I get that he's been a disappointment compared to who he was when he started, but he's not exactly Graham Rahal. He has won a bunch of races. He finished second in the championship last year. Had the most points on road courses one year, I believe?

So had Ritomo Miyata. Miyata arguably had a better pre F2 career, winning a top level national single seater championship. And look how that went for him.

I do not think he did have a better pre-F2 career, no.

Not that I don't think Miyata is way better than his F2 results, mind you. I think it's the same risk for Herta, it could all simply not gel and go to hell fast. But I do not think that a Super Formula title is worth more than a second in IndyCar.

Not to be a weeb, but I think that'd underrating super formula a bit

Im cautiously optimistic but if he does anything but win it's gonna be rough

Oh, definitely. Big potential for series-wide embarrassment here. But he should be the heavy preseason favorite nonetheless. He's already had a better senior-level career than most GP2/F2 champions ever do.