Malukas leads Team Penske 1-2 to open Unser IndyCar Test at Phoenix

Team Penske’s David Malukas set the fastest time during Tuesday’s Unser IndyCar Open Test at Phoenix Raceway with a 172.605mph, while teammate Josef Newgarden completed a Team Penske 1-2 with a 172.021mph run that stood as the benchmark for most of the four-hour afternoon session.

"We know that we have pace," Malukas said. "The car is good, and we've kicked off our oval set with the team on a strong suit. So I feel confident, but is it what we were aiming for today? No, we just ran through our test plan, and we managed to get a time up on the board."

Like the other 23 drivers in attendance, the Penske duo were highly intentional in their on-track running due to the limited amount of tires – five new sets for the two-day run – and the pair of long sessions ahead on Wednesday.

Andretti Global’s Will Power (171.706mph) and Kyle Kirkwood (171.423mph) followed for Honda, and the top six was completed with more Honda runners as Chip Ganassi Racing’s Alex Palou (171.357mph) and Meyer Shank Racing’s Marcus Armstrong (170.919mph) made their presence felt.

With the addition of the aeroscreen safety device and energy recovery system, and a reduction in downforce and turbo boost compared to the last time the IndyCar Series ran at the one-mile Phoenix oval, lap speeds were considerably down from the 188.539mph pole position set by Sebastien Bourdais from the 2018 race; the same Open Test from 2018 saw speeds reach even higher with a 189.555mph peak from Takuma Sato.

The only adversity on Tuesday was recorded by AJ Foyt Racing rookie Caio Collet, who crashed in Turn 4. The Brazilian was seen and released by IndyCar Medical and is cleared to run on Wednesday; his team was busy making repairs to make the lapping possible.

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