CHEVROLET IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES
INDYCAR CONTENT DAYS MEDIA AVAILABILITY TRANSCRIPT
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA
January 10, 2024

AGUSTIN CANAPINO, No. 78 Juncos-Hollinger Racing Chevrolet:

THE MODERATOR: It is time for Agustin Canapino who returns for a second season in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, driver of the No. 78 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet. Agustin of course 15-time touring car champion in Argentina, back here near for a second year. We’re all wondering how your English has improved since last year’s content day when you only had three or four months of English lessons then. Now you can probably read an entire dictionary, right?

AGUSTIN CANAPINO: I remember this moment one year ago. Oh, my God.

Q. The pressure was on.

AGUSTIN CANAPINO: It was a lot, more than the Indy 500 qualification.

Q. Tell us about the off-season and getting ready for a second season with Juncos Hollinger Racing.

AGUSTIN CANAPINO: I am really excited, especially by the way we finished the season, because we were battling for a podium on the last race in Laguna just before the crash. We were fourth, and we were in a really good position to battle for the race.

We did really good moments during the year. We achieved decent results for our first season in INDYCAR. We entered in the leader circles with the two cars. First time ever Juncos had two cars in a season, first time ever for me, so I’m really happy with the season so far.

But we want more, and I think we have a really good opportunity this year to continue our improvement, continue both with the team and especially with Romain in the team.

I think we have a really good opportunity to learn from him everything and continue this process.

Q. How much more relaxed are you heading into a second season, or are you relaxed?

AGUSTIN CANAPINO: I don’t know if relaxed is the correct sentence. I think now I know more what I have to do because now I have the way to prepare my physical, my races. I learn a lot about the car, the tires, the brakes, the way to manage the races, the other drivers, the rules. I learn a lot, everything.

Of course it’s only the beginning, but now I have an idea what I have to do.

Q. A couple tracks you went to twice last year, IMS, the road course. What’s a track you’re champing at the bit saying I can’t wait to get back there for a second time? And secondly, your relationship with Romain, when did you meet him? Was it this past season? Did you talk during the year or did you meet each other when you became teammates?

AGUSTIN CANAPINO: Every track will be important for me because every time will be the second time, and I learn a lot from the first to the second. But definitely the Indy 500 is unique. These two weeks are unique. It’s impressive. It’s amazing. It’s impossible to explain, like a driver, like a fan, because I was a fan outside two years ago.

For me, it will be amazing to be there again knowing what I have to do, knowing the situation, in the car, in the oval. Definitely the Indy 500 will be an amazing experience.

With Romain, imagine when he was driving in Formula 1 I was driving in my country with touring cars. I watched him my entire life driving in the top series in the world, and it’s a big opportunity for me, for me and the team, because I knew the team is small. I knew, too, he has a lot of experience, a lot of achievement during his career, and I think we have a really good opportunity to learn from him.

He’s a really good guy, and I have no doubts we will do a really good team to try to grow together with the team.

Q. You and I had a conversation last spring at Barber where you said, all I want is another year in INDYCAR after this one. How much of a relief is it to be back in INDYCAR for another year, and how have your expectations changed compared from last year to this year?

AGUSTIN CANAPINO: It’s totally different. My focus on my mind is totally different. I remember, again, when I was in the same situation here on the content day. I am totally surprised for everything, especially this situation with the series, with the journalists, with the team, with the language. Now I can think, I want to achieve good results. Of course. We don’t pretend miracles. We don’t forget we are a small and new team. But in INDYCAR you can battle.

You can see my last race we were really good the world race battling with the top teams, the top teams, so sometimes you can battle with them. But I want to continue, to continue my improvement, step by step.

Okay, the last year we were in the leader circles, we were sometimes close to doing a top 10. Okay, I want to be there again in the leader circle and I want to make some top 10s.

And why not one race like Laguna or Iowa too where we were good car battling with the top teams? Why not achieve a better result than the top 10.

This is my mentality for this year, but again, trying to don’t lose my calm, try to keep the calm and continue step by step.

