‘It’s Pointless’: Ralf Schumacher Blasts Cadillac’s Efforts To Promote American Driver Colton Herta

Former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher has slammed Cadillac for their efforts to help Colton Herta secure a super license. The all-American team is reportedly interested in fielding Herta as one of their drivers in 2027. An unimpressed Schumacher, however, dubbed Herta’s recent FP1 runs ‘pointless’ and ‘just burning fuel.’

“Only if Easter and Christmas fall on the same day,” the Sky Germany expert replied when asked if Herta could be a candidate to be Sergio Perez’s teammate in 2027.

“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,” Schumacher added.

The German suggested that Cadillac gave a chance to a young driver to race in F1 instead of the 26-year-old Herta.

Colton Herta Has Not Earned a Place in F1, Says Ralf Schumacher

Schumacher doubled down on his criticism of Herta, pointing to the less-than-desirable season he has had in F2 so far in 2026. The former Toyota driver appreciated Cadillac’s bid to promote American talent. However, he opined that Herta had not earned the second seat at the Indiana-based team.

“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,” said Schumacher

“But it has to make sense, and he has no place in Formula 1,” he added.

Herta secured his Super License after his FP1 run at the São Paulo GP. However, he’s endured a poor F2 season, currently sitting 19th in the drivers’ standings. With just 26 points to his name, the California-born driver has failed to land a podium finish with 12 rounds complete in the season.

Ralf Schumacher Suggests an Alternative to Colton Herta

With Herta underperforming, Schumacher suggested Cadillac turned their gaze to McLaren junior driver Leonardo Fornaroli. Citing his F2 and F3 championship wins, Schumacher dubbed Fornaroli “an incredibly strong driver.”

Fornaroli has completed four FP1 runs in 2026, replacing McLaren drivers in Barcelona, Hungary, Mexico and Brazil. The Italian was particularly impressive in his maiden FP1 run in Barcelona, finishing the session P5. Most recently, at the São Paulo GP FP1, the 21-year-old finished P11 in Oscar Piastri’s MCL40.

Perez recently signed a multi-year extension, which will keep him at Cadillac until 2029. Meanwhile, Valtteri Bottas’ contract runs until the end of 2027, but reports suggest that the Finn could be shown the exit door at the end of 2026. Bottas maintains that he expects to continue driving for Cadillac in 2027, terming the speculation “extra distraction” and “a bit of shame.”

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