Cadillac have signed American IndyCar racer Colton Herta as the test driver for their Formula 1 project and have also helped the 25-year-old to land a race seat in Formula 2
New Cadillac test driver Colton Herta will quit IndyCar to join the Formula 2 grid next year, it has been confirmed. The American driver is chasing the FIA superlicence points he needs to be allowed to race in Formula 1 in the future.
Herta has long been linked with the Cadillac project, which began life as the official bid of American motorsport team Andretti Global’s F1 expansion plans. AG is owned by TWG Motorsports, which also operates the Cadillac F1 team which will form the sport’s 11th outfit from next year.
Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez have already been signed as their first racing drivers. And now Herta has been confirmed as their official test driver despite not finishing high enough in the IndyCar championship this season to score enough points to earn a superlicence, needed to race in F1.
It has been clear from the beginning that Cadillac chiefs want to field an American with Herta the racer by far the most strongly linked. And, in a bid to held the 25-year-old get that superlicence he needs, it seems they have negotiated a place on next year’s Formula 2 grid for him.
« We have been fortunate to keep Colton at Andretti in the IndyCar team, and so now, he is going to pursue that dream in Formula 1, » said TWG chief executive Dan Towriss, who did not specify which F2 team Herta will join. « And, to do that, he is going to take a pretty big risk.
« He is leaving IndyCar, he is not going directly to Formula 1 – this is a test and development driver role – and so he is going to be going into F2. He has got to learn tracks, he has got to learn tyres – tyres are a big part of that, very different from IndyCar from that standpoint. I could not be more proud of Colton, to be willing to take that risk to pursue his dream. »
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Under the FIA’s current weighting system, drivers have a better chance of scoring more superlicence points by racing in F2 than in IndyCar, despite the former being a junior feeder series for F1 and the latter being the top single-seater motorsport series in North America.
It is the barrier that has already prevented Herta from making it onto the F1 grid. In 2022, he was identified as Red Bull as their top target for one of their vacant seats at their junior team, but the FIA rejected their request for a special exemption to be given to the American to race in F1 without a superlicence.
Towriss was not explicit about what the future will hold for Herta, but hinted a 2027 race seat could be on the table if he can perform in F2. He said: « I am confident Colton will get his shot, but he has got to earn it, right? He is taking that risk.
« I think people should really take note of and admire Colton for that bold move. He is not entitled to the seat. He is not guaranteed the seat from that standpoint. He is going over to prove that he belongs in Formula 1.
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« What I applaud most about him is his willingness to be uncomfortable. When you come to a fork in the road, the most comfortable thing he could have done was say, ‘I am well paid, I am going to stay in IndyCar and go try to achieve this next thing’.
« But he chose the unconventional path. He chose something that is a very uncomfortable situation – there are a lot of new things that are going to come at him. He is going to grow tremendously, and he has got a big opportunity in front of him. »
Herta’s signing as test driver comes after Mick Schumacher turned down the job. The German was offered a dual role as an F1 reserve and a driver for the Jota Sports World Endurance Championship team, but rejected that approach and now looks poised to sign with McLaren ahead of their entry into WEC from 2027.
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