About Chevrolet
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, available in 79 countries with more than 3.2 million cars and trucks sold in 2020. Chevrolet models include electric and fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

CHEVROLET IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES
INDYCAR CONTENT DAYS MEDIA AVAILABILITY TRANSCRIPT
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA
January 10, 2024

ROMAIN GROSJEAN, No. 77 Juncos-Hollinger Racing Chevrolet:

THE MODERATOR: We are joined by Romain Grosjean. Tell us about the transition to the new team. How is it going, and are you looking forward to 2024 here?

ROMAIN GROSJEAN: Yeah, the transition is going well. Everyone has been very welcoming in the team. Already spent the day yesterday, some time in December with everyone, and it’s been great. That’s very cool, and excited for the season for sure.

A lot to discover, a lot to understand, a lot to know where we are, but the good thing is that we got a couple of tests before we go to St. Pete’s that should help us get started.

Q. Seems like this team is moving forward. We saw a lot of progress out of them over the last two years. Talk about the relationship moving forward, both you looking for your first win, this team is on the growth, moving up, had some great runs last year, and then talk about some places where you know in your head you want to improve coming up in 2024?

ROMAIN GROSJEAN: Well, I think it may be early to speak about wins. For sure we’re going to try to do everything we can, but we also have to be realistic that we are, as you said, up and coming. The team has been doing really good for the last few years, but it’s still a three-year-old team.

So a lot to do, but I think everyone is very motivated and very aware of what we can achieve and what we cannot achieve. That’s good.

Places to improve, the Indy 500 for sure. At least try to see the checkered flag would be a good start.

Q. You’re in a new team now. How does joining a new team in the INDYCAR Series help you in your direction for the new season?

ROMAIN GROSJEAN: Well, it’s the third one in four years, so I’m getting used to it. Obviously it’s always a challenge. It’s always positive. There’s always things we need to adapt. But as I say, everyone is super open minded.

I’m excited to see what we can do together. I’m realistic of where we are and what we need to do. But it’s INDYCAR, and everything can happen on track. We’ll make sure that we seize every opportunity that we can.

Q. When you look back at the last two years, how do you judge what happened? Obviously I would imagine you’re disappointed in how things played out, and then obviously going to a new team, you’re obviously excited about that, but the last two years, how can you analyze what happened both on and off the track for you?

ROMAIN GROSJEAN: Well, I think we tried and we had a lot of belief that we could fight for the championship, and we did not achieve that. I had an amazing time with some great characters over the last two years, made a lot of good friends.

But right now I’m more interested in focusing on 2024 and seeing what we can do with Juncos Hollinger Racing than moaning about the past. As I said, a lot of good friends up there, a lot of good times, a lot of good positions, podiums. It just didn’t play out our way. But the next chapter is the important one.

Q. Obviously you had a very successful time at Dale Coyne (Racing) when you came into INDYCAR and enjoyed working inside that team. I guess Juncos is maybe a similar size to Dale Coyne when you were there. Wondered if there was anything that you enjoy about working in a team like this. Obviously in Formula 1 you were working in much bigger atmospheres. I guess the chance to work in smaller teams means you can be more hands on and enjoy the experience more than in previous teams?

ROMAIN GROSJEAN: I think it’s positive working in both small teams and big teams. For sure small team is more family based small type of feeling. I really enjoy the Latin American, Latin type of relation that we have, that I’m closed to friends in Switzerland, where with Ricardo and everyone in the team, that’s for sure.

There’s also a lot of beauty about being in a bigger team. They are the ones selected by the manufacturer to do all the hybrid tests so they have got a lot more knowledge than we do on all of that. They are more research on certain things.

But I’m definitely excited about what we have coming and very happy with everyone that I’ve met and everyone I’m going to work with.

Q. You were talking about the relationship in Latin American style that you have with people like Ricardo (Juncos). I would like to ask you about your new teammate Agustin Canapino. How did you get on with him in the first days and can you give any assessment on his rookie season in 2023 and what can you bring together as a team?

ROMAIN GROSJEAN: Yeah, sure. I think the team has been very welcoming. Agustin, as well. We’ve had a great time at the factory together. I know he’s excited to work with me. I’m excited to work with him, as well.

I think he’s got an incredible background in touring car, and there’s definitely a lot of things that I can learn from him on that side and that driving style that he can bring into single seater, and I think for him it’s also important to have for 20 years or something like that, and has got a lot of experience.

