Marcus Ericsson secured victory at the debut of the Ontario Honda Dealers Indy event in Markham with two key passes.
During Sunday’s race, Ericsson and teammate Will Power collided as Ericsson made a late move. Subsequently, with four laps remaining on the Markham street circuit, Ericsson overtook Romain Grosjean to claim his fifth IndyCar career win.
“I believe our victory today was primarily due to our speed,” stated Ericsson, whose previous win was at the 2023 Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. “We had the strongest car on the track, and we won because we strategized effectively, pushed when necessary, and delivered when it counted.
“It was a fantastic feeling.”
Grosjean finished second, marking his first top-five result of the year. Power took third place, while current driver standings leader Alex Palou secured fourth.
Ericsson, Power, and Kyle Kirkwood, who holds the second spot in the driver standings, all compete as teammates for Andretti Global.
When Kirkwood exited the race in the 53rd lap due to a crash, the Andretti Global team focused on challenging Palou to prevent him from accumulating more points and securing his fifth IndyCar title.
“We discussed the need to engage with Palou since Marcus had a significant pace, tire, and fuel advantage. We had to counter Palou,” explained team principal Ron Ruzewski. “Our primary concern is the bigger picture. We must reduce Alex’s points to keep Kyle in contention.”
However, the team faced complications as Power unintentionally blocked Ericsson’s path while being overtaken.
“There was a miscommunication because the team alerted me that Marcus was rapidly approaching. I agreed to let him pass on the back straight to stay close to Palou,” mentioned Power. “He either didn’t receive the message promptly or didn’t react in time.
“I didn’t check my mirrors; I simply turned. Although I was frustrated at that moment due to the lost gap, our final position remained the same as intended, so it was acceptable.”
Palou earned 32 points in the race, whereas Kirkwood garnered nine before exiting prematurely. Palou leads Kirkwood by 133 points in the standings.
Next in Ericsson’s sights was Grosjean, who has yet to secure an IndyCar victory since transitioning from Formula One in 2021. Despite Grosjean’s efforts to defend against Palou throughout the race, his fuel was running low, and tire wear was substantial.
“Towards the end of the race, we knew the challenge was to manage around 37 laps on tires and fuel. It was a tough task,” reflected Grosjean. “When I observed Car No. 28 [Ericsson] pitting, I assumed he wouldn’t catch up with us. Car No. 10 [Palou] was trailing me, which was concerning. I widened the gap, thinking we were safe.
“Suddenly, Car No. 28 was closing in.”
Despite Grosjean’s need to manage his car’s resources, Ericsson acknowledged that overtaking him would be challenging.
“The situation remains tricky. The track is narrow with walls, making it uncertain how he would defend,” explained Ericsson. “Given my advantage, I aimed to pass him immediately, as unforeseen events like a yellow flag could nullify the fuel advantage during a restart.”
Louis Foster set the pace during practice and qualifying, securing his first pole position of the season.
Prior to the race, Foster predicted that there would be “chaos” on the 12-turn, 3.52-kilometre road course encompassing downtown Markham between Kennedy Road, Enterprise Boulevard, Unionville GO