Colton Herta: “Our goal was not to get eliminated in the first round”

Having just arrived from the 24 Hours of Daytona where they experienced mixed fortunes, Jimmie Johnson and Colton Herta faced the snowy and icy track of the Race of Champions in Pite Havsbad, Sweden. A funny experience for both pilots IndyCar. « The American team is made up of two guys from California who have never driven on snow and ice before, joked Jimmie Johnson. What could go wrong? » Jimmie Johnson was in fact born in El Cajon, about twenty minutes by car from San Diego. Colton Herta is from Santa Clarita, north of Los Angeles. Places rather famous for their palm trees and their summer temperatures. However, the two Americans managed to reach the final of the Nations Cup this Saturday for their first competition on ice.

“Our initial goal was not to be eliminated in the first round, so when we won, we jumped for joy and celebrated like we had won everything! » says Colon Herta, recent winner of the 24 Hours of Dayona with DragonSpeed ​​USA in LM P2. “Certainly, no one could have thought that we would make it to the final. But we had a plan, we stuck to it, and here we are. » However, the two single-seater drivers were unable to do anything in the final against the Solberg family. « It was great to race against these guys, especially Solberg in the final. Conditions weren't too bad today, depending on what car you were driving, but maybe we don't have enough experience to know when conditions are good or bad! Our approach was simply to “Here we go and we see what happens…” »

The Race of Champions continues this Sunday with the individual event.