Team Penke driver, David Malukas, remained “very happy” with a P3 finish after starting at pole at IndyCar’s Phoenix Race.
After the first pole position in his IndyCar career, David Malukas remains happy with a podium finish. With a variety of strategies and two lanes in play during the combined NASCAR race evolution, the 24-year-old would have been happy to “stay in the top 10“.
In a combined press conference with fellow podium finisher, Kyle Kirkwood, Malukas noted his P3 finish, sharing, “I mean, I was really happy. That race, like Kyle [Kirkwood] said, it was awesome. There were so many different strategies, so much going on. In the middle of that race, I thought, All right, here we go, hopefully we can stay in the top 10.“
The American driver pushed his redeveloped Firestone tyres during his final stint until he started drifting. With Newgarden working through the field on newer tyres and Malukas pushing his tyres to the end, drivers and teams were on a variety of strategies towards the end of the race.
Malukas continued, “Things really played out. Another yellow came out. We still had an opportunity at the end. Big congrats to Josef for getting the win there. New tires, hard work to get through everybody. Last stint, I don’t know what Kyle thought, but that’s the hardest I pushed a tire before. That was drifting. I never drifted in an IndyCar that much before. Through one and two, the first turn is actually left, then when you’re in the corner, the rest of it you’re turning right. Some big moments. I’m very excited to go back and clip all the videos of almost spinning out in one and two.“
Great start to the season with Penske
With his first two races with Team Penske, Malukas was very happy to be on the podium early in the season. When asked if he was disappointed with a P3 finish after taking pole, Malukas answered, “No, I mean, I’m so happy. I haven’t touched a trophy I feel like in a long time. It’s been a very long time.“
The newest Penske driver noted that things are looking up for the team early in the season.
After a 1–3 finish in Phoenix and a podium with Scott McLaughlin in St. Pete, Malukas aims to maintain the team’s momentum in IndyCar.
“No, I’m very happy. Everything at Team Penske, St. Pete leading up to Phoenix here, we’ve had a fantastic start. It just seems that we’re still getting better and building that momentum. It’s still a new team, new guys and everything. We’re already starting off on very high standard, so very happy.“
Malukas going wheel-to-wheel with Newgarden
When joining a new team like Team Penske, there is always a line between teammates and competitors. When asked about racing with Newgarden, Malukas shared, “No. We try to help each other in every single way, work as a team to get the car better and each other better.”
However, when they are on track, Malukas treats his teammates like any other competitor, noting, “We race to race.”
“When it comes to racing, we’re racing side by side the same way we would with anybody else out there. It’s nothing different just because we’re teammates. We race to race.”
At the end of the day, teammates like Newgarden and Malukas are competitors, with Malukas noting he raced him “hard every chance I got” during IndyCar’s Phoenix Race.
“I think we had good racing. We were pretty much together the whole time until the very end when they made the strategy to new tires. I raced him hard every chance I got, and he did the same.”