I have a very good relationship. I’m looking forward to working with him. I think we’re both at a time in our life that is all about working together and working well for the team, so that’s going to be exciting. His first year in INDYCAR, there was some very impressive performances. There was some that were less good, but also you have to remember that INDYCAR has got so little test that when you come as a rookie, it’s not that easy.

Q. Do you think he has been progressing throughout the season? At the end of the season in 2023 Juncos-Hollinger Racing was fairly close to being in the top 10. Do you think you can raise even more that benchmark?

ROMAIN GROSJEAN: Well, we’re definitely going to try to be in the top 10 at first and then see if we can do top 5 and even more. But step by step, we know where we are and we know where we want to go.

Q. When did you say your first test in a Juncos-Hollinger car is going to be?

ROMAIN GROSJEAN: It’s going to be Homestead-Miami between the Roar and the Rolex, so I think it’s 22, 23 and 24. It’s going to be a day and a half somewhere in that week.

Q. I know the last two years at Andretti, it was easy to kind of gauge what success was going to look like. It was going to look like poles and wins and podiums and things like that. You mentioned wins may be too soon to expect at a team that’s still just three years old. When we get to the end of this 2024 season, what would you at this point call a successful year in your first year with JHR?

ROMAIN GROSJEAN: It’s the same question, and to be honest with you, I didn’t think of it. I don’t have an answer. I think we have to see where we start in St. Pete, in Thermal, and then see where we can move from there. I think success would be to improve and get better race after race, and see what we can do, see if we can get a decent Indy 500. That’s a big race in the year.

It’s not easy, and the team is like, okay, we need to rely on you in the Indy 500, and I’m like, I’m going to be fair with you, I don’t know what a good car is. I can’t tell you. We have to learn together.

I think, yes, it’s difficult to exactly — as I say, top 10 and top 5 would be awesome, try to be somewhere near that in the driver’s championship by the end of the year and see what we can do, but definitely try to get every opportunity we can.

Q. Because a lot of the smaller teams didn’t get a chance to do any of the hybrid testing, were you a little bit relieved when INDYCAR delayed that until the middle of the season?

ROMAIN GROSJEAN: Yes. I think for us, it was tricky. It was an advantage for some that was pretty significant, and when we were doing the drivers’ meeting early in December, the guys were asking a question about the hybrid, and I had no idea what they were talking about. Definitely kind of happy that it’s been postponed.

It’s also going to allow us to start with a known concept on the car and move from there and see when the hybrid comes in, and hopefully by then we do have a lot more knowledge on it.

Q. Also on the IMS road course, you’ve been successful with two different teams, so obviously it’s driver feel that you have for that course. Is it beyond the realm of possibility to expect you to have a really good performance, both in qualifying and in the race on the IMS road course?

ROMAIN GROSJEAN: Yeah, I don’t know. I think the team looked really good in Portland and Laguna Seca last year. So that’s going to be good. We’re going to try to bring that for sure to a lot of different racetracks.

Finding time to go testing on road courses is not easy. The weather obviously in the winter is impossible, and then the season starts. It’s definitely something I’m trying to put a lot of effort on because I think it’s important that we find the right package for the road course, but too early to say anything.

About Chevrolet
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, available in 79 countries with more than 3.2 million cars and trucks sold in 2020. Chevrolet models include electric and fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

CHEVROLET IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES
INDYCAR CONTENT DAYS MEDIA AVAILABILITY TRANSCRIPT
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA
January 10, 2024

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN, No. 3 Team Penske Chevrolet:

THE MODERATOR: Continuing on, joining us, Scott McLaughlin, driver of the No. 3 Team Penske Chevrolet beginning his fourth full-time season now in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, finishing a career-best third in the championship last year with a win last at Barber Motorsports Park, along with four podiums from there on.

That’s in the past, though, right? Rearview mirror. It’s on to 2024 and even bigger goals for you.

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN: Yeah, for sure. 2024 is exciting. I think I’ve said a number of times today, I feel like my off-track side is sorted in terms of I’ve got my Visa now, I’ve bought a house, got a second dog. Everything is sorted on that side, and I can finally at the start of the season focus on racing in some ways.

