SONOMA, CA - SEPTEMBER 14: Colton Herta driver of the #88 Harding Racing Chevrolet during practice for the Verizon IndyCar Series Sonoma Grand Prix at Sonoma Raceway on September 14, 2018 in Sonoma, California. (Photo by Robert Laberge/Getty Images)

Formula 1: To improve diversity, Lewis Hamilton must first acknowledge it

Formula 1: To improve diversity, Lewis Hamilton must first acknowledge it by Asher Fair

After he was given the wrong bottle following his maiden IndyCar victory at Circuit of the Americas, 18-year-old Colton Herta took a swig of champagne.

Harding Steinbrenner Racing rookie Colton Herta became the youngest winner in IndyCar history this past Sunday by winning the second race on the 17-race 2019 schedule, the IndyCar Classic, at Circuit of the Americas.

Herta won this race at the age of 18 years and 359 days old, making him slightly younger than Graham Rahal, the previous youngest winner in IndyCar history.

When Rahal earned his maiden IndyCar victory by winning the 2008 Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on the streets of St. Petersburg, Florida, he was 19 years and 93 days old.

After Herta made his way to the podium to celebrate his victory along with second place finisher Josef Newgarden of Team Penske and third place finisher Ryan Hunter-Reay of Andretti Autosport, someone handed Newgarden the wrong bottle.

Newgarden, who is 28 years old, was handed the bottle that contained non-alcoholic cider and was designated for Herta given that he is still more than two years away from his 21st birthday.

As a result, the 18-year-old Valencia, California native ended up being given a bottle of sparkling wine, of which he took a swig.

Here is what Herta had to say about the matter, according to Fox News.

“I didn’t switch back. I took a swig and said, ‘This is real!”

Here is how Herta responded on Twitter to a report by IndyStar’s Jim Ayello detailing the situation.

https://twitter.com/ColtonHerta/status/1110230864611459072?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.foxnews.com%2Fauto%2F18-year-old-colton-herta-becomes-youngest-indycar-winner-celebrates-with-sparkling-wine

Fox News’ Gary Gastelu went on to add that “according to Texas law, underage drinkers can have their driver’s license suspended for 30 days, while anyone who provides alcohol to someone under the age of 21 can be fined up to $4,000 and face one year in jail.”

Want your voice heard? Join the Beyond The Flag team! Write for us!

Given the circumstances of two drivers simply being given the wrong drinks, it is hard to see anyone facing any kind of penalty for what happened on the podium with Colton Herta and Josef Newgarden following Herta’s maiden IndyCar victory, and it should be.