Colton Herta has reached a major milestone in his professional career by participating in his first official Formula 1 free practice session with Cadillac at the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix. The American driver, who is currently competing full-time in F2 with Hitech, took the wheel of Sergio Pérez’s MAC-26 during FP1, completing 27 laps and finishing in 21st place, three positions adrift of veteran teammate Valtteri Bottas. This track appearance represents the first of four scheduled FP1 sessions lined up for him this season as part of a tailored preparation program aimed at a future full-time race seat.
Herta expressed immense satisfaction after hitting this benchmark on a grand prix world championship weekend. “From a more personal standpoint, it was really cool to be a part of something like that, an official session,” he stated. “It means a lot to me, especially with the Cadillac brand and as an American. I definitely felt very proud today. It was very enjoyable.”
Absorbing the grand prix paddock environment
Beyond the raw mechanics of driving, Herta gathered crucial off-track insights by fully immersing himself in the elite paddock environment of a grand prix weekend. Even though the F2 feeder series acts as a support package for F1, and despite his established role as a development driver with Cadillac, his intense racing commitments usually leave him with very little time to absorb the grand prix atmosphere. Consequently, the FP1 rookie slot provided an invaluable window into the day-to-day operations of a top-tier F1 driver.
“The most important thing is to have an understanding of how things work,” Herta explained. “Going through the pre-event meetings, the prep work, and especially seeing how the session unfolds, what they are looking at, what they are trying to achieve during the session is important. It is all new and quite different from what I have done in the past. There is just so much more to look at. There is a whole lot going on. It is all very new to me and I am trying to take it in as fast as I can.”
First impressions of the Cadillac MAC-26
The technical feedback from the Cadillac MAC-26 left a lasting impression on the former IndyCar star. While Herta had previously logged private testing miles in previous-generation F1 machinery, the raw performance envelope of the 2026 regulations served up a steep learning curve. “Every part of it is just faster than anything I’ve ever driven. It’s impressive,” he noted when discussing the car’s characteristics.
Delving deeper into the dynamics of a flat-out push lap, he added: “I think when anyone talks about an F1 car on a push lap, it is just the pure speed. It is the most impressive part: the braking, the acceleration, the cornering. Every part is just faster than anything I’ve done. It is very impressive. It is all very different from my past experience. The car, the tires, the engine torque, the downshifts: everything feels very strange at first. It takes a fair bit of adaptation in the driving style and on the mental side to tell yourself to do it, and then actually doing it is quite difficult, obviously, otherwise everyone would be a racing driver. But I found it enjoyable. Learning new things, driving new cars, has always been a good thing.”
The whirlwind transition between F1 and F2
The rapid, back-to-back transition between two entirely distinct single-seaters did not throw the American off his game. Herta had less than 90 minutes between stepping out of the Cadillac cockpit at the end of FP1 and the green light for F2 qualifying. “It was very difficult, but I think we did well,” he commented regarding the frantic car swap. “You go from entering a corner 50-60 km/h faster. It is a massive adaptation, and when it comes to qualifying here in Barcelona, where it is a one-lap shootout on each tire, you have to make that adaptation quickly. From the F2 side with Hitech and my engineers, we had a clear plan or an idea. They did a good job preparing me for that.”
Shortly after his F1 duties, Herta went on to secure 8th on the grid for the F2 Feature Race, marking his strongest qualifying performance of the season so far, five rounds into the 14-race junior championship. “I am just taking it race by race, to be honest,” he said. “I want progress and I want to be better every weekend. I think we have shown that so far, so if we can keep this trend going, that will be the most positive thing. Whatever I do, I want to compete. I want to do better than how I am doing at the moment. We just need to put our heads down and keep improving.”
In summary, Colton Herta’s highly anticipated FP1 debut with Cadillac at the Spanish Grand Prix highlights the intense psychological and physical adaptability demanded of modern rookies balancing junior categories with top-tier F1 development programs. While his immediate jump into an F2 top-ten qualifying slot proves his versatility, the immense technical step up to the Cadillac MAC-26 underscores the steep mountain he must still climb regarding license points and European circuit familiarity. As Cadillac continues to evaluate its long-term American driver strategy under the 2026 technical regulations, managing these elite practice cameos will remain a crucial focal point for the team’s upcoming grid ambitions.
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