David Malukas is hoping to continue his strong oval form with a good result at the Iowa Speedway in the IndyCar Iowa double header.
Malukas is on course for his best IndyCar season to date heading into Iowa. The American is sitting P12 in the Championship Standings after 10 races. The upcoming race weekend at the Iowa Speedway is IndyCar’s only double header of the season. The Synk 275 will take place on July 12th and the Farm to Finish 275 on July 13th.
Malukas was positive about his chances in Iowa, after taking to the media on Tuesday. The 23-year-old hopes to channel some aura-farming energy through the weekend.
Previous oval performances to give Malukas a baseline for the Iowa Speedway
While Malukas has had plenty of solid results on a circuit, he has always shown an affinity for an oval. This season, Malukas finished the 2025 Indianapolis 500 in P2 and led 67 laps at the Bommarito 500. The 23-year-old hopes to continue this form into Iowa
“We’ve had some good results when it comes to the ovals, just even before ovals have kind of been my spiel. I’ve kind of understood them a little bit more when it comes to the driving perspective, and there’s a lot more opportunity when the races start to play out.
“I think with a combination of the results that we’ve been having and the good performances on top of this new package that INDYCAR is coming about. Hopefully we can use all of that to look forward and go forward come Iowa.”
The Iowa Speedway will prove to be a challenge for all in the field, given that it is a small 0.875 miles in length. Malukas has had mixed results around the track in the past, but typically performs better in the second race of the weekend.
Consistency key through the Iowa double-header
The AJ Foyt driver was hoping to continue his oval form, but was wishing for more consistency. Malukas was encouraged by his recent performances, such as a P7 Qualifying in Road America, but will be looking to build on those kinds of results.
“We want to continue this qualifying performance that we’ve been having, to be more on the top half. So as long as we can get through that, then it comes down to having good consistency in these races, making sure no mistakes from our end, have a consistent race, get a good result. Because I feel like our qualifying performances we’ve been there but kind of missing out here and there, these little kind of finite things that happen and kind of spiral us into losing a few spots.
“As long as we can keep up there, that will be a happy weekend for me.”
Malukas looking to channel aura and confidence going into the race
Malukas hopes to carry some positive energy like the viral Aura Farming video. The internet is taking about a video of an Indonesian child dancing at the front of a racing boat. Robert Schwartzman even recreated it a few days ago, and Malukas is hoping to carry the energy and confidence of the meme through the weekend.
When asked what social media trend sums up his feelings, Malukas answered, “Oh, boy. I think it’s that Aura Farming video with the kid on the boat. That has kind of been the energy that we’ve been on. Shwartzman did an incredible job on that one. He beat us to it.”
That’s definitely some of the energy that we’ll be carrying. Hopefully we can have that confidence going into the race.”
Malukas is yet to enter victory lane in IndyCar; however, this weekend could prove to be a great opportunity with a humerous celebration from the AJ Foyt driver.
