IndyCar’s 2024 championship had plenty of drama and went right down to the wire at the Music City of Grand Prix.
Eventually, Alex Palou was declared champion after a rather subdued fight with Will Power for the silverware.
There were a few drivers in the mix including Scott McLaughlin, but everyone bar Palou ended up getting beaten by one driver.
It has been a long time coming for this star, who has just been informed that he will be granted a Platinum arcing status by the FIA for the 2025 season.
Colton Herta set to be handed Platinum FIA status
Colton Herta secured a victory at the final race of the IndyCar season which helped him to secure second in the drivers’ standings.
It ensured a career-best finish for him, in a season where he finally managed to get over his winning long winning blues.
He will remain with Andretti for 2025, as he pushes to win a maiden IndyCar championship with the team that has placed so much faith in him.
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From January next year, he will now also be viewed as a Platinum status FIA driver – an accolade held by over 200 drivers in 2023.
It’s a great way to round off what was a pretty good year for the American, but there’s no doubt that he will want to go one step further next season.
What does Herta need to do in 2025 to win it all?
It’s a tall order winning an IndyCar championship – just ask any one of the upwards of 35 drivers that fall short every year.
Andretti is a very solid team to attempt to achieve the feat with, but they need to find a little more consistency to be able to compete with the likes of Chip Ganassi Racing or Team Penske.
The overarching factor is that more victories would help Herta to win the championship – and he may have cracked the code for success in the dying moments of the 2024 season.
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He claimed his first-ever oval win at Nashville after years of trying and appears to have pace at every event now.
Should he maintain those impressive levels in 2025, then he stands a good chance of competing with Palou for this championship at the very least.