I’m excited to hit the ground running hopefully at St. Pete, a place that I love. I feel like we really finished the year strong last year and it is going to be important to start the year strong with the changes throughout the season.

I’m really excited throughout the year and feel really comfortable with where I’m at.

Q. You said a second dog?

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN: We bought a golden retriever puppy. The dogs are getting along really well, which is fantastic. The dog, Chase is five, and, yeah, he took her under his wing pretty well. Good stuff. Big steps.

Q. (No microphone.)

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN: That never really bothered me from that point of view. I always feel like I’m pretty loose when it comes to having a bit of fun outside the track. When I put my helmet on and I need to get ready, I know when I’m ready.

Yeah, I felt like we had our best year last year leading the three of us, and I felt really good with my process. It was just a matter of putting together things a little bit earlier on in the season and winning races when we probably should have.

There was a couple of races we kind of let go as well. But, yeah, I’m super excited for the year. I feel very comfortable with where I’m at with the team. Nothing is going to change on my team as far as I know, which is nice to go into the season ready to go.

Q. (No microphone.)

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN: Oh, huge. It was awesome to be in Phoenix with Ryan (Blaney). We’re very close. I play a lot of golf, but hang out outside of golf courses and race tracks together. It was awesome being a part of that, and like you said, certainly puts a bit of fire in my belly to get it done and come back here stronger and hopefully do the same for myself this year.

Q. You mentioned after Laguna Seca, you were really happy with being able to say you were the highest-finishing Team Penske driver in the championship. That was a big thing for you coming into that weekend. I know you won a couple of races in 2022. Was it two or three? I can’t remember.

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN: Three, yeah.

Q. Maybe kind of a two-part question. First, did you come into last year feeling like you had a legitimate shot at winning a championship? And regardless of that answer, how much better prepared do you feel like you are to potentially do that this year?

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN: I think ever since I won my first race, I knew that every year after that, every year I come into the sport now, I’m going to have a legitimate shot, knowing that the tools I have at hand and where I am in my development as an IndyCar driver.

Yeah, I never come out and say I’m going to win the championship. I don’t. I know that I’ve got the tools to. I feel like I’m in the best possible spot I’ve ever been for a long time, but even probably better than last year.

But it’s the same for everyone. Everyone comes in and says the same thing, that they feel better and whatever. It’s just a matter of doing your talking on the track. I feel comfortable. I knew what we could do last year. I knew that I could beat Will and Josef in the championship, and especially when I had an opportunity to.

It was a matter of me and Ben coming together and working out exactly what I wanted, and we had a really strong stretch. That was what really made it happen.

I think we can certainly do that — with the championship side, we can have a really good run and put ourselves in position to hopefully finish off the year in a position that we are in contention for the championship.

Q. You hear through stick and ball sports, even I’m sure in super cars, rising up through the ranks, rising up through the grid is one thing, but to get that next little bit, the top of the game, is one of the most difficult steps. You’re pretty much there. Have you seen that in IndyCar? Is it tougher than you thought it was? What are your thoughts to get that next little bit to be a champion in the sport?

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN: It’s like weight loss, right? You lose a heap, and the last little bit you want to lose is the hardest part. I’m going through that at the moment.

The same thing with this sport. The hardest thing here is you just know you’re competing with the world’s best drivers in some ways. It’s so competitive, the margins are so tight, but you’re trying to get that last little bit.

Sometimes that last little bit in the sport is a little bit of luck, whether it’s like yellows or certain things. You might have the fastest car and certainly places like Nashville and other places, road course that’s we’ve been to throughout the year, we had a really good opportunity to win, but the yellow didn’t fall our way, or fuel strategy didn’t work our way or whatnot, and you find yourself fifth or sixth in a race that you could easily have been maybe the top step of the podium.

I think that’s — what Alex did last season was incredible. His season was fantastic, and it’s a credit to him and his team. We all strive for one of those seasons, and there’s no doubt that it can be done because he did it. But it is hard to find that last little bit. Somehow, some way, you find it. You’ve just got to keep working.

