Colton Herta debuted in a Formula 1 grand prix weekend, driving for Cadillac in the opening practice session at the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix. As a test and development driver, he completed 27 laps, finishing 4.3 seconds off the pace. Herta highlighted the experience, data collection, and differences from IndyCar, noting the impressive speed and complexity of F1.
Colton Herta made his Formula 1 grand prix weekend debut at the Barcelona -Catalunya Grand Prix on Friday, running laps for Cadillac during the opening practice session .
Herta joined Cadillac for 2026 as a test and development driver and is dovetailing his Formula 1 duties with a race role in Formula 2, having made the move across from the IndyCar Series. Formula 1 teams have to field a rookie driver during four practice sessions each year, and Herta was one of six non-race drivers to feature in Friday’s opening 60 minutes of running.
Herta finished at the bottom of the 21-driver timesheet—Williams reserve Luke Browning was a non-participant due to an electrical issue—and he completed 27 laps in the MAC-26, his best 4.3 seconds off the pace.
“It was very enjoyable, we got done what we wanted to get done, which was good, hopefully I’ve provided good data,” Herta said. “And from a more personal side, it was very enjoyable to be part of something like that in an official session, especially having the Cadillac badge as an American.
“Just to have an understanding of how things work is the most important thing—the pre-event meetings, the pre-event prep, seeing how the session plays out, what they’re trying to achieve during the session. “It’s all new and it’s quite different from what I’ve done in the past, from the perspective of there’s so much more to look at, so many more sensors, so much more development, and quick development, race-to-race there’s a lot of things happening, so that’s all very new to me and something I’m trying to pick up on as fast as possible.
” Despite his IndyCar experience, and previous private Formula 1 tests with McLaren and Alpine, Herta was still taken aback by the overall level of performance.
“Whenever anybody talks about a Formula 1 car on a push lap it’s just the outright speed of it is the most impressive part,” Herta said. “Braking, acceleration, the cornering, every part of it is just faster than anything I’ve done, it’s very impressive. ” Herta is due to participate in three more practice sessions this year but the location of those outings have yet to be determined.
U.K.-based Phillip Horton started covering Grands Prix while still at university and swiftly deemed that writing about Formula 1 and the behind-the-scenes machinations was much more engaging than reading centuries-old novels. Degree gained, he went on to cover the sport full-time from 2014 and is as intrigued and excited by the destinations Formula 1 visits during its lengthy annual world tour as the racing itself.
Phillip joined Autoweek in 2021 and while he has just about learned to spell in American English he has yet to find anywhere in America that makes a proper cup of tea.
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