels really, really good to come out and show that today, show what I can do and run up front. It's only qualifying. We need to do it again tomorrow, but it feels really, really good."

Ericsson is one of very few drivers who has often spoken about the mental health impact in motorsport and utilising the support of a mental coach to help deal with his on-track struggles. 2025 was a season Ericsson particularly needed that support after struggling in a negative mental spiral after losing out on a second Indianapolis 500 victory.

The mental game is something that Ericsson has continued to work on this off-season.

"I felt like I lost confidence last year with everything going against me or just not performing at a high level. Getting some distance from the season, I could look back and watch back the races and see I just didn't drive with confidence. I didn't drive like I know I should drive and can drive. So that's been a big thing for me, to build up my confidence.

"I worked a lot on that over the winter, and you do that by also working hard on every aspect, working hard with the team. Tried different cars over the winter to challenge myself, but also worked really hard with the group around me in Andretti.

"It's a lot of things. It's not one thing. The field these days in IndyCar is so extremely competitive, so you need to have everything working, and you as a driver make a big difference, so you need to be confident and drive confident. I feel like I've done that this weekend. I'm really happy with that. It's a great start for our comeback year."

This weekend marks three years since Ericsson was last victorious in the series, but that was on the same Floridian streets that he'll line-up on the front row tomorrow. The circuit has typically been a happy hunting ground for Ericsson, having five top 10 finishes in seven visits to the venue.

"You just do the homework, work hard overnight to prepare for tomorrow, and you just go out and deliver a good race. I've done it here before. Won here a couple years back. I know how to get it done.

"Yeah, this was a great way to start that off and put ourselves in a good spot for tomorrow."

Could Sunday be the chance for Ericsson to put his two difficult campaigns behind him and show himself the driver that many expected him to be at Andretti?