Exclusive
Mario Andretti reveals: 'Cadillac would like to enter Formula 1 with this driver'
- Ludo van Denderen
Cadillac Formula 1 Team will become the 11th team to enter the Formula 1 grid in the 2026 season, the Americans announced on Monday. Mario Andretti, the 1978 F1 world champion, has been appointed director of the board. One of his main tasks is to find drivers for the team. During an exclusive interview with GPblog this Tuesday, the American will tell for the first time which driver Cadillac would like to start with in 2026.
For years, Mario Andretti has been hugely supportive of Colton Herta, the 24-year-old American currently racing for Andretti Global in the IndyCar series. When GPblog asked if Herta would be a prospect to sign as a driver of Cadillac F1, Andretti said: "Yes, at the moment, I see that if it were for sure next year."
Andretti curious to find out what would Herta be capable of in F1
"But there's another year to go on. So you have to keep an open mind. But I am, yes, I'm a supporter of Colton because of his experience. I mean, he's raced at a young age alongside Lando Norris, individuals like that who are obviously a prominent in Formula One now. And his experience is vast. He spent three years in Europe. He has a good feel for the circuits and so forth. He did a phenomenal test at Portimao in Portugal, it was last year, for McLaren. And it's really interesting what he's capable of in a Formula One car," Andretti continued.
Colton Herta is just short of the required F1 Super Licence. Andretti did not name a second driver talking to our website, however, he explained: "Preferably he would be alongside a very experienced, another teammate, if you will. That's the objective here."
This article was written in collaboration with Kada Sárközi
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