Marcus Ericsson hails IndyCar for eliminating "boring" race weekends with bold Thermal Club GP addition

Andretti Global's Marcus Ericsson came out and praised IndyCar for including Thermal Club in the championship calendar amid the uncertainties around the strategy of the race. The 2025 race at the Thermal Club will be the first time an IndyCar championship race will be held at the track in California.

The 2024 IndyCar race at the Thermal Club was a 20-lap-long non-championship exhibition race named the $1 Million challenge. However, for the 2025 race, championship points will be awarded and the race is going to be 65 laps long, i.e. a full race distance.

Last time around, Firestone only brought the hard tires (primary) but this time around, the tire supplier has brought a harder compound primary tire since drivers suffered tire degradation last year. Firestone has also thrown in a spanner with the softer alternate tires, which are mandatory to run for at least one stint during the race.

IMSA WeatherTech Championship Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring - Qualifying - Source: Getty

Marcus Ericsson came out and detailed how the new tires and a circuit where teams have minimal data will present an entertaining race for the drivers and the viewers, as it's going to be a guessing game. He said (via IndyStar):

“I enjoy this. The most boring thing we can do is when everyone knows everything, and everyone's figured it all out going into the race, and everyone is doing the same tire strategy and pit number. I think that's not fun”

“I like this more, where there's a bit of unknowns, and you have to make decisions on the fly, and also, as a driver, you need to be good at feeling what the car and tires are doing and communicate that well with the pit wall. I like that challenge, and I think that's fun. It makes the drivers and teams who do it well stand out from the rest," added Marcus Ericsson

Pato O'Ward spoke about the same earlier this weekend and highlighted how the strategy will decide the outcome of the race. Juncos Hollinger Racing's Conor Daly suggested that the race could very well be a four-stopper depending on how bad the tire degradation is.

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Marcus Ericsson and Andretti Global’s strong qualifying at Thermal Club

The Andretti team had a strong start to the weekend at Thermal Club with Marcus Ericsson finishing both the practice sessions in the Top 3. His teammate Kyle Kirkwood was the second fastest in the first practice session. Colton Herta also finished both sessions inside the Top 10.

INDYCAR Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg - Day 1 - Source: Getty

All three Andretti Global drivers were able to make it to the second qualifying session. However, Kyle Kirkwood was eliminated in the second session and was a tenth away from making the fast 6. He will start the race in P8.

Both Colton Herta and Marcus Ericsson made it to the Fast 6 but didn't have the pace on the used alternate tires to challenge for pole position. The duo will start the race in P4 and P5, resulting in all three Andretti drivers starting inside the Top 10.