'Marko inquired about Herta's availability'

Colton Herta is on the radar of AlphaTauri. The talented IndyCar driver was already linked to Red Bull Racing 's junior programme earlier this week and RACER confirmed the rumours after the Belgian Grand Prix. Hertha could replace either Pierre Gasly or Yuki Tsunoda at the Faenza-based stable.

Gasly already has a contract for 2023 in his pocket at AlphaTauri, but he is still being tugged at by Alpine. Oscar Piastri is likely to join McLaren, so there would be a vacancy. Gasly might leave after all, but it will have to happen with the approval of his current employer.

At the same time, Tsunoda is not yet sure of his place. The Japanese driver is a promise, but in the past year and a half he has not been able to show his true potential. Tsunoda has not yet received a new contract offer and that may also open doors.

Hertha would be the biggest candidate if one of the current AlphaTauri drivers leaves. Since 2019, Herta has been competing in IndyCar and he is impressing there. According to the aforementioned medium, Marko has inquired about Herta's availability. The 22-year-old driver could be out from under his contract with Andretti if he is offered an F1 contract.

Herta and his super licence

There is one problem though. Herta does not yet have an FIA super license. He has 32 of the required 40 points on his super license based on his three most recent seasons in IndyCar. Only if his Indy Lights results are included would Hertha have enough points, but for that he would be dependent on an exception from the FIA.

There is also another possible way out. If a driver has 30 or more super licence points, he can apply to the FIA to be granted a super licence. The reason they then give is that they have lost points due to the global corona virus. The ball they then play is force majeure. However, the FIA must decide whether the application is justified or not.