Colton Herta handed another Cadillac F1 chance after superlicence confusion
Colton Herta will be handed chance to earn his missing superlicence point with Cadillac in Brazil.
Cadillac has handed Colton Herta another practice outing at this weekend’s Sao Paulo Grand Prix in his quest to secure his Formula 1 superlicence.
Herta will take part in his sixth Friday practice session of the 2026 season on Friday in Brazil to collect the missing superlicence point he requires in order to race in F1.
The Cadillac test driver appeared in FP1 in Mexico City and the team initially believed his running had given him enough points under the F1 stream to earn a superlicence.
However, further investigation from F1’s governing body the FIA revealed the American was still one point shy of the required 40-point threshold.
As a result, Cadillac has given Herta another FP1 opportunity as it considers whether to promote the nine-time IndyCar race winner to a race seat in place of Valtteri Bottas next season.
Herta will deputise for Sergio Perez, who has signed a contract extension running until the end of the decade, in opening practice in Brazil.
“I’m really looking forward to getting back behind the wheel of the MAC-26 for another FP1 session,” Herta said.
“Interlagos is such an iconic, historic track, and driving an F1 car around there is going to be an awesome experience. Every time I’ve stepped into the car this year, from Barcelona to Budapest, COTA and Mexico City, I’ve felt more comfortable and better integrated with the engineering team.
“My goal for Friday morning in Brazil is the same: execute the run plan cleanly, give Checo and the engineers the best possible setup data to start their weekend, and keep building on my progress in the car. I’m grateful to the team for giving me this opportunity.”
Cadillac team principal Marcin Budkowski said: “I’m also pleased to see Colton return to the MAC-26 for another FP1 outing, stepping in for Checo.
“His growth in the car across his sessions has been impressive, and his feedback remains invaluable to our 2027 development programme.”
Cadillac also confirmed that it has “implemented mitigations” after Bottas suffered a suspension failure that led to a scary crash at the Mexico City Grand Prix.
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