Here's the thing about Formula 1 gossip: sometimes it arrives with absolute, unfiltered brutality. According to Crash.net, ex-F1 driver Ralf Schumacher has claimed that Colton Herta would be simply "burning fuel" should he manage to secure a drive with Cadillac for next season.
That verdict lands just as Herta finally secured the last remaining superlicence point he needed to race in F1 following his sixth practice outing on Friday at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix. The American nine-time IndyCar race winner is currently being considered for a Cadillac seat in 2027, with the team weighing up whether to replace Valtteri Bottas.
Bottas has underperformed alongside Sergio Perez in Cadillac’s debut F1 season, leaving the team keen on fielding an American driver in its line-up. Meanwhile, Mercedes reserve driver Frederik Vesti is also thought to be in the running for the seat currently held by Bottas.
When asked if Herta could genuinely be a candidate for the Cadillac seat, Schumacher did not hold back. As Crash.net reports, his reply was characteristically outspoken: "Only if Easter and Christmas fall on the same day. Seriously, it's pointless. He's just burning fuel, to borrow a phrase from Franz Tost. I don't even know what the point of it is. You might as well put someone else in the car, give some young drivers a chance."
Herta swapped IndyCar for Formula 2 this year in his quest to reach the pinnacle of motorsport, but he has endured a difficult and disappointing first season in the feeder series. He currently sits 19th out of the 22 full-time drivers, with just two scheduled rounds remaining in Qatar and Abu Dhabi.
Schumacher did not spare those struggles from his critique. Pointing directly to those results, he added: "He was really that bad in Formula 2. As far as I'm concerned, he hasn't earned it at all. I think it's great that they're trying to promote American drivers. But it has to make sense, and he has no place in Formula 1."
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