Entering his third year with Andretti Global, it’s a make it or break IndyCar season for Marcus Ericsson in 2026.
Following a season of middle to lower-pack finishes, the driver of the No. 28 Honda needs to prove to himself and Andretti that he has what it takes to continue to drive for one of the top teams in IndyCar. Having spent the offseason improving himself and his skills, Ericsson is on the attack for 2026.
Eager to get going after a productive offseason
Following a lackluster 2025 season where he was a very disappointing P20 in points, the Swedish driver has recuperated in the off-season and is ready to attack the 2026 campaign. With another Indianapolis 500 winner in Will Power as a new teammate, bringing even more experience to an already strong Andretti IndyCar line-up, Ericsson is excited to get back to it in 2026.
“I mean, I can’t wait. It’s going to be a lot of fun. It’s a bounce-back year for me. I’ve really been working hard in the off-season to come back strong this year and show what I can do for myself, for everyone. Super excited about that.
“Excited to work with Will and Ron that’s coming in that’s been here a month now, and I think they have already contributed a lot to this team. Will is a legend of the sport, so to be able to work close with him is going to be a lot of fun. With Kyle, I think we have an extremely strong driver lineup there.”
A change in mentality and trying new series important to Marcus Ericsson as offseason preperation
Additionally, Ericsson spoke to Pit Debrief and other media outlets about the mental side of off-season work and how trying different series has helped him develop new skills for the season ahead.
“I’ve been training really well and focused a lot on the mental side. I talked about that before, how much I work on that. We have some new things there on the mental strength and mental coaching that I’ve been working on a bit of a different technique.
“I think it’s still underestimated the importance of mental training and mental strength, and it’s something I’ve worked with throughout my career. When you have a tough season like I had last year, it’s really even more important to focus on those things and really build yourself up and have a strong mental approach to things. That’s where I can learn a lot from last year.
“Looking forward to seeing how that’s going to play out. Yeah, a bunch of things.”
Trying out other categories to test himself
The No. 28 driver then expanded to the gathered media on how running in different racing series, GT and IMSA with the 24 Hours of Daytona, has helped shape him into a more well-rounded driver for the 2026 IndyCar season.
“I wish I could have tested an INDYCAR every week for the off-season and work on different things, but you can’t do that. That’s not the reality. You need to think outside the box. One of the things I wanted to do this off-season was to challenge myself, go outside my comfort zone.
“That’s why I done a couple of races in GT3 because I’ve never driven GT cars in my life. So that’s been really interesting, and I think it’s been a great thing to learn things about myself, and as a racing driver, how I adapt to different situations.“
Is a contract on the mind of Marcus Ericsson ahead of the 2026 IndyCar season?
Now in his third season with Andretti Global, Marcus Ericsson is staring down a possible contract renewal during the 2026 IndyCar season. The 35-year-old driver is now more aware than ever that on-track results are where he needs to focus, regardless of what is said off the track.
“You can do as much talking as you want outside the track, but it’s the results that matters. I need to focus on that, I need to be on the level I’ve shown I can be at and running up front, winning races and fighting with the best. That’s my mindset going into this year.”
Ericsson is familiar with high pressure from his days in Formula 1 and at CGR, mentioning that its one of the situations he performs the best in.
“[ ]Always throughout my career I’ve performed my best when it’s high pressure, and I think that’s why also the 500 is something I do very well at, because it’s the most high-pressure race of the year. I have a good feeling about it.
“Just got to show on track what I can do”
Consistency is key to close the gap to CGR in IndyCar 2026
Chip Ganassi Racing were nigh-on untouchable in the 2025 season, with Ericsson’s teammate Kyle Kirkwood being the only driver to battle series champion Alex Palou consistently in the first half of 2025. However, the team fell off on results as the season progressed. When asked what the team struggled with the most in the 2025 season as a whole, Ericsson was quick to answer: “We’ve been too inconsistent.”
“I think we have the peaks. We just need to find the consistency. I think that’s the biggest challenge we have as a team. When we have our day, we can beat anyone. But we need to have more days like that.
“That’s one of the big focal points for us as a team, as a group, but also for me and sort of my little group on the 28 car is just to find a consistency in our performances from street courses, road courses, short ovals, superspeedways. We need to find a consistency to always run up front, and that’s where Palou and those guys [at CGR] adjust very, very well.”
When prompted to explain what Andretti, as a team, needs to do to regain consistency and compete at the front with Ganassi, Ericsson had a simple answer: preparation.
“It comes down from preparation, preparation before race weekends, how we analyse after race weekends, how we work as a team, as a group.
“There’s a lot of small details. It’s not one specific thing we can just flick a button and suddenly we’re going to be consistent. There’s like a package we need to do better as a group, and we’ve worked a lot on it.
“We’ve analysed a lot this winter, and we feel like we have a strong game plan going into the 2026 season.”
