Colton Herta believes he has a fairly normal set of driver preferences in the cockpit of a racing car. But, he does have one \u201cweird\u201d approach.<\/p>\n
Herta opened up on his tendency to push the pedals toe first, rather than with a planted heel. That has implications for his use of a heel rest.<\/p>\n
Colton Herta explains unusual pedal technique<\/p>\n
Want more PlanetF1.com coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list<\/a> for news you can trust.<\/p>\n A multi-time IndyCar race winner, Herta has returned to European open wheel racing in 2026, as he chases his dream of becoming a Formula 1 driver.<\/p>\n As well as contesting the 2026 Formula 2 campaign with Hitech, Herta also signed with F1 newcomers Cadillac, as the team\u2019s test driver.<\/p>\n Herta appeared on the Beyond the Grid podcast, speaking from Cadillac\u2019s Silverstone headquarters. Herta was also there for a seat fit in the MAC-26.<\/p>\n Herta is set to make his Formula 1 race weekend debut in Barcelona, where he will contest FP1 ahead of the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s definitely a pinch me moment, like a realisation of how close it is and how close to driving it is,\u201d said Herta.<\/p>\n As he looked to get comfortable in his MAC-26 seat ahead of that Cadillac F1 debut, Herta was asked whether the driving position is different in a Formula 1 car, compared to what he experienced before.<\/p>\n \u201cYes,\u201d he confirmed.<\/p>\n \u201cI think for the most part, the European open wheel cars are different to the US open wheel cars, apart from a few in the US.<\/p>\n \u201cBut if you look at a lot of the European cars, where your legs are, the car kind of bumps up quite a bit and comes up, so your feet are raised quite a bit compared to the Indy car.<\/p>\n \u201cSo I would say the back positioning, similar, but your feet are a little bit higher and the visibility is a little bit less because of that, because the tub comes up on the front a bit more.\u201d<\/p>\n Asked if that means a driver is lying down more in the cockpit in comparison, Herta continued: \u201cMaybe a little bit. But I would say the back positioning and how the back starts to come up is similar.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s just a little bit of a different feel, because you\u2019ve got your legs up here instead of maybe down here.\u201d<\/p>\n Herta was quizzed on his preferences as a driver in the cockpit.<\/p>\n It is common for different drivers to want different things to feel fully comfortable, and ready to extract maximum performance.<\/p>\n \u201cI would say generally, pretty normal and average compared to a lot of drivers.<\/p>\n \u201cBut the only thing that\u2019s weird about me is I don\u2019t like to run a heel rest, and that\u2019s because when I push the pedal, instead of going on like this [demonstrates with his hands an action with the heel planted], I actually push with my toes, and so my heel comes up.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd so if I run a heel rest, then I can\u2019t get forward with my heel. It kind of stops it.\u201d<\/p>\n More on Colton Herta from PlanetF1.com<\/p>\n Colton Herta rejects Romain Grosjean IndyCar vs F2 comparison<\/a><\/p>\n Colton Herta confirms he beat Kimi Raikkonen in Sauber simulator test<\/a><\/p>\n Herta does not know why he has this preference to push the pedals with his toes.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s something that I picked up in karting, and it\u2019s been like that ever since.<\/p>\n \u201cEverything else is pretty normal about how I set the car up, but that\u2019s one weird thing.<\/p>\n \u201cI mean, I can run a heel rest, just it never gets used because my heel ends up just flying over the thing.\u201d<\/p>\n In his rookie F2 season, Herta has scored points in both feature races thus far, a P7 in Melbourne, and P8 in Miami.<\/p>\n Want to be the first to know exclusive information from the F1 paddock? Join our broadcast channel on WhatsApp<\/a> to get the scoop on the latest developments from our team of accredited journalists.<\/p>\n You can also subscribe to the PlanetF1 YouTube channel<\/a> for exclusive features, hear from our paddock journalists with stories from the heart of Formula 1 and much more!<\/p>\n