Lowdon wants Herta to give Cadillac hard choices to make

Colton Herta could give Cadillac a tough decision over its future driver line-up in Formula 1 if he impresses in Formula 2 and earns a Super License next year, admits team principal Graeme Lowdon.

Cadillac has signed Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas as an experienced driver line-up for its first season in 2026, with Herta making the switch from IndyCar to F2 as he seeks the required Super License points to race in F1. Should the Californian secure a license, he would be eligible for one of the Cadillac race seats, and Lowdon admits it’s a problem he’d like to have when it comes to the team’s 2027 line-up.

“Every team wants to have tough decisions,” Lowdon said. “I really respect Colton's approach to what he's doing. For me, this is what a real racing driver wants to do. He knows how difficult Formula 2 is. There's a lot of talent coming through Formula 2, you only have to look at the current grid to see that, and he knows that as well.

“So I really respect that approach. For me, that's the approach of a real racing driver. We want him to be successful and we want him to learn all this stuff.

“This is the ideal scenario [to be knocking on the door] and it's not a threat for Checo and Valtteri, over and above any other threat in Formula 1. You want to see talent coming through Formula 2 – significantly better if that's all within our family of drivers. Then it's a better class of problem to have by any stretch.

“But to be clear, there's no automatic arrangement. It's not about get the license points, automatically drive for a team. That's not the case. We've said before we select the drivers on merit. And that's how it's always going to be.

"I'm really looking forward to seeing Colton race. It's a huge opportunity to learn the tires, the circuit. He clearly knows how to race. So I'm excited to see how he gets on.”

Cadillac completed a testing of previous car (TPC) outing at Imola last week, using a 2023 Ferrari with Sergio Perez behind the wheel. Lowdon says it’s unlikely Herta would get the same opportunities next year, but says FP1 outings are being planned for the 25-year-old.

“We haven't explored it. When a new team comes in, it highlights certain areas of the regulations that are a little bit more restrictive for us than anyone else," he noted. "esting of a previous car - well, we haven't got a previous car so we can't test it!

“Obviously there's the FP1 opportunities, and as a team we have to dedicate a number of those to a rookie driver. So obviously Colton is a prime candidate for that, that's for sure. But yeah, we just have to navigate through it.

“The way the TPC test was done this year, we couldn't have done it unless Ferrari effectively donated two of their TPC days to us. Which is great that Ferrari did that. They are a tremendous partner to have. Having worked with them in the past, I know a lot of the people there very well. They are great people to work with.

“It's great teamwork when you see something like that but we can't rely on that, necessarily. I'm not sure of exactly what detail the testing program will take place, but certainly FP1s.”