(Motorsport-Total.com) – Bad news for all Formula 1 fans from the USA: According to information from ‘Motorsport-Total.com’, the dream of having an American on the starting grid with Colton Herta in 2023 has finally burst. Red Bull has stopped efforts to create the necessary framework conditions to be able to place the IndyCar star next year as a teammate of Yuki Tsunoda at AlphaTauri.
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The American Colton Herta will not switch to Formula 1 in 2023
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As feared, the sticking point was the FIA super license, which is absolutely necessary for every racing driver in order to be allowed to start in Formula 1. Herta finished the 2022 IndyCar season in tenth place and thus did not collect the necessary super license points.
Now Red Bull has finally given up hope that the FIA Herta could still issue a super license: “It’s a shame that you don’t realize the value an American driver, especially a guy like Colton Herta, would have for the booming America with three races,” confirms motorsport consultant Helmut Marko on request from ‘Motorsport-Total.com’.
According to the standard calculation, Herta currently has 32 super license points. A minimum of 40 is required for a Formula 1 driver’s license. He could only have gotten that if the FIA had counted past races that would not be included in the calculation under normal circumstances, taking into account “force majeure”.
Alpine test in Hungary: Herta not there after all
Most recently, Red Bull had tried to exhaust all possibilities – also with the help of the Alpine team. Alpine want to sign Pierre Gasly in 2023 but will only get the Frenchman if Red Bull releases him. So Herta was scheduled for an Alpine test at the Hungaroring in September. This test has now also been canceled for Herta.
For Marko it is “incomprehensible” that a winner of seven IndyCar races has to prove his qualifications to drive a Formula 1 car safely using a bureaucratic points system. Especially since Herta could have done some free practice sessions in 2022 to properly prepare for the 2023 season.
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But in the end the pressure on the boiler increased. The FIA had promised a decision for the Monza weekend, but then wanted to wait for the Alpine test at the Hungaroring. And Herta also urgently needed a decision. Because in the USA, his Andretti team began to press for information.
Background: If Herta Andretti had had to wait longer to wait for a decision from the FIA regarding 2023, Andretti would have had to sign another driver sooner or later so as not to end up empty-handed. And Herta didn’t want to take the risk of losing Andretti and not getting AlphaTauri.
Gasly and Alpine: There is still a chance
So the dream of an American in Formula 1 has burst, at least for the time being. However, the idea that Gasly could switch from AlphaTauri to Alpine is not quite through yet. However, AlphaTauri needs a tried and tested substitute for this, otherwise Marko, who ultimately decides, will not give his approval.
According to information from ‘Motorsport-Total.com’, any Gasly successor will not come from their own junior team. Although Liam Lawson gained training experience for the first time at Spa, he did not push himself to be promoted to the regular cockpit. And Jehan Daruvala (P6 in Formula 2), Ayumu Iwasa (9th) and Dennis Hauger (11th) still need time.
Meeting in Graz: De Vries and Marko are already negotiating
“It’s just being ventilated what possibilities there could be,” says Marko in relation to the second AlphaTauri cockpit. One thing is certain: Mick Schumacher is not one of the candidates who come into question. And if no suitable candidate can be found, Gasly will have to stay with AlphaTauri for another year before his Red Bull contract expires.
However: Marko met Nyck de Vries on Friday around noon, eyewitnesses report, in downtown Graz, where he also has his office. The Dutchman just made his Formula 1 debut at Monza and caused a stir as driver of the day. It is possible that he will switch to AlphaTauri instead of Gasly.
That would be a move that Marko might like. De Vries was a Mercedes junior for many years, but now has no contractual relationship with Mercedes. The 27-year-old was last seen as a candidate for a cockpit at Alpine and Williams. He is scheduled to test a 2021 Alpine at the Hungaroring in September.