Colton Herta’s father, Bryan Herta, was a race-car driver. But he didn’t push his son into choosing it for a career. Quite the contrary.
“I was never really forced into racing,” said Colton Herta, the defending Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach champion, who on Sunday will try to go back-to-back on the streets of Long Beach in the 47th edition of the race. “It was actually the opposite. I had to force him into letting me drive.”
He began pestering his parents for a go-kart at a very young age.
“From about 4 years old, I was always pushing for a go-kart,” said Herta, who races for Andretti Autosport with Curb-Agajanian in NTT IndyCar. “I wanted to try it. And I was always wanting to be in racing and they (his parents) kind of held me off until I was 6.
“Two years at that point in your life is a long time, so it felt like 10 years instead of two for me to finally get into a go-kart when I was 6 and I just loved it immediately.”
Bryan Herta, who had third-place finishes in Long Beach in 1998 and 1999, laughed when that memory was mentioned during a recent telephone conversation.
“He wanted to drive, he wanted to drive a go-kart,” said Bryan Herta, currently his son’s race strategist. “He just kind of stayed on his mother (Janette) and I about it until it became obvious that he was serious, even at that age, about really wanting to try and do it. And I guess at that point we decided to let him try.”
Having just turned 22 on March 30, Colton Herta has won six IndyCar series races and this year he is going to be testing for Team McLaren in Formula One. Considering Alexander Rossi was the last American driver to compete in an F1 race back in 2015, it’s a huge deal for the West Ranch High School (in Santa Clarita) graduate.
Formula One is the premier open-wheel circuit in the world.
“Fortunately, I’ve been in touch with Zak Brown, who is the CEO of McLaren F1 at the moment,” Herta said. “And he’s always been into IndyCar, into Formula One, into racing. … And so he got the chance to own the McLaren team and I’ve always been close with him in that aspect and we got to talking and I think he was really interested in my performances that I’ve shown in IndyCar and he wanted to test me in F1.”
Herta said he will be doing a few days of testing with McLaren at different tracks in Europe.
“Yeah, I’m looking forward to that,” he said.
Indeed, he is, and he is clear about his desire to expand his horizons. The sooner the better, if it’s going to happen, he said.
“Yeah, I would love to have the chance or opportunity to do a lot of things in my racing career and one of those is Formula One,” Herta said. “The only thing that’s different about Formula One is it’s extremely time sensitive.
“If you’re 24 or 25, you’re too old to get into the sport and that’s just how it is. So a time period for me to get to F1 is quite short, especially now.”
Herta wants to make sure it doesn’t seem like he is disrespecting IndyCar in any way.
“So, yeah, there’s definitely a lot of time for IndyCar and these sorts of things,” he said. “But, obviously, there’s a time crunch for Formula One and if I had a proper chance and I liked what I saw from the team and stuff in all those aspects, I would definitely highly consider it.
“But in no way is that kind of a disregard for IndyCar because I love it and it’s the sport that I kind of grew up watching and knowing and loving. So I’m not going to be unsatisfied if I never get the opportunity.”
Herta said the global viewership and worldwide popularity is what makes F1 the big shot of open-wheel racing.
“Whereas IndyCar is, for the most part, in the US,” he said.
The Honda Indy on July 17 in Toronto is the only non-US race on the NTT IndyCar schedule in 2022. There are two F1 races in the US this year in Miami and Austin, Texas. The F1 schedule also has (or has had) stops this year in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Australia, Italy, Spain, Monaco, Azerbaijan, Canada, Great Britain, Austria, France, Hungary, Belgium, Netherlands, Italy again, Singapore, Japan , Mexico, Brazil and Abu Dhabi.
MAKING A NAME FOR HIMSELF
Colton Herta is in his fourth full season in IndyCar. He comes in with six race wins, including three in 2021 when he finished fifth in the series standings. It was that first win before the age of 19 that made his father relax a bit.
When he won the IndyCar Classic at Circuit of the Americas (in Austin, Texas) on March 24, 2019, Herta became the youngest driver to win an IndyCar race at 18 years, 11 months and 25 days old.
“For me, the great relief was after he won his first race because I felt like at that point he had kind of established himself as an IndyCar driver and was more like a guy who was going to have a career at this,” Bryan Herta said.
“And so that was, for me, the great relief from pressure because I thought, ‘OK, from here on out, whatever happens, it’s his career and I don’t feel responsible for helping to get him there anymore’ kind of thing .”
The elder Herta said his son is indeed interested in many forms of racing, including NASCAR trucks. He said it would be fun to see Colton get a shot at Formula One.
“He would love to try a lot of different things, so I think seeing him get a chance to do that I think is great, a great experience that he’ll be able to have for himself,” said Bryan Herta, who was asked how he thinks his son might do in F1.
“I’m probably the wrong person to ask that, I’m far from an unbiased opinion,” he said. “But yeah, I mean, I think it would be interesting to see if he got a shot how he would do. I haven’t seen anything put in front of him that he hasn’t been able to handle in a race car yet.
“But it’s a whole different thing again. And I think some guys maybe would be able to make that transition, and some guys might struggle. The only way to know for sure is if he gets a shot.”
Jim Michaelian, CEO of the Grand Prix of Long Beach, is convinced that Herta could do well in F1 if that opportunity should arise.
“Virtually unlimited,” Michaelian said when asked about Herta’s future. “Don’t forget, there’s a long history of the Hertas here at Long Beach. His grandfather (Tom) was one of the original investors of this race and his dad obviously came and ran here for a number of years and has been inducted into the Walk of Fame.
“And now Colton is here and beginning to really make his mark in Indy cars and I think he can translate that talent, that capability, very easily into Formula One if that is where his path takes him. But whatever he does, he’s an extraordinarily skilled driver and I think he’ll manifest that no matter where he goes.”
FIRST THINGS FIRST
As Herta spoke to a reporter at a recent media day, he was asked what it would mean to him to go back-to-back in Long Beach.
“You know, I hope I can do it again because I want that feeling,” said Herta, who this season has started off with finishes of fourth and 12th in the first two races.
Herta indicated that he and the reporter were standing near a special spot where the podium celebration takes place, with family and friends watching.
“Yeah, it’s incredible, it’s awesome,” Herta said. “A lot of guys don’t even have a home race, so I’m very fortunate to have one so close to where I grew up and be able to kind of represent the home town in that way.”
