Despite rumors that he may lose his ride, Marcus Ericsson is set to return to Sauber for his fourth year with the team in the 2018 Formula One season.
Marcus Ericsson, 27, is set to return to Sauber for the fourth year in a row in his fifth career Formula One season next year. Despite rumors that the team may let him go in favor of Antonio Giovinazzi, who drove in two races for the team this past season as Pascal Wehrlein’s replacement, Ericsson will, in fact, keep his ride.
This past season in his third season driving for Sauber, Ericsson was the only driver who drove in every one of the 20 races on the schedule and failed to score a point. His top finish of the season was an 11th place effort in the Spanish Grand Prix early on in the season. He was forced to retire in seven of the season’s 20 races as well.
In the 2016 Formula One season, Ericsson also did not score any points, although he was not the only driver who failed to do so. Esteban Gutierrez, who drove for Haas, also failed to score a single point in any of the season’s 21 races. Ericsson’s top finish of the season was an 11th place finish in the Mexican Grand Prix, and he was forced to retire in five races.
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The last time Ericsson scored a point was in his first season as a Sauber driver, his second career Formula One season, back in 2015. He recorded five top 10 finishes throughout the 19 races held that season. With those five top 10 finishes behind his only career top 10 finishes, the 2015 season is the only season in which he has scored points in his four-year career thus far.
In the 2015 season, Ericsson recorded a top finish of 8th place, his career-high finish, in the season-opening Australian Grand Prix. His four other top 10 finishes that season, and thus in his career, included a 9th place and three 10th place efforts. He went on to finish in 18th in the drivers standings, his best career result and the only result he has had in the standings after scoring points.
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All in all, it’s great for Marcus Ericsson that he is getting another opportunity to showcase his driving talent in Formula One. Driving for Sauber, he can’t really be expected to rack up great results, as the team is not competitive. Even still, he will have another chance to prove he belongs in the sport and to impress some of the more competitive teams in order to potentially be considered for future rides with those teams.