Ericsson: IndyCar, not F1, has 'real races'

Marcus Ericsson says that IndyCar has "real" races compared to Formula 1, where it is difficult to follow other cars.

After racing in F1 for five years, Ericsson made the switch to IndyCar for the 2019 season at Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports alongside series veteran James Hinchcliffe.

The Swede grabbed his first podium finish in Detroit earlier this year, and admits that he is enjoying IndyCar with its "real" racing.  

“These are the real races,” he told Auto Motor und Sport. “Driving behind another car is a million times easier than in Formula 1.

"Only if you’re driving by yourself do you miss the performance of F1. They have a lot more power and downforce."

The 28-year-old returned to Formula 1 this week, as he took part in a test for Pirelli, driving for Alfa Romeo, as he remains its third driver.

Ericsson insists that his main focus lies in IndyCar, but he is happy to receive changes in F1 when they present themselves.

"Obviously my main focus this year is on the IndyCar programme, but I get the chance to help the Alfa team in any way.

"Obviously it will be a Pirelli test, so it’s more for the tyres, but still if I can give some feedback on how the car feels, and how I feel about the car, that would obviously be helpful for the team as well, to get another input.

“They know my feedback and the way I’ve been working in the past, so I think they’re still going to be interested in my feedback about how the car behaves, and what I think can be improved.”