Q. You mentioned about having your Visa now and you feel like your life off track is sort of — how big personally is that? I know your wife’s a citizen, but to have that all squared away just personally coming into this year. I know sometimes that can be a distraction. How rewarding, I guess, is that for you?

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN: It’s nice because you feel like you’re building actually the American dream in some ways. Last year my Visa was sorted, I had a green card and everything was sorted, but I was going through trying to buy a house with Karly and I didn’t have a credit score, so the whole credit thing was crazy. So that was like a stress thing.

It’s just nice. I love this place. I love the people. I love the places we go, the racing, and I can certainly see myself being here for the rest of my life. Yeah, it’s nice to have that, like you said, off-track sorted. Not that it’s going to reinvent my wheel, but it’s a nice feeling.

It’s just really cool.

Q. A lot of talk today about former drivers and what their roles are with various teams. I recall your first go at Texas when you got out of the car, Rick Mears came up to you. That was a personal moment. I won’t ask about what he said. But talk a little bit about how he has influenced your career both professionally and personally.

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN: Yeah, huge amount. Rick’s basically my eye in the sky in some ways. He’s not my spotter, but he certainly watches everything with a keen interest and where I’m positioning the car. He’s one of the first people that always comments about my driving when I come back in from an oval.

It has been more so his help has been on ovals to accelerate that phase, and that’s been amazing for me, particularly at Indy, but short ovals as well, I just find myself picking up the phone and ringing him, which I’ve had the privilege to, which is an amazing feeling.

But, yeah, trying to use him the right way has been really enjoyable to do. But also, at the end of the day, I’ve really leaned on Josef and Will as well. Josef helped me a lot with short ovals last year and Will from a qualifying perspective as well.

Like I said, we’ve got really good camaraderie, whether it’s Rick (Mears), whether it’s the three of us as well, it’s a really cool team, and it’s certainly helped me accelerate to the point where I am today.

Q. First of all, Scott, you’re comfortable in the U.S., but we’re still going to call you a New Zealander.

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN: Please, I’m still going to call myself a New Zealander.

Q. Looking at the comment you made before and the fact that the Thirsty-threes are all back together again, the consistency inside the team for you, having people like Finchy there alongside you doing strategy, is that important rather than having a change around in team members?

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN: Look, like I said, as far as I’m concerned, it’s the same. It hasn’t been finalized just yet, but I know for a fact that Ben’s going to be my engineer and whatnot, and Malcolm is — it’s fantastic to have that same core group. We get along very well.

It’s no secret that we play a lot of golf and hang out outside of the track, but that’s how we work together. We have this pretty seamless sort of feeling between all three of us, and it’s a nice feeling knowing that they’re in your corner.

Malcolm’s been with me since I came to America. He’s a super good guy and super smart guy. Lucky to have the pair of them. But at the same time, our car and the 12 car and the 2 car, we all — it’s a very good group and a lot of motivation in the group this year to go bigger in ’24 and hopefully bring the Astor Cup back.

Q. You’ve been around the surroundings before in terms of a chase for the championship and categories you’ve driven in previously. Last year you got to be in the IndyCar Series. Having now done that within this series, is that going to make you smarter come the last quarter of the season, like you’re aware of the situations that come into hand?

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN: I definitely think having the experience of trying to win a championship and being in a position to have that pressure, have the TV, have the media talking all about it, it definitely is a nice thing compared to someone who hasn’t been in that position before. I think that helps.

But by the time everything, honestly, shakes out in INDYCAR, you’re hard pressed to find a point at the end of the season where a reigning champ or someone that hasn’t won the championship or the 500 isn’t involved in winning the championship, which is a testament to how good they are and how good the category is.

Yeah, I feel — I wouldn’t say it’s an advantage, but it definitely probably settles me down mentally knowing what to expect, I guess.

Q. Finally, you’re back in Indianapolis for this content day that the season’s doing. It’s actually still quite a long time until the start of the season, but being back in Indianapolis, is that one place down on the corner of 16th and Georgetown that says come visit me in May, do you feel the vibe of the Indy 500 lurking in the background because you’re back in the city and knowing that it’s not really that far away?

