Team Penske’s David Malukas has been cleared to return to the track for the Borchetta Bourbon Music City Grand Prix after a heavy crash in opening practice at Nashville Superspeedway.
The 24-year-old Chicago native missed qualifying while undergoing evaluation at a local hospital but returned in time for Saturday evening’s high-line and final practice sessions.
The accident occurred roughly 20 minutes into the opening practice session on the 1.33-mile concrete oval. Malukas lost control of his #12 Team Penske Chevrolet in Turn 2, half-spun, and backed heavily into the outside wall. The force of the crash was severe enough that his knee struck the steering wheel, knocking it free from the steering column.
The impact also damaged the SAFER Barrier, forcing a lengthy stoppage while track crews completed repairs. Track crews spent more than 20 minutes repairing the wall, which prompted IndyCar officials to extend the practice session by 10 minutes.
Malukas was assisted from the vehicle by the AMR Safety Team and walked away under his own power before being transported to a nearby hospital for further evaluation. Medical examinations revealed no major injuries, with Malukas suffering only severe bruising to his knee.
David Malukas, Team Penske
Photo by: Brandon Badraoui / Lumen via Getty Images
“Everything is good,” Malukas said, who will now start from the back of the field in a backup car. “I want to take this moment to say a big thank you to the AMR safety team and everybody involved from IndyCar and the hospital I went to. So much going on. I can’t remember the name of the hospital, but shout out to Sam over there. Everybody was just so on it, making sure that we can get these results because everybody knew we were on a time constraint.
“Thankfully, everything came back clean. Nothing’s broken, nothing’s torn, which was pretty impressive because I literally took the wheel off with my knee. I couldn’t believe that. So it’s just badly bruised, but you know, we got some good people around me and massaged it a little bit.
“So we’re good to go.”
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