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Logan Sargeant, Colton Herta and Andretti


Logan Sargeant after finishing second in the 2022 Azerbaijan Formula 2 race.

Logan Sargeant after finishing second in the 2022 Azerbaijan Formula 2 race.
image: Clive Rose (beautiful pictures)

Formula 1 there is a interval In Americas. Viewership has grown in the United States, American fans are invested in the sport, F1 is responding to three races in the US in 2023, and there are a number of American drivers and teams looking to take part. the sport, including Formula 2 drivers Sergeant LoganDriver IndyCar Colton Hertaand motorsport team owner Michael Andretti. Today, we’ll be looking at where each driver or team stands on the road to F1.

Sergeant Logan

Logan Sargeant after winning the first Formula 3 race of the 2021 Russian Grand Prix at the weekend.

Logan Sargeant after winning the first Formula 3 race of the 2021 Russian Grand Prix at the weekend.
image: Bryn Lennon (beautiful pictures)

When you consider the traditional F1 ladder that saw Formula 3 lead to Formula 2 and eventually F1, Logan Sargeant is the closest American driver to F1. With multiple kart championships to his name, third place finishes in Macau and in the Formula 3 Championship, and the current total in F2 shows him sitting in third with the ability to move on. Second place after a good weekend, Sargeant has proved to be a formidable opponent.

Unfortunately, we’ve seen these careers fizzle out just before or shortly after their entry into the F1 arena, with the most recent example being Alexander Rossi, who finished second in the 2015 GP2 Series before entering the F1 arena. competed in several F1 races with Manor Marussia. Rossi was not re-signed the following season, instead, he moved to IndyCar.

Will that happen to Sergeant? It maybe, but Sargeant has something Rossi never had: A seat at the F1 driving academy. Sargeant is now registered with the Williams team and will make his free F1 practice debut this October US Grand Prix weekend, bringing him closer to the coveted full-time F1 seat.

The Sargeant also has more than enough points to warrant a super-grade for 2023, something other US options are lacking. And with Nicholas Latifi likely not to show up at Williams in 2023, Sargeant is a great choice if the team is aiming to pick a driver out of its academy lineup. He has proven that he can compete wherever he races, outperforming his teammates time and time again.

Is Williams ideal choice to show the talent of America’s next great hope? Considering the team currently sits 10th in the F1 Constructors’ Championship, it probably isn’t – but a foot in the door and the possibility of becoming a desirable racer cannot be overstated.

Colton Herta

Colton Herta before the 105th run of the Indianapolis 500.

Colton Herta before the 105th run of the Indianapolis 500.
image: Stacy Revere (beautiful pictures)

While Colton Herta has been rumored to be in Formula 1 for several years, his hopes have really begun to turn into a relationship this season, first with a potential F1 team. by Andretti Autosport and now with AlphaTauri.

During the Belgian Grand Prix weekend, Helmut Marko mentioned that Herta would join the F1 grid if current driver Pierre Gasly is launched by the team to race Alpine in 2023. However, there is one big problem: Herta don’t have enough points to earn superlicense, which is required to compete in F1.

Motorsport.comhowever, it is reported today that the FIA ​​is “reviewing Herta’s credentials,” which means that the powers that be maybe grants Herta a super-licensing not based on the current scoring system but by some other, currently unspecified stat.

That being said, Herta is pretty close to a super incense. He currently owns 32 points, including 40 points. He can also boost up to six points by taking part in a free 1-day F1 practice session for the rest of the year (of course, discounting the upcoming Dutch and Italian Grands Prix, clashing with IndyCar).

However, the FIA ​​doesn’t need hard numbers. From Motorsport.com:

It is important, however, that the FIA ​​has given itself some space, as an ISC provision notes that a super license can still be awarded to drivers who miss out on other qualifications. That is the case if they have “scored a minimum of 30 super-licensing points but cannot, at the sole discretion of the FIA, be eligible under any of a) to c) above, while participating in one or more championships listed in Supplement 1, due to circumstances beyond their control or force majeure reasons.

What effect does that have on Herta? Well, if he signed up for full-season super-licensing, he could total his best 3 competitive seasons from 2018 onward. The big problem, though, is that his second place in that year’s Indy Lights doesn’t currently count, as there were less than 10 drivers competing that season.

However, that was beyond Herta’s control. Theoretically, the FIA ​​could allow those 12 points to be calculated. Then he can count 20 points for 2020 and 8 points for 2021, which means he will have 40 points – enough for a super incense.

Apparently, those in the F1 field are not happy, with one source saying, “If [Herta] get the license, we can also stop investing in F3 and F2. “

It’s entirely possible we could watch Herta in Formula 1 next year – but it will require F1 and the FIA ​​to very prompted him to sign all the possible candidates who currently hold super-licensing.

Andretti Autosport’s Formula 1 Team

Michael Andretti in an open test for the Indy 500.

Michael Andretti in an open test for the Indy 500.
image: Joe Skibinski / Penske Entertainment

Michael Andretti has successfully put teams on everything from IndyCar to the Australian Supercar, but his next big goal is to get into a team that competes in Formula 1, making that team one of only two American teams on the grid. . Andretti originally planned to enter the sport in 2024, but there has been significant opposition from current teams – mainly due to money.

See, any new team that wants to get into the F1 grid must pay an “anti-dilution” fee of $200 million, which will be applied to all 10 existing teams. This fee exists because, at the end of a race season, F1 pays teams from two different groups. One group saw teams rewarded for their Construction Championship finish placement. The second group is divided equally among all teams. The addition of group 11 will eventually dilute the pay group, and the anti-dilution fee really only covers two years of that dilution.

Andretti’s argument that the addition of an American team – one that has been nicknamed “Andretti” – will ultimately make better use of the booming US F1 fan market than the existing teams, this will be more profitable for everyone, even with the addition of a sub-group.

However, current teams have reason to be skeptical. Haas F1 is also an American team, with the exception of some local action during the US Grand Prix weekend and some of the more prominent characters on Netflix docuseries Drive to survive, the team didn’t really bring in a huge fanbase or cash to F1. Now, if the team is planning to enter F1, it could come at a later date – possibly coinciding with the introduction of new regulations in 2026.

The growing American presence in F1 is almost tantalizing. Here’s hoping we’ll see it increase in the near future.



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