Ericsson quietly hoping to extend IndyCar lead at Toronto

Marcus Ericsson enters Sunday's race in Toronto atop the IndyCar standings and minus the traditional midseason fanfare.

His quiet demeanor, consistent results and even the title of reigning Indianapolis 500 champion have done little to change his public persona.

And with the chatter this weekend focused squarely on the future plans of Ericsson's teammate, defending series champ Alex Palou, and the continued banter between Andretti Autosport teammates Alexander Rossi and Romain Grosjean, Ericsson seems content to stay in the background for now.

“We all had strong cars (Friday), we did some work last night to try and find a bit more of the feeling I want from the car," he said after posting the second-fastest lap in practice Saturday. "We're in good shape. We're in the mix. It's going to be tight as always.”

These are the conditions in which the 31-year-old Swede seems to thrive.

Since moving to Chip Ganassi Racing last season, his three wins are tied for third-most behind only two-time series champ Josef Newgarden of Team Penske and Pato O'Ward. last year's series runner-up with Arrrow McLaren SP. Newgarden has won five times over that span; O'Ward has four wins.

But nobody has been more consistent this season than Ericsson.

While Newgarden's three wins lead the series, Ericsson has driven the No. 8 Honda to five straight top-10 finishes. He's posted seven top-10s in the first nine races and has completed 984 of the 1,003 contested race laps this season.

And now after completing Toronto's bumpy 1.786-mile, 11-turn street course in 1 minute, 0.282 seconds seconds — second only to Herta's 1:00.0471 — Ericsson finds himself in contention for yet another strong finish that could help pad his 20-point lead over another Penske