Herta vows to chase Indy 500 return in 2027 despite F1 Super Licence focus

Colton Herta has made clear he wants to race at the Indianapolis 500 again in 2027, even as his primary focus remains securing the FIA Super Licence points needed for a Formula 1 seat. The 26-year-old Cadillac test driver, currently competing in the FIA Formula 2 Championship with Hitech, told Motorsport.com he would never refuse an Indy 500 opportunity if his calendar allows.

“I’ll never turn down the Indy 500,” Herta said. “I always want to do the Indy 500. It was a shame this year that I couldn’t do it. You know, it was all set up.”

Herta had been lined up to pilot a fourth entry for Andretti Global at this May’s race, but a late FIA decision to add a Formula 2 round in Montreal — inserted alongside the Canadian Grand Prix to replace cancelled events in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia — created a direct clash that ended his participation. “That threw everything out,” he said. “But if I get the chance, 100 percent, I would love to do the Indy 500.”

The California native brings considerable pedigree to the conversation. He made seven consecutive Indianapolis 500 starts between 2019 and 2025, accumulated nine wins across his IndyCar career, and finished as championship runner-up in 2024. His appetite for IMSA endurance racing is equally strong; Herta has been part of Wayne Taylor Racing’s #40 Cadillac lineup this season and came away from Petit Le Mans with a podium.

On the Formula 2 front, Herta sits 19th in the standings after his debut campaign, with a season-best result of fifth in the Barcelona Sprint Race and four additional top-eight finishes. The season concludes with back-to-back rounds in Qatar on 28–29 November and Abu Dhabi on 5–6 December, though both events have faced uncertainty due to regional instability in the Middle East.

Herta has not yet finalised any element of his 2027 programme. How much room remains for IndyCar and IMSA commitments will depend entirely on the demands of whichever F2 or F1-adjacent role he takes on next year — a picture that, by his own admission, is still far from clear.