IndyCar driver Colton Herta says he has serious ambitions to one day race in Formula 1.
When the question of who the next American F1 star could be, the No.26 Andretti Autosport driver is regularly mentioned as a candidate.
With six IndyCar race wins to his name, it may not be long before Herta swaps series, as the 22-year-old made it clear he wants to try his luck in F1 at some point before he hangs up his gloves.
“It is a serious ambition of mine,” Herta said on the F1 Nation podcast. “There’s a lot of things that, when I am done racing, I want to be able to say that I did.
“And Formula 1 is pretty high on the list for one of those things, right? I wanted to get to IndyCar, I wanted to get to the Indy 500, I still want to win the Indy 500 obviously, which I haven’t done yet.
“There’s a big list of different races, events, series that I want to be a part of, and Formula 1 is definitely higher up on the list than a lot of things.”
Herta preparing for McLaren test
While it isn’t a permanent seat just yet, Herta will get a taste of what an F1 car is like when he tests the 2021 McLaren MCL35-M.
The American remained coy as to when that test will take place, but did reveal that a seat fitting will take place some time in June.
“I probably could [reveal the date] but I don’t know, I might get in trouble, so I’m not going to,” Herta said.
“But it is going to be later in the year. I can say I’m going in June to Woking for a seat fit and then some simulator stuff.
“So, I’m looking forward to that; last time I was there was in 2019… I think I did one day of sim. I didn’t really get to see the factory which I’m hoping I get a nice tour of.
“I know they’re very secretive of everything, so hopefully I can see all the bits and bobs, but yes, that’s going to be the first step. And then obviously testing later in the year, which is going to be fantastic – I’m really looking forward to it.”
Herta currently sits 11th in the IndyCar Driver’s Standings with 79 points from four races, 65 back of leader Alex Palou.
