Colton Herta makes feelings known about Le Mans dream with Cadillac

IndyCar star Colton Herta has shared his feelings about racing at the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans. The 25-year-old is set to run a part-time program with Cadillac Racing in the IMSA SportsCar Championship in 2026 alongside his F1 and F2 duties.

He will compete in the three biggest endurance events on the schedule - the season-opening Rolex 24 at Daytona (January 24-25), the Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring (March 21), and the Petit Le Mans (October 3). In preparation for the next season, Herta is part of an ongoing IMSA-sanctioned test at the Daytona International Speedway from November 14 to 16.

On day two of testing on Saturday, November 15, he spoke about his goal of racing at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the premier event on the World Endurance Championship calendar. However, with him running a full-time F2 season with Hitech GP, the Barcelona GP weekend clashes with Le Mans, making a 2026 run not possible.

"In the long term, the 24 Hours of Le Mans remains a goal for me, which will not be possible in 2026, given a common date with Formula 2," Colton Herta said via Endurance-Info. "So far, I haven't had a real opportunity to drive at Le Mans, but what is certain is that doing Le Mans is something I am looking for. I've had some discussions in the past about driving in LMP2, but never in the premier class. Because of the IndyCar calendar, it never worked. I admit that it would be incredible to do it with Cadillac."

Colton Herta will pilot the Cadillac's No. 40 prototype V-Series.R in IMSA next season, reuniting with 2024 Wayne Taylor Racing teammates Jordan Tayle and Louis Deletraz, with whom he won the 2024 12 Hours of Sebring. The California native left IndyCar and Andretti Global after the 2025 season to join Cadillac F1 as a test driver.

His F2 commitment with Hitech Grand Prix is part of his F1 program to learn the new tracks and the behavior of the Pirelli tires that F1 uses.

Colton Herta's potential Indy 500 return and expectations from F2

The No. 26 Andretti Global Honda of Colton Herta at the 109th Indianapolis 500 - Source: Getty

Colton Herta recently shared on the Stickers & Send It podcast, an IndyCar exclusive, that he would love to return for the Indy 500 in 2026 despite having left the series. Though the Greatest Spectacle of Racing hasn't treated him too well, with a P8 as his best result, the lack of success doesn't deter him.

Moreover, the fourth part-time entry, which Marco Andretti used to occupy until 2025, will be vacant next year, as the 38-year-old announced his retirement on October 30.

"I'd love to be back, but I don't know what's on the card, what's available, and if I'll be able to," Herta said. "I'm sure there will be discussions about it. Because for me, I love Indy so much. It doesn't deserve to treat me any sort of way, although it hasn't been too kind for me so far, and we've had some big ones, not great results. But it drives you even more, makes me even more hungry to come back. So yes, I hope I do get to come back."

On the F2 front, Colton Herta isn't expecting to win on his debut despite being a seasoned racer and the most experienced driver on the grid next year. The nine-time IndyCar race winner feels it would be "foolish" to expect such an occurrence. However, he did go quickest among a small pool of drivers who tested F2 cars in an independent test at Monza in early November.