Ericsson: I think it’s been a decent season so far

The two-week factory shutdown and summer break is here and the Sauber F1 Team is more than halfway through the 2015 FIA Formula One Championship – so it is time for a recap and outlook. Marcus Ericsson looks back on the first half of the season.

How would you summarise the first half of the season and how would you rate yourself?
Marcus Ericsson: “I think it’s been a decent season so far, keeping in mind the team’s performance in 2014. We had a good season-opener, finishing with both cars in the points. Obviously, in the last few races we were all a bit disappointed as we lost momentum. Overall, we have done a good job so far, but, of course, we want to score more points. For myself I think I have learned a lot. Coming to a more experienced team was a big step up for me. I am satisfied with my performance so far, but there are some missed opportunities that I regret. That’s how it is sometimes, but I learn from these moments. There is always room for improvement, and I will push to become better.”

What were your highlights? What would you say was your best manoeuvre so far?
ME: “My highlight was also in Australia scoring my first ever Formula One points. It was a great feeling. The best manoeuvre for me was the fight with Felipe (Massa) in Montreal, when I managed to keep him behind me for a lot of laps. Another was in Australia when I caught Carlos (Sainz) at the end of the race. That was a nice overtaking move.”

What was your low point from a sporting point of view? What was your most memorable mistake on track this season?
ME: “I had a good weekend during the Malaysian Grand Prix, being in the top ten in every session. In the race it went the other way. When I was attacking for P7, I retired in the gravel while I was trying to overtake. It was a shame, as the weekend had gone well up to that moment. It was a missed opportunity, which is part of the learning curve.”

What can you as a driver improve on track in regard to the Sauber C34-Ferrari?
Marcus Ericsson: “As a driver I have been focusing quite a lot lately on improving my qualifying performance, because I thought it was a bit weak at the beginning of the year. I changed some things in my preparations to improve it, and I am seeing positive results. I have been stronger in qualifying lately, but this can still be improved. On the car side, we always have areas to work on. We know that we are struggling a bit more on tracks with medium and high-speed corners. For me these are the most important areas on which we need to focus. It is important that Felipe and I work closely together with the engineers to make sure we work in the right direction. So far we have done that, but we need to keep pushing in order to make progress.”

What input can you contribute to the development of the new Sauber C35?
ME: “Every race weekend we speak to the track-side team and share our impressions of the current car. As Felipe and I are confirmed for next year at this early point in the season, we can get much more involved in the development of the C35. That’s great. We can point the car in a direction we want. It is all about feedback and having a close connection with the people in the team.”

What are your expectations for the second half of the season?
ME: “I am looking forward to the second half of the season. It is encouraging having updates coming in Spa-Francorchamps and Singapore. With that being said, our objective is to be back on a level from which we are able to fight for points. If that happens, we have to wait and see how it goes. We are going to work hard to extract the maximum out of our updates.”