The Cadillac Formula 1 Team announced Sept. 3 that nine-time NTT INDYCAR SERIES race winner Colton Herta will serve as a test driver as the team prepares to join the grid for the 2026 FIA Formula 1 World Championship season.

Herta, 25, will return to the European racing ranks, as the second-generation racer – the son of INDYCAR SERIES race winner Bryan Herta – made his European racing debut in 2015. Over a two-year period, he secured four victories, six podium finishes and five pole positions in the Euroformula Open Championship and went on to compete in six British F3 events, earning three podium finishes – including a victory at Brands Hatch – before returning to America in 2017.

“I’m incredibly excited to be joining the Cadillac Formula 1 Team as a test driver,” Herta said. “This is a dream opportunity, and one I’ve been working toward 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 toward that goal. For now, my focus is on giving everything I can to Cadillac F1, helping build a competitive team.”

California native Herta has nine victories, 16 pole positions and has led more than 1,000 laps in his 116 career NTT INDYCAR SERIES starts over seven seasons with the Harding Steinbrenner and Andretti Global teams. He is the youngest driver to win an INDYCAR SERIES race, triumphing in 2019 at Circuit of the Americas at age 18 years, 11 months and 25 days.

In addition to a successful INDYCAR SERIES career, Herta has scored multiple IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship class wins at the Rolex 24 At Daytona (2019 and 2022) and an overall win at the 12 Hours of Sebring in 2024.

Transitioning into a new role within TWG Motorsports, Herta is the first test driver named by the Cadillac Formula 1® Team, following the announcement last month that experienced F1 duo Valtteri Bottas and Sergio “Checo” Perez will form the team’s first race driver lineup during its debut season next year. Announcements on Herta’s 2026 racing program will be made in due course.

“We are delighted to welcome Colton Herta as a test driver,” said Graeme Lowdown, team principal for Cadillac Formula 1 Team. “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.”