Cadillac judging Herta on F1 outings rather than F2

Cadillac will judge Colton Herta more on his Formula 1-related work rather than his Formula 2 results, according to TWG Motorsports CEO Dan Towriss.

Herta made the switch from IndyCar to F2 this year in order to learn a number of the tracks that F1 races on and gain experience with Pirelli tires in the junior category. So far, Herta has scored a best result of seventh in a feature race and fifth in a Sprint for his Hitech team and sits 15th in the F2 championship standings, but Towriss believes it’s unfair to try and analyze the Californian’s potential on those returns.

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“For Colton it was all about learning – coming here learning tracks, tires and that certainly is happening,” Towriss said. “There've been some bumps in the road with the team, things haven't gone from a result standpoint as good as we would have hoped but I think that's to be expected and kind of just the way Formula 2 works, and bluntly where Hitech is at this point.

“So hopefully he'll continue to be able to show what he's capable of but I but I think also we're getting done what we needed to. He's learning what he needs to. In addition to what he's doing in F2 there's all the work that's being done in the F1 sim, and then he's got his first free practice under his belt – he did everything that the team asked of him in that session.

“We'll have another one coming up in Hungary and so we'll just continue to build that body of work that's necessary to show his readiness for Formula 1.”

Towriss says he has been encouraged by the way Herta has approached his work with Cadillac as third driver despite the struggles he is facing in F2.

“That and the sim work, and also I think the way he conducts himself at the track," Towriss said. "I think everybody's been very impressed with Colton's work ethic, the way he's come in just really wanting to learn and soak everything up. There's been zero entitlement from him as opposed to like, ‘That's gonna be my seat; I'm owed this.’

“This is just somebody looking to earn the opportunity, looking to do the work and that's exactly what you want to see from the team perspective.”