The Children’s Grand Prix of Alabama is scheduled to take place at the Barber Motorsports Park this weekend, and Marcus Ericsson wasted little time laying down his mark. The Swedish driver set the fastest time during the first practice session on Friday.Driving the #28 Andretti Autosport car, the 34-year-old clocked an impressive 1 minute, 7.7470 seconds to lead the field. Marcus Ericsson’s time was followed closely by IndyCar championship leader Alex Palou, who clocked a time of 1 minute, 7.7602 seconds. Colton Herta rounded off the top 3, as he recorded 1 minute, 7.7728 seconds. Team Penske’s Will Power was fourth fastest, ushering in a trio of Chevrolet-powered cars, including Alexander Rossi and teammate Josef Newgarden. Devlin DeFrancesco came up in seventh place, ahead of Scott McLaughlin at eighth and Nolan Siegel at ninth. Chip Ganassi’s Scott Dixon completed the top 10 with a time of 1 minute, 8.0960 seconds.Marcus Ericsson, who entered the 2025 season seeking an improvement on his overall performance from the 2024 season, appears to be finding his feet so far this season. The former Formula 1 driver has recorded one top-10 finish in the first three races of the campaign and currently sits 12th in the drivers’ standings.The former Chip Ganassi driver will be looking to capitalize on his strong start and increase his chances of clinching his maiden pole position of the 2025 season during the qualifying rounds.Marcus Ericsson reacts after Indy 500 testingMarcus Ericsson reacted following the completion of the Indy 500 open testing. The Andretti driver was among several drivers who participated in the testing ahead of the 109th running of the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing.”The 34-year-old, who also tried out the hybrid technology engine like all the other drivers, recorded a ninth-place finish during the testing, clocking a top speed of 225.505 mph during his first session. He then mustered a 230.075 mph during the final day of testing to finish in 12th. Following the results, Marcus Ericsson posted a series of images on his X (formerly Twitter) account with the caption:“Oh, it’s great to be back @IMS 🫶🏻🤩. A good couple of days testing. Car is fast. Bring on May.”The four-time IndyCar race winner boasts a fond memory of racing at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, as in 2022, he won the Indy 500 following a brilliantly executed drive with the Chip Ganassi team. However, Ericsson has struggled to replicate his form since his switch to Andretti and will hope for a resurgence during the upcoming edition of the event. The 2025 edition of the Indy 500 is slated to take place between May 23 to 25.