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Ericsson: Honda deserves more credit for 2018 gains

19:45, 27 Aug 2018

byJake Williams-Smith

Marcus Ericsson believes that Toro Rosso's power unit partner Honda deserves more credit for the progress that they have made in 2018. Having struggled since their return to F1 with McLaren, this season has seen visible progress with the reliability and speed of the power unit.

Speaking to the media after the Belgian Grand Prix, Ericsson noted that the power of the Honda power unit was on full display during the race on a circuit that is very power sensitive in the first and final sectors.

“I was in the DRS of Gasly at the beginning of the first stint but I couldn’t overtake him. I couldn't even get close to him with DRS, so I think that shows quite a lot that Honda has made great steps forward.

“I still believe that Mercedes and Ferrari are the two strongest power units but then Honda is a lot stronger than they get credit for I think. That was confirmation of that when I was racing them. Like I said I couldn't overtake Gasly even with the DRS and Hartley could overtake us, so I think that’s a fact.”

Ericsson went in to battle with Toro Rosso's Brendon Hartley in the closing stages of the Belgian Grand Prix. The Swede said he enjoyed the fight that lasted from La Source all the way to Les Combes.

“I didn’t expect him to be able to pull past with the DRS but the Honda is better than many people think I think! So they were not too bad. But then when I cleared him it was all about trying to catch Gasly but our pace in the second stint was very similar.

“I think in the first stint we were a bit stronger but like I said it wasn’t strong enough to overtake and then in the second stint we were very similar, keeping the same eight-second gap the whole second stint. So not much to do then.”