Colton Herta targets F1 by 2028: 'I still have an opportunity'

The Hitech racer currently sits 19th in the drivers’ standings, with 26 points to his credit and his top performance being a fifth-place finish in the Barcelona sprint race, achieved from a third-place start on the reversed grid. He finds it hard to pinpoint the reasons behind his underwhelming performance.

In an exclusive interview with Motorsport.com, when asked what aspects have been particularly challenging for him to grasp, Herta replied: “Nothing specific, it’s just the overall situation. Unfortunately, there haven’t been many positives at any point. For some reason, we’ve had absolutely no pace, and nothing has fundamentally changed.

“It’s puzzling why we can’t manage a strong weekend from start to finish. It’s baffling to qualify three seconds off the pace here. It simply makes no sense to me.”

Colton Herta, Hitech

When pressed on whether he had difficulty adjusting to the car or the tyres, Herta clarified: “Not initially. During winter testing, we were quite competitive. All the private tests I participated in showed promising results, but for some reason, that hasn’t translated during race weekends.”

The American’s evaluation is accurate. He was tied for 11th-fastest during pre-season testing in Barcelona, just 0.574 seconds behind the leader Rafael Camara – who is also a rookie and the defending F3 champion. That performance was undoubtedly encouraging.

However, it did not hold. Herta averaged a 14th-place qualifying position in the first five rounds, with a 0.848-second gap to the fastest times, and his performance gradually declined, averaging 18th across the subsequent eight qualifying sessions. During this latter stretch, the average deficit grew to 1.088 seconds – excluding the most recent Baku race, where his gap unexpectedly increased to 2.484 seconds in Q1 and 3.091 seconds in Q2.

Incidents have also been increasingly common, with no fewer than three crashes occurring during the recent rounds in Monza and Madrid.

“It’s frustrating, but all we can do is keep pushing forward,” Herta stated. “I’m not sure if that was the last of the season [with Qatar and Abu Dhabi at risk due to the Iran conflict], or if there are more races to come, but we’ll continue to operate as if we have two more races left. I’ll strive to maximize my performance.”

It’s safe to say this season hasn’t been particularly promising for Herta’s F1 ambitions, especially considering that Cadillac F1 CEO Dan Towriss had anticipated a top-10 finish in the championship, which now appears nearly impossible.

Cadillac had made it clear that their test and development driver had a genuine opportunity for an F1 seat in the near future if he performed well in F2, but Herta mentioned he hasn't received any feedback from the team regarding his performance in the feeder series.

Colton Herta, Hitech

The former IndyCar standout noted that he is currently in discussions with the F1 team regarding his plans for 2027 and clarified, amid conflicting media reports, that he wasn't dismissing the possibility of another season in F2 – although this is clearly not his primary focus.

“I said, ‘I’m not interested,’” Herta emphasized. “This year, if there was evident progression and improvement, it would be more appealing to return, but there’s been no progression whatsoever.

“I’ve been engaging more with the F1 team, particularly in simulator work. I just completed a TPC [Testing of Previous Cars] day on Monday, which went very well. On the F1 simulator and TPC tests, my pace has been quite strong, but for some reason, that hasn’t translated to F2.”

However, when asked if he was still firmly in Cadillac’s plans for 2027, Herta replied: “I don’t have anything lined up for next year at the moment, but we are discussing the opportunities available for me within the team.”

And when we asked whether the 2024 IndyCar runner-up would consider a return to the series, Herta made his priorities clear: “It all hinges on what next year looks like. My focus remains on making it to F1, and I still believe I have a chance to achieve that in the next two years. But I’m uncertain at this point, and I need to step back and see what the plan is for Cadillac regarding my future.

“Once I have that clarity, I can make more informed decisions about whether I’ll be in Formula 1 or not. What does that entail in terms of a reserve role? Is it still a test role? If so, what other series can I participate in to stay active during that time?

“There’s a lot of uncertainty at the moment, unfortunately, until I have more concrete plans for next year – then I can structure everything around that.”