BMW Motorsport has announced that 17-year old Colin Herta from California is becoming a test and reserve driver for BMW Team RLL.
He has also been signed to the BMW Motorsport Junior program. The program, for a select group of young drivers, includes fitness and mental training as well as racing with BMW in various race cars and series.
Herta, the son of ex-Indy Car driver Bryan Herta, got his first test in the #24 BMW Team RLL M8 GTE in the IMSA February 22-23 Sebring test days. His drive at Sebring came a month after he participated in the Formula E rookie test in an MS&AD Andretti electric open wheel race car. Herta, who finished third in the Indy Lights series in 2017, will continue to race in that series this season for Andretti-Steinbrenner Racing.
Describing his experience in the M8 GTE, Herta said “Having never driven a GT car before, it was a day of firsts for me. I really enjoyed the experience and felt that I fit right in. While I was expecting to sense the weight difference from the open wheel cars I currently race, what did take some laps to really understand was the braking. You sit in a different relationship to the tires so your sense of the force is much different. I had thought that a GT car’s grip would be less in the high-speed corners, but there was a surprising amount of downforce. On a scale of one to 10, I’d say I’m at a seven. With two or three more sessions I believe I’d be ready to push.” — Brian Morgan
[Photo by Sam Cobb for BMW NA]