Colton Herta prepares for imminent F2 debut: '180-degree turnaround'

21:01, 25 Feb

byShanna Lutgert

IndyCar star Colton Herta is making the switch to Formula 2 this year to keep his chances of a Formula 1 seat alive. The American is gradually getting used to his new car.

“I’ve made a lot of mistakes, both there and behind the wheel, so there are a lot of lessons that I’ve learned — maybe more than most people in this championship”

- Colton Herta

Herta wants to try to reach Formula 1 via the feeder series by collecting enough super licence points to make it into the pinnacle of motorsport after all. He successfully completed the F2 test days in Barcelona. "I would say it's almost like a 180," Herta told, among others, GPblog.

“It is the driving style and the feel that this car produces is extremely different to everything that I've tripped in previously. So it is a big jump. It is a big difference. There's a lot of stuff to get used to. I think it is all the test, like it's getting better. Um, but from my side, I just don't think it's completely fluid yet.”

Herta expects it will take some time to get fully used to the new car. “This is what I need to do is what I need to break and, and know all these things pretty precisely before I get in the fight. I'm just not there yet but it's getting flipped."

Colton Herta debuts in Formula 2 with Hitech - Photo: RacePictures

Herta sees plenty of similarities

A few years ago, Red Bull showed interest in the American. Herta thought at the time that it may have been due to the Formula 1 test he did with McLaren. Reportedly, the plan was for Herta to move to AlphaTauri, now Racing Bulls, in 2023, but it didn’t happen because he didn’t have a super licence and, according to Helmut Marko, he was ‘too old.’

He can earn the required points this year by performing well in Formula 2: “I think there are a lot of things that are different, but there are also some similarities. So, you know, experience is key. You know, mistakes and whatnot are going to happen in racing, and you’ve got to make sure to learn from them.

“I’ve made a lot of mistakes, both there and behind the wheel, so there are a lot of lessons that I’ve learned — maybe more than most people in this championship. But whether that’s going to help me a lot, I don’t know. If it’s only going to help me by one percent, I’ll take it, but I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.”