Mario Andretti shares ‘tremendous respect’ for Colton Herta’s F1 gamble

Mario Andretti has praised Colton Herta’s commitment to reaching Formula 1 after the American chose to walk away from a successful IndyCar career

Mario Andretti has shared his respect for Colton Herta after the American driver decided to step away from the IndyCar Series to pursue his dream of driving in Formula 1.

Herta currently serves as the test driver for the Cadillac F1 team, while also racing in Formula 2 as he works towards a seat in F1.

"You can tell he truly, truly wants to do it," Andretti told Autosport in an exclusive interview. "And it has to begin there, with that passion inside and I like that. I respect that tremendously.

He also spoke about Herta during an appearance on the Drive to Wynn podcast.

"I have volumes of respect for what he's trying to do because it shows me that he has pure, pure desire to be in Formula 1," Andretti said.

"And that's what it takes. Obviously, here in America, we're fortunate that you can have a solid, totally satisfying career just by being here in IndyCar, NASCAR and IMSA.

"But you could see that he has definitely some unfinished business if you will. Even though his career is here, he wants to have his time in Formula 1, and this is an opportunity. So he's willing to sacrifice, make a step back to make many steps forward."

The 1978 F1 champion added: "I spoke with him, I had the opportunity to chat with him quite a bit after his race over in Melbourne and so forth, and he's very up on things.

Colton Herta, Hitech TGR

Photo by: James Sutton / Formula 1 / Formula Motorsport Ltd via Getty Images

"He'll be just fine, but he's OK with what he has to do, and he has the full team support to try to just get to where he wants to be. There's something really good to look forward to here.

"Like I said, tremendous respect because [he is doing it] out of pure love and desire."

Herta currently sits 10th in the F2 drivers' standings with six points. The next race will take place in Monaco from 4-7 June as part of the F1 Monaco Grand Prix weekend.