LEBANON, Tenn. – A promising early run for David Malukas in the Music City Grand Prix at Nashville Superspeedway ended when he made contact with Louis Foster on lap 83.
At the time, Malukas was pursuing leader Pato O’Ward, who was blitzing the field — and with the way things played out, he was a contender for the win.
Heading down the the frontstretch, the lapped Foster made a controversial move to the inside. It appeared as a block and ended up adjusting Malukas’ entry into the turn. With the adjustment, the No. 4 Foyt car still pulled alongside, but cut down across the bow of Foster without clearing him, sending Malukas into the wall.
Sliding up the track, Malukas then backed into the SAFER barrier, and was slow to get out. INDYCAR announced he was airlifted to a local medical center for precautionary evaluation, but was released later.
With the 26th-place finish, it prevented the American, who is rumored to be moving on to other prominent rides in the paddock, from climbing into the top 10 of the championship. Heading into the weekend, he was eight points behind Scott McLaughlin, but was unable to close the gap.
Regardless, he still ended 2025 with the best season of his short career, with his runner-up at the Indianapolis 500 his top finish. He led a total 97 laps, and earning two top five and three top 10s.
Foster was able to continue on to finish 20th, and clinched the Rookie of the Year award after Robert Shwartzman was penalized for blocking with five laps to go. While he earned top honors for rookies, he showed pace but struggled with finishing. Two 11ths, at the Indianapolis Grand Prix and Road America — where he did earn his first career pole — were his highest results.
Heading into next season, he will look to jump up into the top 10 with his Rahal Letterman Lanigan Squad.
Meanwhile, Malukas remains a hot talking point for the offseason, as he becomes a name for owners of other teams.
Tom is an IndyCar writer at Frontstretch, joining in March 2023. Besides writing the IndyCar Previews and frequent editions of Inside IndyCar, he will hop on as a fill-in guest on the Open Wheel podcast The Pit Straight. A native Hoosier, he calls Fort Wayne home. Follow Tom on Twitter @TomBlackburn42.