Cadillac Formula 1 chief executive Dan Torres has revealed that the team’s test driver Colton Herta was previously offered a contract by Red Bull and it took him a month to convince the American driver not to accept Milton Keynes’ offer.
After a successful career in IndyCar, Hertha decided to switch to Formula One. As well as being a test driver for F1’s newest team, he currently competes in Formula Two.
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Hertha has tested with a number of F1 teams in recent years, including Sauber and McLaren, but finally decided to make the move when Cadillac was given the green light to enter the championship.
Driving for Andretti Motorsport in IndyCar, which Torres co-owns, may seem like a natural step for Herta, but Torres explained it’s not as simple as you might think, with the American driver having offers elsewhere.
“I think a lot of people don’t know, or we’ve talked about it a little bit, how good Colton does,” Torres explained during the game. F1 Beyond the Grid Podcast. “So, now let’s get back to the Sauber story. We wanted to buy that team. So, we sent Colton to the shop in Hinwell to get on the simulator and he was lightning fast.
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Colton Herta, Andretti Global
Colton Herta, Andretti Global
“For an hour and a half or so he was faster than their current Formula 1 drivers and then from there he tested with McLaren and the reports on him were excellent.
“When Oscar [Piastri] Left Alpine and went to McLaren, there was a bit of a shake-up, so he did some testing there and did so well in those sessions that he came home with a Red Bull contract. It probably took me a month to convince Colton and his representatives not to sign this contract and to stay with us.
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“So there’s a lot of work for Colton and he’s really shown a lot of potential and talent in Formula One.”
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