Ericsson was hoping for a new hit on the track where he took his first victory in Indycar last year.

But the Ganassi team's strategy for the Swedish championship leader was a nod.

Marcus started on the red tires, soft rubber compound, and lost a lot of time at the end of the first stint before the first depot stop compared to those who started on the black hard tires.

Ericsson did not manage to match the competitors in the strategy race but got to see itself passed in the championship top by Will Power.

- I had hoped for more in the race.

Unfortunately, we had problems with the balance in the car even with the hard tires, Ericsson tells indycar.com.

Horrible revenge for Power

Three points now differentiate between Power and Ericsson in the table.

The Australian took horrible revenge from last year when he led the first of the two races at Belle Isle Park but was forced to break.

That was when the field was red-flagged a few laps from goal and the car did not start in the restart.

Marcus Ericsson was then second, took the lead and won the first victory in the series.

This time too, it was dramatic for Power who looked to be heading for a sure victory.

But the end of the red tires was a thriller.

Alexander Rossi came behind very strong and was just over a second behind in the finish.

Scott Dixon took the last podium in the race.

Felix Rosenqvist was responsible for a powerful climb in the race on the difficult track in Detroit.

He was washed out in the qualifiers due to a miss from the team that released Rosenqvist right in front of Jimmie Johnson on a qualifying lap.

Strong performance by Rosenqvist

From the 25th and penultimate starting box, Felix Rosenqvist moved up to tenth place in a race without yellow flag situations.

A very strong performance, not least considering what happened here last year when Rosenqvist got a gas suspension on the car and thundered into the wall at high speed.

Felix had an angel guard who escaped with minor injuries.

The fourth place in Indy500 and today's run-up have undoubtedly improved the Swede's shares in the battle for a new governance.

The next race will be run on Road America, Wisconsin next weekend.