Marcus Ericsson believes that Haas and Toro Rosso will be Sauber's main competitors in 2018, but thinks that Renault and Force India will feel a challenge at certain Grands Prix. Sauber's 2017 season saw them compete at the back of the field, equipped with a year-old Ferrari power unit.
While originally, the Hinwil squad was due to run with Honda in 2018, Frederic Vasseur cancelled the deal after becoming team principal, and signed a multi-year contract with Ferrari to run up to date engines. For the upcoming season, Ericsson believes that Sauber will make gains and be somewhat competitive with other teams.
"We're up against Haas and Toro Rosso," he told Autosport. "I think next season will be very unpredictable in some races. It could go very well and at points we could also challenge Renault and Force India. But there will be other races where there will be problems and we will be further down.
"The goal is simply to get into the group of teams that are in the midfield – but it is clear that there will be a very open battle Grand Prix after Grand Prix. I want to be in the best shape possible to find the satisfaction that was missing in 2017."
The 2018 season will be Ericsson's fifth in Formula 1, his fourth with Sauber. He will be joined by Monegasque racer Charles Leclerc who graduates from Formula 2, a series he won convincingly in 2017 with Prema.
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Sauber? Against Force India and Renault? Likely not. I expect Renault to challenge Force India, followed by McLaren vs Williams. After that I think it will be Toro Rosso vs Haas vs Sauber. How that will play out will depend on if Haas sort out their brake issues and general chassis quality, how m... [Read more]