David Malukas has been on a long road to recovery since breaking his wrist in an accident earlier this year – which cost him his McLaren drive.
He returned to the racing fold with Meyer Shank Racing, competing for the odd podium – most notably at Gateway before being taken out by championship protagonist Will Power.
His performances were enough to convince AJ Foyt to sign him up for 2025, where he will partner Santino Ferrucci.
It’s a dynamic young partnership which should pay dividends for a team which is just starting to compete for better results on a more regular basis.
David Malukas paid a ‘good price’ to reach IndyCar potential
Whether or not Malukas is going to be able to compete for victories in 2024 is unknown, and will depend on how quickly he can adjust to new machinery.
His new teammate was able to compete for podiums towards the end of this season and came ever so close to claiming his first podium.
Speaking to Autosport, the American driver shared how he matured and improved throughout the 2024 season.
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“I was able to get driver information from Pato [O’Ward], from [Alexander] Rossi, and [Marcus] Ericsson, [Colton] Herta, Kyle [Kirkwood] and [Felix] Rosenqvist,” he reflects. “These are all top drivers and all special in their own ways. To get all that information to fill it up on me, I mean it was a big chunk.
“I’ve also matured a lot. With having that incident and coming back from it, I’m definitely going to be taking care of myself this whole off-season! But overall, I’m very happy.
“I don’t have a full left hand back, but I think that’s a good price to pay to reach my max potential. If this year didn’t happen and things turned out differently, I don’t think I would be at the potential I am right now.”
Can AJ Foyt spring a surprise in 2025?
It might be a bit of a stretch to say that either AJ Foyt driver can compete for the championship next season.
However, the odd victory could be up for grabs, and there’s an opportunity to learn and gain a lot of knowledge that could be applied in the future.
This is a team that hadn’t finished in the top 10 of the drivers’ standings since 2002 with Airton Dare before Ferrucci managed ninth in 2024.
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11 top 10 finishes in 18 races and now an injection of undoubted talent from Malukas should help elevate them to another level.
That’s nothing against former driver Sting Ray Robb, but there was more to be maximised from that car than he could achieve.