Headline: Norris says “Hooligan Herta” has the tools for F1 — Cadillac test role sets up F2 push
Lando Norris isn’t exactly hedging his bets on Colton Herta. Ask the McLaren star if his former junior team-mate could handle Formula 1 and he barely waits to exhale: “He’s easily capable of driving a Formula 1 car at an incredibly high level.”
Herta, 25, has just been confirmed as Cadillac’s test driver for next season, with the American set for a full Formula 2 programme in 2026 to bank mileage on European tracks, learn the Pirelli language, and — crucially — scoop up the FIA Super Licence points that have long stood between him and a Grand Prix start.
Cadillac’s first race line-up is an experienced one in Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez, but team CEO Dan Towriss has made no secret of Herta’s trajectory: F2 for seasoning and points, and then see where the door opens.
Norris knows exactly what Cadillac is getting. He and Herta crossed paths on the European ladder in 2015, back when Norris dubbed him “Hooligan Herta” for the way he attacked high-speed corners. Herta then took the American route: Indy Lights, then IndyCar — nine wins to his name and second in the 2024 standings — and a reputation for audacious speed.
“It’s tricky,” Norris admitted when asked about switching from an American ladder to F1. “Being one of the best in Formula 1 is what’s difficult. But he’s skilled enough to jump in anything and be quick. If that’s still his goal — not just testing, but becoming a race driver — then of course it gets tricky. But he’s easily capable of potentially being in Formula 1. I’d love to see him here.”
The obstacle hasn’t been pace; it’s paperwork. IndyCar doesn’t consistently deliver the 40-point jackpot the FIA requires for an F1 Super Licence unless you’re champion, and Herta’s rolling total sits short. By contrast, Formula 2 is structured to reward the front with a straight 40 points for each of the top three finishers, with a more generous ladder beneath. If Herta’s as quick as Norris suggests — and his CV says he is — F2 is a cleaner path to eligibility.
Norris, who’s sampled an IndyCar himself, also pushed back on any notion that the American series is somehow a soft touch compared to the FIA’s own ladder. “IndyCar is one of the toughest series in the world. It’s an incredibly tough car to drive — I’ve driven it. The level is incredibly high,” he said, before adding a note of pragmatism. There still has to be a standard, a qualifying mechanism. You can’t, as he put it, just hand out licences.
What Cadillac gets with Herta is a crowd-puller who’s already adapted to big machines, big pressure, and bold strategy calls. What Herta gets is a proper staging ground: simulator miles, modern F1 braking and tyre detail via Pirelli, and a season in F2 where every weekend is a masterclass in the circuits he’ll need to know. It’s clever list-building from the new team, too, with Bottas and Perez anchoring the programme while an American star-in-waiting learns the ropes.
If there’s a watch point, it’s timing. Grids don’t stay open for long, and the churn around new regulations has already started. But Herta’s move reads like a long game, not a fling — a driver and a manufacturer shaping a pathway rather than gambling on a loophole. And if Norris is right, the pace is not the question.
“He’s probably better than most other drivers that are in the ranks and coming up in F3 and F2,” Norris added. That’s a high bar to set. It’s also the kind of line that will follow Herta into every test and every F2 session in 2026.
There’s still a lot of work to do: banking points, translating oval-bred instincts into the precision of modern F1, and proving he can be as sharp on Friday tyre prep as he is on Sunday heroics. But with Cadillac backing, a clear licence plan, and a McLaren star vouching for him, Herta’s finally got something he hasn’t enjoyed in years — a straight line into Formula 1.
