Colton Herta, a highly regarded IndyCar driver, will test for McLaren in 2022 as the Formula One team considers its alternatives.

Colton Herta, an IndyCar championship winner, will try F1 machinery with McLaren in 2022 as part of the program to “evaluate young talent for the future,” according to the team.

In 2019, Herta, who was only 18 at the time, became the youngest champion in IndyCar history when he won at the Circuit of the Americas. He’s won six races and won seven pole positions since then.

His chance to trial for McLaren is made possible by F1’s new Sporting Regulations, which allow teams to run one-year-old cars – in this case, the 2021-spec MCL35M – as part of the TPC provision.

McLaren stated that their initiative “allows the team to test potential drivers and evaluate young talent for the future,” with more information to be announced later.

McLaren is interested in seeing how Herta adapts to F1 machinery

As the deal was announced to the public, McLaren team boss Andreas Seidl expressed his delight.

“Colton is a proven talent in IndyCar and we will be interested to see how he adapts to a Formula 1 car,” he said.

“We believe this testing programme will provide him with valuable experience while demonstrating the benefit of expanding previous car testing to showcase promising drivers for the future.”

“I want to thank McLaren for the opportunity to get my first laps in a Formula 1 car, which has always been on my racing bucket list,” Herta, who drives for Andretti Autosport in IndyCar, said.

“This will be a great opportunity for me to gain some valuable experience in a new form of motorsport and learn from such an established team like McLaren F1.”

At last year’s post-season test in Abu Dhabi, McLaren offered their own IndyCar driver, Pato O’Ward, an F1 outing.

Several racing suits inspired by F1 racing drivers are currently available at the following websites for a reasonable price:

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