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN: Yeah, it’s awesome. Every time you fly in basically, you fly over the track. So it’s pretty cool. It reminds me a lot of Bathurst where you sort of come over the hill on the road there and see the Mount Panorama sign for the first time. Same sort of vibe, same sort of goose bump feeling.

That’s a big focus for us this year to be better at Indy, particularly on my car. Yeah, that’s the next goal for sure.

Q. It’s kind of crazy to think that you’re entering year four. It’s kind of gone by pretty quick. Your transition into IndyCars has been nothing short of stellar. I’m just kind of curious, third place in the championship last year, this transition that you’re kind of going into, do you look at this and think that maybe there’s a specific area, whether it’s strategy management or applying data, driving lines, whatever it might be? Maybe tools in the cockpit. Is there something that you kind of look at that maybe you’re trying to just get that extra little oomph to seal this transition completely, if that makes sense?

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN: I guess the first oval win is the next thing for me, to finish off everything. But I think from a comfort, pace feeling perspective, I feel really at home. I certainly don’t feel like the new kid anymore, and I feel more like an open wheel driver than a touring car driver now.

Yeah, it’s very small. I was talking about the margins before, like the margins move up now, like there are a few little areas, a kink in my armor that I need to figure out that I’ll keep to myself, but I feel like we’re in a really good spot for the start of the season.

Q. Obviously the hybrid getting introduced middle of the season going to impact the championship in some form or fashion. I guess I’m just kind of curious your thoughts on maybe how you feel that’s going to really shake out how this year might play out for the eventually champion.

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN: I think it puts a bit of emphasis on knowing what you have at the start of the season. Obviously going into the start, we know the package. We know where we’re at, even setup-wise and whatnot. After the 500, it all sort of happens.

I think the category has done the right thing from a competitive standpoint. It does suck for everyone that we haven’t been able to get the parts and whatnot in time, but I think doing the right thing to keep our world-renowned competitiveness in the category, and I think it’s going to make an exciting sort of finish to the year about who can combat the changes the most.

That’s what the championship and building the championship is all about is combatting the change. Things aren’t the same from St. Pete to Nashville, and they never are. We need to combat that, whether that is adding a hybrid or whatever it is. That’s all part about building a solid championship campaign and working with your guys and girls and making sure you can get at the front quicker than the rest of them.

About Chevrolet
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, available in 79 countries with more than 3.2 million cars and trucks sold in 2020. Chevrolet models include electric and fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

CHEVROLET IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES
INDYCAR CONTENT DAYS MEDIA AVAILABILITY TRANSCRIPT
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA
January 10, 2024

DAVID MALUKAS, No. 6 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet:

THE MODERATOR: Continuing on with the afternoon session here at the NTT IndyCar Series Content Days with David Malukas, now driving the No. 6 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, beginning his third season in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, with the podium of six top tens in 2023. Getting used to the new look for you?

DAVID MALUKAS: I like it. I’m glowing. Anywhere I go, it’s just papaya. You can see it in your peripheral vision. It actually changes the way you see things.

Like you know when you were a kid and everything seemed a little bit brighter, I feel like putting the papaya on, I have that same brightness back.

Q. Looking ahead to 2024, what are the expectations? What’s the hope?

DAVID MALUKAS: Oh, expectations, hope, I mean, now with Arrow McLaren, we are going for the top: podiums, wins. They are very competitive, and it’s the team to do it. That is going to be — my goals will coincide with that.

Q. Your transition has been what? How would you describe it?

DAVID MALUKAS: Whatever the word for as smooth as possible would be. That would be how well it’s been. It’s been great.

As soon as we came in, met everybody. Everybody is treating me like family. Actually a lot of the people there too, I have known since go-karting, so I have a lot of history with them too.

It’s been very cool, learning a lot. They have a lot of resources that I’m trying to use to the most of my capabilities.

(Tony Kanaan) is there to help me and assist on that, and we’ve also done a little bit of testing. I’m already getting to know everybody.

Q. You’re a lot of fun on social media. Arrow McLaren does awesome stuff on social media. Talk about how that’s going to help grow your brand, grow yourself as well. And secondly, when do these conversations kind of start? I go back to like when Palou started talking to Ganassi, he was like, oh. Like when you started talking to McLaren, when this became a realization, how excited were you? You probably couldn’t tell a lot of people at the time. Talk about the relationship and how social media is going to be great for you guys and how it all came about, what your first initial thoughts were.

