Red Bull’s Helmut Marko is disappointed as FIA fails to find a way around the rule book to grant Colton Herta a super license.
The 2022 silly season brought opportunities for Red Bull to join hands with Indycar sensation Colton Herta for an F1 debut. The team put in a lot of effort in making it possible but has now given up on the idea due to issues relating to FIA granting a super license.
After Fernando Alonso left a vacant seat at Alpine, AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly became a potential candidate for the French team.
While Gasly already has a contract with the Red Bull junior team until 2023, the British team is willing to find a way around it, given that they find a worthy drive at AlphaTauri.
The team had its eyes set on Indycar sensation Colton Herta, but there was a hurdle yet to be crossed to achieve that. To race in F1, a driver requires a super license. This license is issued to drivers only after they have scored 40 points.
Herta only has 32 points, and there is no way the American driver can score anymore by the end of the 2022 season. The Red Bull team has been trying to find a way around it but has failed and has thus stopped to create the necessary framework conditions to make this possible.
Also Read: 2020 F2 runner-up settles F2 vs Indycar Debate as Colton Herta eyes AlphaTauri seat
FIA does not realize the value Herta can add to the growth of F1 in America
Since Liberty Media acquired F1 in 2017, the sport has been trying to beat or at least level with the big leagues in America.
The sport has created an enormous market for itself in the US and is doing more to expand further such as adding new GPs to the calendar on the American map.
Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko believes that Herta’s entry into the sport would have helped the sport. But after finally giving up hope on the super license issue, the 79-year-old Austrian thinks it is a shame that FIA fails to understand Herta’s value.
Marko said on Motorsport-Total.com, “It’s a shame that you don’t realize the value an American driver, especially a guy like Colton Herta, would have for booming America with three races.”
Also Read: F1 journalist claims Colton Herta move to AlphaTauri isn’t happening
