In addition to his current IndyCar commitments, Colton Herta has a test driver contract with McLaren and actually drove one of their 2021 cars at Portimao last month.
However, the director of motor sports of the Red Bull structure, Helmut Marko , has proposed him as an AlphaTauri driver if, for example, Pierre Gasly signs for Alpine.
However, the American still lacks the 40 points to get the super license.
It is clear that Formula 1 and all those involved are interested in having an American driver on the grid, given the growing interest of the American country in the category, but the FIA will have to be careful not to set a dangerous precedent just to help Hertha .
A paddock source closely associated with the young drivers admitted to Motorsport.com: “If he gets the licence, we may all stop investing in F3 and F2.
In fact, Colton Herta isn’t too far off the required points either, as Indycar races carry a relatively high weighting for superlicence .
Following the arrival of COVID-19, drivers can add their three best scores from the previous four seasons to their request, which would mean that Herta could count on the period between 2019 and 2022.
The American got four points thanks to his seventh place in IndyCar in 2019, 20 for being third in 2020 and eight after finishing fifth in 2021, adding a total of 32 units.
With two rounds remaining in the 2022 season, he sits in 10th position with 8th being his best possible finish, so he will not add to one of his top three finishes.
He could also earn an extra point for appearing in any FP1 session he does between now and the end of this campaign, as long as he completes more than 100kms and does not receive any penalty points.
The American could score up to 10 points this way, as IndyCar reaches its season finale on the same weekend as the Italian GP, so any AlphaTauri track outing could, in theory, occur in the last six races of the year.
That would give Herta a total of 38 points, though realistically it’s unlikely the team could put together such a programme.
However, the FIA has given itself some room for manoeuvre, as an ISC clause states that the super license could be awarded to a driver who fails to obtain it through the points, but reflects that in any case there should be ” achieved a minimum of 30, being judged by the FIA as unable to obtain more points under any of the conditions, while participating in one or more of the listed championships to achieve the same, due to circumstances beyond its control or for reasons of force elderly”.
The force majeure could come in handy if Herta applied for a full super license and not the Friday version given to drivers who only contest FP1 sessions. That would open the range of results that you can draw on four seasons, that is, the period from 2018 to 2021.
He finished second at Indy Lights in 2018, a performance that should theoretically be worth 12 points.
Unfortunately for the American, the series only had eight regular entrants, so not enough to meet the FIA ‘s criteria for superlicence.
However, if the governing body decides to count those points after all (for example, because the lack of registrations was out of its control) it could add 12 in 2018, 20 in 2020 and eight in 2021, making a total of 40, which it is exactly what i would need.
However, that scenario seems to depend on AlphaTauri , which should give him at least one free practice session before the end of the course, which would mean leaving Gasly or Yuki Tsunoda on the bench during an FP1 in one of the last rounds of the season. season.
