Colton Herta has been rumored to make a move to Europe after each of the past five IndyCar seasons now, and nothing has ever managed to materialize. But there appears to be substance to this year's rumor after he failed to secure P4 in the IndyCar championship, which would have given him enough points to obtain an FIA Super Licence.
Herta has been linked to a Formula 2 seat, which would presumably give him an easier path to eventually make the move to the Cadillac Formula 1 team to replace whichever veteran, Sergio Perez or Valtteri Bottas, moves on first.
Will Power and Team Penske announced Tuesday that they are parting ways after 16 winning seasons in 17 years, and Andretti Global is now rumored to be his most likely landing spot for 2026.
The move would place Power behind the wheel of the No. 26 Honda alongside Kyle Kirkwood in the No. 27 Honda and Marcus Ericsson in the No. 28 Honda, with Ericsson's seat notably safe after rumors that he too could be replaced following the end of a disappointing 2025 season.
Should Herta indeed leave for Formula 2, the domino effect would be felt by several other teams as well.
First of all, David Malukas is still the driver most likely to replace Power after spending the 2025 season with A.J. Foyt Enterprises, and Team Penske will hope they can strike gold again with their new driver of the No. 12 Chevrolet after winning an Indy 500 and two championships with Power.
Following the Power news, it was revealed somewhat unexpectedly that Rinus VeeKay will not be back with Dale Coyne Racing in 2026 following an exceptional first season with the team. He has been linked to Malukas' No. 4 Chevrolet.
As for VeeKay's replacement, there has been talk about Andretti Global Indy NXT champion Dennis Hauger landing in VeeKay's seat, which would continue the trend of Indy NXT champions landing proper IndyCar opportunities.
The move would be aided by support from Andretti, and it would notably allow them to retain Ericsson and silence the rumors of Hauger replacing him in the No. 28 car, at least for 2026, while preparing him to make the move to Andretti Global as early as 2027.
Should Herta's European venture not turn out the way he wants, the fact that Power is nearing the end of his career would presumably give him an easy way back into IndyCar via Andretti as well.
Power was always the major domino that needed to fall in this year's silly season, and now the move that had been speculated since before the 2025 season even began has been confirmed, setting everything else into motion.