Ericsson: Sauber no longer focused on F1 survival

Marcus Ericsson says being able to focus on moving up Formula 1’s pecking order, as oppose to trying to survive, is acting as fresh motivation for Alfa Romeo Sauber. 

Sauber was bolstered by the addition of Alfa Romeo as a new title sponsor heading into the 2018 season, as well as receiving current-spec Ferrari power units, having used year-old engines last season. 

The Swiss squad, which has been set back by financial difficulties in recent years, was encouraged after a positive pre-season and finished ninth at last weekend’s Bahrain Grand Prix as Ericsson netted his first F1 points for two-and-a-half years. 

Speaking in the drivers’ press conference ahead of this weekend’s Chinese Grand Prix, Ericsson said Alfa Romeo’s presence, coupled with his result in Bahrain, has led to a renewed confidence and belief that Sauber can turn in a genuine challenge to its midfield rivals in 2018. 

“It’s like a new chapter this year,” Ericsson explained. “It’s been a lot of things changing over the winter, especially with Alfa Romeo coming on board, and a lot of new people coming into the team. It’s been a big change, and you can feel it inside the team. 

“You can feel the motivation is very high. People are believing again. It’s a big motivation to move up the grid, whereas the last few years, it’s been more about surviving for the team, so it’s not been so much pushing for performance, it’s been more pushing to try to survive every week, every race. 

“Having that mindset, it’s difficult to get results, whereas now we’re going into the season to push, to make results and to move up the grid. It’s a completely different mindset. For me, that’s been very nice to see, and so far it’s been very good. But we still have a long way to go, and we need to keep working hard. It’s been very positive.”

The Swede added having latest-spec Ferrari engines this year has provided Sauber with a huge step froward in performance and means the team no longer is trying to compete with a “handicap”. 

“It’s [a] very big [step]. Not only in power, but in everything, drivability, energy management and all these things, it’s a very, very big step. It’s nice not to have that handicap like we did last year, because it was a very big disadvantage last year.”