Formula 1 has missed a trick for years not create a bridge for United States drivers to step up into the highest flight, and Michael Andretti believes that Colton Herta has all of the substances to make the transition.
Chatting with Motorsport Network after Herta dominated the Saint Petersburg Indycar race on Sunday after qualifying on pole, the 21-year-old’s fourth victory within the American open-wheeler collection, Andretti mentioned: “I’m pushing like hell for Colton. You’ve bought to recollect, Colton went to race in England when he was 15 years previous, all by himself.
“That’s at all times been his goal [to get to F1] however he’s very quiet and unassuming, he’s not pushy, however I see a high quality there – a Components 1 high quality. That’s from the phrase go – he’s a fantastic qualifier, and that’s actually vital, from what I’ve seen the races he received at COTA and Laguna Seca, each races have been received by uncooked velocity.
“Not technique, not gasoline mileage, and he’s successful in opposition to the perfect IndyCar has to supply – Scott Dixon and Will Energy – they have been on him from the beginning, and he didn’t put a wheel improper, all of the pitstops have been excellent.
“I’m actually a fan of Colton, I’m in his pit through the races, and he’s simply very calm and picked up. I like that. He adapts to the whole lot, that’s an enormous key to the whole lot.
“You hear folks complaining – ‘it’s too slippery, it’s too windy’ – he simply will get on with it, it’s the identical for everyone, simply discover a freakin’ approach to do it! And that’s what he does each time. I like that.”
However Andretti, who himself made 13 Grand Prix begins as Ayrton Senna’s teammate at McLaren in 1993, is aware of that for the American F1 fanbase to growth a homegrown expertise must have a chance with a high group.
“We’d want the American driver with a high group, not within the again with no probability,” Andretti defined. “For those who might get an American driver in F1, producing outcomes, you’d have America going loopy for F1.
“Mercedes sells a whole lot of automobiles right here, it’s an enormous market, think about what they might do with him? It will juice up the TV scores too. But it surely has to occur inside a 12 months or so, or they’ll take into account him to be too previous.
“He’s 21, so it’s a good time, and I realise the dearth of testing and licence restrictions. However, I imply, that Russian child [Nikita Mazepin] will get a superlicence, and the man who’s on the very high stage over right here can’t get one? There’s one thing improper there!” mentioned the group boss of Herta.
Fellow American, McLaren boss Zak Brown is eager to see his nation host a couple of Grand Prix, a sentiment shared by Andretti who added: “I feel America might be the one nation on the planet that may actually correctly host two F1 races.
“Fairly truthfully, I feel F1’s fanbase in America is considerably understated, nevertheless it must be perked up – and the one factor it’s actually lacking is an American driver,” insisted Andretti.
WINNER! WINNER! ? @ColtonHerta is your @GPSTPETE winner within the No. 26 @GainbridgeLife machine and led a race report of 97 laps! @IndyCar #AllAndretti #ConsistencyWins pic.twitter.com/ZuWUWWZf9r
— Andretti Autosport (@FollowAndretti) April 25, 2021