Testing Herta McLaren F1 can lead to training trips

Colt Gertie’s test schedule with McLaren makes it part of the selection process to see if he’s eligible to exit FP1 later this season.

All teams must have a free practice twice this year under the new regulations with a novice driver – those who have not started more than two Grand Prix. Williams was the first to confirm one of those who rode to the Spanish Grand Prix with Nick de Vries.

Hertha is going to undergo a test program with McLaren on a 2021 car after some work on a simulator at the factory, and team leader Andreas Seidl says the team is figuring out who should meet its quota.

“As you know, this year on the side of Formula 1, according to the rules, we are obliged to test young racers twice in free practice,” said Seidl. “So we have some process of selecting who we really want to be able to be in the car for these two free workouts.

“To make that choice, for the first time this year we have the opportunity to use a TPC (Pre-Car Testing) car to give young guys a chance to show what they are capable of in our Formula One car. We are also investing some time to prepare them for this test as best we can, and then we will decide who will eventually receive the free practical training. ”

However, Seidl insists that people like Hertha or Pata O’Ward do not expect a place in the future race, and Daniel Ricciardo’s place in the team, in his opinion, is secured.

“At the same time, it is clearly not dependent on nationalities – in terms of the number of riders, we have the number of drivers, we have contracts, we are very happy with the number of riders we have, and it is much easier to follow the rules this year.”

And Herta himself agrees that he will need to understand how a Formula One car works before it can even be considered for a weekend race, and his next step will be to work on a simulator and seat fitting at McLaren after a similar experience at Alfa Romeo last year.

“I need to understand the difference in riding style and what the tires need, not only to go one lap, but for racing it’s very different,” Hertha told RACER. “Especially with the energy recovery system and how you deploy and store it, how it affects engine braking and overall the simple feel of a race car. Will be cool to watch.

“The good thing is that for a long time Formula 1 cars were so different from IndyCars in weight, and so the feel of the car would be very different, and now they are very close. Even some of the IndyCars are lighter than some of the Formula 1 cars if they have fuel and a driver. ”