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Abu Dhabi, December 26, 2025
IndyCar Star Colton Herta Takes Unconventional Route to Formula 1
Table of Contents
The young American driver is heading to Formula 2, a developmental series, in a bid to earn a superlicense and race in F1.
- Colton Herta, a prominent IndyCar driver, will compete in the Formula 2 series in 2026.
- This move is a strategic effort to gain the necessary licensing points to qualify for a Formula 1 superlicense.
- Herta’s team is backed by TWG Motorsports, the parent company of the Cadillac F1 project.
- The decision is unusual, as Herta’s talent would typically allow direct entry into F1.
Colton Herta is attempting a feat rarely seen in major league sports: stepping back to move forward. The 25-year-old IndyCar star has chosen to race in Formula 2 in 2026, a developmental series, as a stepping stone toward a potential Formula 1 career with Cadillac. It’s a path that would be almost unthinkable for a reigning NFL MVP like Josh Allen to take – to leave the NFL after eight seasons and return to college football – but Herta is forging a new path in the racing world.
A Generational Talent’s Gamble
herta and Allen both began their professional careers within a week of each other in 2018, quickly becoming recognizable figures in their respective sports.With 116 IndyCar starts under his belt, Herta finished second in the 2024 IndyCar championship and boasts nine victories, including the distinction of being IndyCar’s youngest winner at age 18 in 2019. So established is Herta in IndyCar that his face alone adorned the drivers section of the series’ 2025 media guide.
Despite his success, Herta has faced obstacles in securing a Formula 1 seat due to a lack of the required licensing points. “In long ago times, a driver of Herta’s caliber could dream of racing in F1, and if they had the talent, Grand Prix racing would welcome them without issue,” remarked 1978 F1 world champion Mario Andretti. “I was in a midget in 1963, age 23, in Hatfield, Pennsylvania, and who was I thinking about? Dan Gurney, (who) just got right into Formula 1. And I’m thinking, ‘Someday, that’s where I want to be.’ And I was in the third-of-a-mile dirt track in a midget thinking of Formula 1.”
A Bold Plan Backed by Cadillac
To overcome this hurdle, Herta and TWG motorsports – the parent company behind the Cadillac F1 project, owned by the controlling owners of the Los angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Dodgers – devised a plan to enter Herta into the F2 series with the Hitech TGR team. The goal is to accumulate the necessary points to qualify for a future F1 superlicense. “It’s now or never, and he knows that, and he’s willing to take that chance,” Andretti said. “That’s how crucial it is to him. And that is a beautiful commitment I would support 3,000 percent, to go one step down to go two steps forward, but he knows what he’s doing and he’ll accomplish what he’s after, I’m positive.”
