The newly formed Cadillac Formula 1 team has its test driver, with NTT IndyCar Series driver Colton Herta coming onboard, the team announced Sept. 3.
Herta, a nine-time winner in the IndyCar Series, will serve as the test driver as Cadillac prepares for the 2026 F1 season.
“I’m incredibly excited to be joining the Cadillac Formula 1 Team as a test driver,” Herta said in a team release. This is a dream opportunity, and one I’ve been working towards for a long time. To be part of Cadillac F1’s entry at such a pivotal time is something I couldn’t pass up.
“My dream has always been to race in Formula 1, and I see this move as a huge step towards that goal. For now, my focus is on giving everything I can to Cadillac F1, helping build a competitive team.”
“We are delighted to welcome Colton Herta as a test driver,” Team Principal Graeme Lowdon added. “Colton is an exceptionally talented racer with proven speed, race craft and maturity well beyond his years. His experience in top-level American motorsport as part of the TWG Motorsport family makes him an ideal fit for this role, and he will bring valuable and fresh insight, perspective, and energy to our team as we continue to build for the future.
“Having an American driver join an American Formula 1 team is a hugely significant moment, not only for our team, but for American motorsport as a whole. Colton represents the passion, ambition and competitive spirit that define the Cadillac Formula 1 Team, and we are proud to have him carry the American flag with us on the world stage.”
Herta finished seventh in the 2025 IndyCar standings with five top fives and eight top 10s for Andretti Global. He has nine wins in the series since 2018.
Herta’s reveal follows the announcement of Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez being added as the team’s in-race drivers for the 2026 season.
All those folks in F2 and test drivers for the current teams, and they select someone who has never driven or even sat in an F1 car. If his goal is F2 and finally an F1 ride, starting at 25 is way too old to relearn everything.
Completely agree. If you just have to have an American to keep certain sectors from yammering about the lack thereof, find a way to sign Jak Crawford.
Otherwise, just sign the best young talent not currently under contract by one of the existing F1 teams. Fornaroli? Pourchere? The former is dominating F2 this year, and the latter was dominant in F2, but appears to lack funding, which obviously Cadillac has plenty of money to go around.