During the IndyCar qualifying session at Laguna Seca, AJ Foyt driver David Malukas highlighted the exceptional performance of Alex Palou and Pato O’Ward, describing them as being in a league of their own. Palou secured pole position with a remarkable lap time of 1:08.3413, while O’Ward, who posted the fastest time in the initial practice, closely trailed behind. Malukas, despite qualifying sixth in the Fast Six, conceded the superiority of the leaders’ pace.
Malukas Shares Insights on His Qualifying Strategy and Conditions
Malukas posted a lap time of 1:10.1811, almost two seconds slower than Palou’s best. Despite this gap, the young American expressed satisfaction at competing near the front. Regarding his experience, Malukas said,
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Pato and Palou have kind of been from practice one just in a world of their own
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acknowledging their dominant presence on the track. He added,
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[I’m] happy with the car [but] obviously now we kind of need to flip it for warm up coming up and go for the race tomorrow.
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The driver also discussed how the cancellation of Practice Two due to morning fog impacted their preparation. Without that session, Malukas and his team had to quickly adapt their approach, leading him to use the softer red tires early to avoid elimination and gain a competitive edge during qualifying. He reflected,
“I mean it felt really good. Obviously we had a different tyre strategy, [I] just didn’t know where things were gonna be missing practice in the morning.”
Reflecting further on his qualifying, Malukas stated,
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We did two reds on the first set so coming into this last qualifying had to do a used and felt pretty good to start and end up making a mistake in turn three, but really happy with how things are.
”
Context on Malukas’s Season and Upcoming Prospects with Penske
Malukas has now qualified for the Fast Six on four occasions this year, with his best starting position being second at Detroit. For the upcoming race, he will line up directly behind Will Power, the driver he is anticipated to replace at Team Penske next season. This positioning underlines Malukas’s rising profile in the series and the expectation that he will continue to develop his competitiveness among IndyCar’s top drivers.
