Colton Herta adds 3rd racing commitment to 2026 schedule after F2 and Cadillac F1 roles

Colton Herta has added a third racing commitment to his 2026 calendar after joining Cadillac F1 as its test driver and Hitech GP as a full-time F2 driver. The former IndyCar star will join Cadillac Racing's IMSA SportsCar Championship squad to compete in three endurance events next year.

Herta will join Jordan Taylor and Louis Deletraz to pilot the No.40 Cadillac Wayne Taylor Racing in the GTP class. The 25-year-old will compete in the opening two races of the 2026 IMSA season - the fabled Rolex 24 at Daytona and the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring - and close the season with the Petit Le Mans.

Colton Herta has been competing part-time in the IMSA SportsCar Championship since 2019. His reunion with Wayne Taylor Racing in 2026 will come on the heels of their fabulous partnership in 2024, when he finished on the podium at Daytona and won the 12 Hours of Sebring driving alongside Taylor and Deletraz.

"Super excited to join Cadillac Wayne Taylor Racing for the endurance rounds next year," Herta said in a statement. "We had some success last time I was with the team, and I hope to continue that. Jordan and Louis are some of the best drivers in the business, and it’s a pleasure to join them on this adventure. I can’t wait to get behind the wheel of the Cadillac’s naturally aspirated engine. Daytona can’t come soon enough."

Colton Herta has won the Rolex 24 at Daytona twice in his class - once on his debut in 2019 with BMW Team RLL (GTLM class) and a second time with DragonSpeed USA in 2022 (in the LMP2 class). He also has a podium finish at the Petit Le Mans (2019).

Colton Herta uses Oliver Bearman and Kimi Antonelli's examples to justify his unusual F2 move

Andrea Kimi Antonelli with Oliver Bearman at the F1 Hungarian Grand Prix - Final Practice - Source: Getty

Colton Herta's move to give up his place as the highest-paid IndyCar driver and take a step down to race in Formula 2 is highly unusual. However, for him and his employer, TWG Motorsports, which owns both Andretti Global, the IndyCar team he competed for, and Cadillac F1, the team he joins as a test driver, racing in F2 was a must.

After announcing his signing with Hitech GP for the 2026 F2 campaign, Herta explained why this decision was needed. When asked by RACER if F2 would give him a better chance of success in F1 rather than a direct jump from IndyCar, he said:

"It does seem that way. As far as guys that have made that jump in the past, it's almost exclusively guys coming from Formula 2 at this point. It seems like the series is set up in a way where those guys are able to get on really quick."

"I remember Ollie Bearman when he hopped in the Ferrari, it was really impressive. I think [Kimi] Antonelli is doing a great job this year. You look at a lot of the rookies that have come up, they’re able to perform quite quickly. I think that's a testament to what Formula 2 has to offer for them."

Colton Herta finished seventh in the 2025 IndyCar standings, a year after finishing runner-up to Alex Palou. Two-time IndyCar champion Will Power will replace him at Andretti Global next year.