NEWTON, Iowa — David Malukas finished second in the Indianapolis 500 and led 67 laps at Worldwide Technology Raceway.
The A.J. Foyt Racing driver will get two cracks at an oval this weekend with the annual doubleheader for the NTT IndyCar Series at Iowa Speedway.
Saturday it’s the Synk 275 presented by Sukup, Sunday it’s the Farm to Finish 275 presented by Sukup at the .875-mile race track.
Malukas said qualifying will be a key to success this weekend.
“We want to continue this qualifying performance that we’ve been having, to be more on the top half,” Malukas said during a media call this week. “So as long as we can get through that, then it comes down to having good consistency in these races, making sure no mistakes from our end, have a consistent race, get a good result because I feel like our qualifying performances we’ve been there but kind of missing out here and there.
“These little kind of finite things that happen and kind of spiral us into losing a few spots. As long as we can keep up there, that will be a happy weekend for me.”
The nature of the second race of the doubleheader starting approximately 20 hours after the end of the first, creates challenges for the teams and the drivers.
“I was actually already just talking with my trainer trying to figure out a recovery plan. It’s going to be a very tight turnaround,” Malukas said. “The races are going to be longer. This package is probably going to be even heavier on the wheel. It’s going to be a very tough challenge for all of us physically.
“I think a lot of the preparation that we did in the offseason into this season, I think a lot of it’s going to come down to this weekend. It’s going to be our toughest weekend by far, I’m pretty sure, and it’s going to be hot on top of all of it.”
Malukas is one of many drivers these days that not only has a physical trainer, but a mental coach.
“It’s incredibly important. When you talk with drivers all the time, they’re always talking about the physical and you see all these cuts of them in the gym working their arms, showing the triceps, biceps; yeah, we’re getting strong,” Malukas said. “Obviously, that’s always important, but I feel like the mental aspect hasn’t really been spoken about too much. Like you said, I feel like that’s something that’s starting to trend more recently.
“It’s tough; you look at IndyCar and motorsports in general, it’s a sport where you’re surrounded with fans and PR all the way until the very start of the race really,” Malukas added. “You get in the car five minutes and now you need to be focused, when I think in other sports you have time to go in the locker room, have time to recollect.
“A lot of strategies that we do to switch into racing mode to get focused just because there’s that very short period of time,” he added. “I think it’s very important. There’s a lot that we can learn from it, and it’s still kind of a new environment for me that I’ve gone into and I think the sport in general.”
Malukas, who is in his first season with the Foyt team, is happy with the progress that has been made through the first half of the season.
“As of right now, I think the car has been in —- if you look at Santino’s results in the races, he’s been on a really good trajectory,” Malukas said of teammate Santino Ferrucci. “He’s had good results when it comes to short ovals from a road course and from a street course. It’s not where the car is just good in one circuit. We’re making a car that’s just built all around. That’s what you need to have good performances here in IndyCar and be performing in the championship.
“I think we’re starting to show things from that direction, and I’m just very excited to be a part of it.”
Malukas, 23, said the team is working well together.
“The chemistry that the team has right now has been at an all-time high. I’m enjoying my time there, having a really good time with all the guys,” the Chicago native said. “Confidence, the team morale is high, so I think that’s one of the basic things we need to work on when it comes to the team. So the basics are there, and we’re starting to work up, and hopefully we can start working these finite details to have an ultimate car all around.”
