Colton Herta, the 25-year-old IndyCar veteran, has responded to Cadillac's goal of a top 10 finish in the 2026 Formula 2 Championship by emphasizing his aim to compete for victories. Signed as a Cadillac F1 test driver and Hitech F2 racer, Herta expressed a mindset focused on poles and race wins. He highlighted his recent testing progress and the value of his teammate's experience.
Colton Herta, a nine-time IndyCar race winner, has shifted his career path by joining Cadillac as an F1 test driver and signing with Hitech for the 2026 Formula 2 season. Cadillac F1 CEO Dan Towriss has set a target of a top 10 finish in the F2 standings for Herta. In response, Herta told PlanetF1.com, “Everything that I hop into, I want to be competitive, and I want to be strong.” He added, “If the goal isn’t to win, then I don’t really see why you would do it. That’s my mindset.”
Herta dismissed a conservative approach, stating, “I think if you go into the mindset of, ‘Well, let’s try to work off and start inside the top 15, and then move forward from there,’ I just don’t think it’s the right approach.” Instead, he aims to “be as quick as possible,” lead sessions, secure pole positions, and win races, acknowledging that “time will tell how difficult that is.”
During pre-season testing in Barcelona, Herta achieved a top 10 on day one, improved to ninth on day two, and finished fourth overall. While his background in IndyCar and IMSA provides experience, Herta cautioned, “I don’t think it’s as much of an advantage as people might think,” noting that drivers are “pretty much fully developed” by their late teens or early 20s.
At Hitech, Herta will team up with Ritomo Miyata, a 26-year-old in his third F2 season. Herta said, “I think what’s very helpful is having Ritomo as a teammate also, with a lot of F2 experience.” Beyond F2, Herta anticipates simulator time and FP1 sessions with Cadillac in their debut F1 season, declaring, “Seat time in an F1 car is probably going to be the most important thing to get me ready for Formula 1!”
The 2026 F2 campaign begins alongside Formula 1 at Albert Park, with the sprint race on March 7 and the feature race on March 8. Herta's performances will contribute to Cadillac's assessment of his F1 readiness, though not judged solely on F2 results.
