MONTEREY, Calif. – In the mid- to late-1990s, Bryan Herta dominated Laguna Seca Raceway with three poles, back-to-back victories in 1998 and 1999 and led 226 of a possible 332 laps from 1996 to 1999.
But the one race he gets questioned the most involves the one he didn’t win in 1996.
That’s when Alex Zanardi made his wild pass out of the Corkscrew on the final lap of the race, blasting by Herta’s No. 28 Shell Reynard/Mercedes at Team Rahal to win the race.
Prior to that ridiculous move, Herta had led 41 laps in the 83-lap race.
“I’ve talked about it so many times,” Herta told NTT INDYCAR Mobile. “Honestly, at the time, I didn’t think he was going to make the corner and he kinda didn’t. If you watch the video, I start to turn in and then I stopped. I was going to turn in on him and at the last second, I thought he was going to miss the corner and go straight, and he did.
“Somehow, only Alex, he was able to get the car rotated enough, bounce down the hill and come out on the bottom of the hill in front of me. That part was a surprise and disappointing turn of events for me. What else can I say about it?”
There’s plenty that can be said about Herta’s career at what is now known as WeatherTech Raceway at Laguna Seca and is the site of the final race of the 2019 NTT IndyCar Series season, the Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey to be held Sunday on NBC.
Herta's achievements at that track are outstanding. Half of his four career victories came at Laguna Seca. The other two came at Kansas Speedway in 2003 and Michigan Speedway in 2005 for Andretti Autosport.
“How about that?” Herta said. “That track has quite a few high commitment corners and if the car holds it, you can make a lot of lap times. Cleveland was another track where I had a lot of good runs. I didn’t win, but it was similar and a track where that style worked just as well.
“Everyone always assumes Laguna Seca was my favorite track, but it wasn’t. Road America was my favorite track, but I always liked Laguna Seca and I enjoy racing there. I was very pleased when I heard we were going back there to race. I hope it’s going to be good. These cars race better than when we raced there, but qualifying will still be a premium and you try to plan accordingly. It’s going to be exciting and a lot of people are excited to see Indy cars back at Laguna Seca.
The first time Herta showed up at Laguna in an Indy car was in 1995 with Chip Ganassi Racing. He was fast from the start, qualifying second for the race.
“One of the things I was always good in a race car was carrying a lot of speed through the apex of the corner,” Herta said. “That happens to be a track that, that style of driving pays a lot of dividends if you can get the car to do it.
“The first win was extra special because it was my first IndyCar win and it was back at the track where Zanardi had passed me in the Corkscrew two years earlier. I was racing Zanardi again. It was his last year in CART before he went to Formula One. It was a nice bookend for me at least, to race him again and come out on the other end of it.
“I think ‘The Pass’ would have bothered me if I didn’t have the chance to race him and beat him the next time.”
Twenty years after his second victory at Laguna Seca, another Herta will be racing on the track who might have the same feel and sense to get around the challenging road course as his father.
It’s Colton Herta, the 19-year-old rookie driver at Harding Steinbrenner Racing who became the youngest driver in IndyCar Series history to win a race earlier this season in the INDYCAR Classic at Circuit of The Americas back in March.
“I already feel like Colton is better than I was on my best days,” Herta said. “I hope that holds true at Laguna Seca.
“I don’t think there isn’t any reason to think he can’t be fast this weekend, but it takes the whole combination of car, driver and setup. I hope all of that is in place for him again this weekend. I have confidence in him and what he can do. I think it would be a mistake to think that because he shares some DNA with me, he is going to be fast at Laguna Seca.
“I hope so, he has been fast all year long. If he is fast, it’s a lot more to do with his driving ability than anything.”
Bryan’s son is locked in a battle for INDYCAR Rookie of the Year along with Felix Rosenqvist, Santino Ferrucci and Marcus Ericsson. Rosenqvist leads the rookie standings with 365 points, Ferrucci follows with 339 and Herta has 316.
“This rookie class is one that a lot of people will remember,” Herta said. “They are all drivers that have shown a lot of speed at different times. Colton has done great with two poles and a race win. I think those things are more important than anything else.
“It’s been a great rookie challenge and whoever is rookie of the year will have earned it.”
Bryan Herta is also the man who helped bring Alexander Rossi into IndyCar in 2016 when he drove the No. 98 Honda at Andretti-Herta Autosport. Although Herta’s entry is now driven by Marco Andretti, Bryan and Rossi remain close at Andretti Autosport.
“I’m sure Alex would like to be a little closer going into the weekend, but what he can do to control his own destiny is to win the race,” Herta said. “If he does that, then that forces Josef Newgarden to finish fourth or better. That’s not an easy task in this series.
“It’s not a slam-dunk, but I think Rossi has a real shot at it. I’ll be focused with Marco on the No. 98 car, and try to finish our season strongly, but I’ll keep an eye on Alex and hope that he can bring a championship home to Andretti Autosport this year.”
There are constant reminders of Herta’s success at Laguna Seca including the driver’s suit of his first victory in 1998. That uniform is framed on the wall at Herta’s Southern California home.
“It’s my first IndyCar win, so sure it is important,” Herta said. “Because I’ve had so much history there, that track, and I have become associated. I’m good with all of that.
“People still bring up the Zanardi pass and it doesn’t bother me in the slightest. I still wish I could get the win back. Today, that pass wouldn’t have been allowed to hold, but that’s ok. It was an iconic moment in sports and Alex, and I shared a lot of great battles.
“That’s just part of it.”
INDYCAR concludes its 17-race season with the Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey on Sunday. Television coverage will begin on NBC at 2:30 p.m. ET (11:30 a.m. PT local) with the green flag scheduled for 3:15 p.m. (12:15 p.m. local). Live radio broadcasts will be available on the Advance Auto Parts INDYCAR Radio Network and SiriusXM Satellite Radio (XM 205, Sirius 98, Internet/App 970).