Kyle Kirkwood was the fastest driver in first practice Saturday for the Borchetta Bourbon Music City Grand Prix presented by OnlyBulls at Nashville Superspeedway in a session shortened after a heavy crash involving David Malukas.
Kirkwood’s early speed of 197.097 mph in Andretti Global’s No. 27 Sam’s Club Honda remained the fastest of the session scheduled for one hour, but was cut to about 52 minutes after Malukas crashed in Turn 2 about 19 minutes into practice. All 25 drivers battled for traction in the challenging conditions and rough surfaces of the 1.33-mile concrete oval.
SEE: Practice results
“It’s not easy for anyone,” Kirkwood said. “The track is going to be pretty green now, so we’ll just work on it and try to keep it clean. Definitely a little loose (handling).”
Reigning NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion and current points leader Alex Palou was second at 196.966 mph in the No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. Malukas’ best lap of 196.340 before his heavy crash in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet placed third.
The 2026 Indianapolis 500, presented by Gainbridge winner Felix Rosenquist, stopped the clock in fourth with a score of 196.249 in the No. 60 Meyer Shank Racing Curb Agadjanian Honda, while Santino Ferrucci rounded out the top five with a score of 195.977 in the No. 14 Homes for Our Troops Chevrolet by AJ Foyt Racing.
All three Team Penske cars finished in the top seven. Defending Nashville winner Josef Newgarden was sixth with a score of 195.940 in the No. 2 Astemo Team Penske Chevrolet, followed by teammate Scott McLaughlin in seventh with a score of 195.907 in the No. 3 Odyssey Battery Team Penske Chevrolet.
Next up is NTT P1 Award qualifying at 3:00 pm ET today, with the 300-lap race starting at approximately 5:30 pm ET on Sunday. FOX, FOX One and INDYCAR Radio, powered by OnlyBulls, will provide live coverage of both sessions.
Following the crash, Malukas was transported to a local hospital by private vehicle for further evaluation, said Dr. Angie Fige, INDYCAR associate medical director. His car half-spinned into Turn 2 and hit the SAFER barrier hard with its rear end. The rear of the vehicle was severely damaged and Malukas was extricated from the vehicle with the assistance of the AMR INDYCAR Safety Team.