DAVID MALUKAS: It kind of all happened quickly after Nashville is when everything got done. So for those months until Laguna I had to kind of keep it in.

I actually enjoyed it. I had a good time because keeping it in wasn’t too hard. I’d go online and see all these like, oh, this person is going over here, because I’d also know where the other drivers were going, and I’m giggling in the back like, hoo-hoo, you don’t know.

But going into Arrow McLaren, one of the big deals has been from their socials. They do a fantastic job with promotion and promoting the drivers. Going into it, of course, that was one of the big factors. For my brand and for me personally, it’s going to help exponentially.

Q. I don’t know if you follow college football, but Jim Harbaugh likes to say who’s got it better than us? Nobody. Could that same phrase be used for you?

DAVID MALUKAS: Hey, I mean, I guess you could, yeah. That’s a good phrase. I like it.

Q. Just as far as to be so early in your career to be on a team like this, just the opportunities that it presents for you.

DAVID MALUKAS: It is a great opportunity. Like I said, they have a lot of resources; also have really good teammates of Pato and Rossi. Being 22, I still have some time to learn, and it is the perfect place to make sure that for my skills and to get the maximum out of my potential, this is the place to be.

Q. Going into this year one, I know this in the past has sometimes been a team for other drivers that have come on, a tough car to really get a chance to master year one in. What is your — like what are you aiming for this year? Do you feel like year one and such a big opportunity, is this something that you feel like you have to hit on right away, or do you feel like there’s some leeway for you to be able to get adjusted to this team and how it operates and the setup of the car?

DAVID MALUKAS: I think it’s a bit similar in between that line. Going from Arrow McLaren’s side, they’re competitive. They want to be up front, they want to get wins, they want to get podiums, and they want to compete with the best and be the best.

Going into this season those will also be my goals. Going into it, yes, of course, I will be new, and it will take time to adjust. We have had a lot of testing, and I think by the time this season starts, we should be where we want to be.

Q. David, nice exciting move for you going to Arrow McLaren. Obviously it’s a team with a few more resources than you’re used to. What’s sort of the biggest change you’ve seen moving up to Arrow McLaren so far?

DAVID MALUKAS: The biggest change is there’s a lot of people and a lot of people I need to meet, a lot of names that I still need to get down. But that’s been the biggest change, is trying to get used to the different environment, something that I’m not used to.

But all in all, it’s been a good change, and I’m very excited to get comfortable with it.

Q. I’ve got two questions, the first one being you go to Dale Coyne (Racing), Chicago-based team, Chicago native, you’re able to kind of hang out there, learn the nuances that you needed to become an IndyCar driver. I guess I’m just curious moving to Indy, getting closer to Arrow McLaren, what are maybe some new habits in your approach that you’re taking that maybe you didn’t have that have been built over this off-season?

DAVID MALUKAS: There’s been a lot of new changes coming here with the move and just being all around just a different team.

Habits-wise, it’s just trying to get into the shop as much as possible. I want to be there for the guys. I want to already start building relationships, building that chemistry before the season starts, and just trying to get in and help and be with the content crew, get to know everybody from my side looking at onboards and different — anything that I can just to make sure that, by the time the season starts, I will be as ready as I can be so we can get those performances going as soon as possible.

Q. I get the not-so-fun question to ask, is it’s been pretty well broadcast originally where Alex Palou was supposed to go in the seat you ultimately landed in. I guess I’m just kind of curious, just kind of knowing that, do you have any extra motivation to maybe prove something as it relates to him in particular, knowing that that was maybe the original plan before everything kind of pivoted?

DAVID MALUKAS: I don’t really see it that way. I just more look at it as I have signed a deal with Arrow McLaren, and they are confident in me, and I am confident in myself to get the results.

Yeah, we’ll just focus on getting the results that we need.

Q. You spoke about victories. You spoke about podium. But I need to know about the internal cues or the internal fight on qualifications between Alex, Pato, and you. This year will be very interesting, you know.

DAVID MALUKAS: I mean, for sure we’re going to be very competitive, but at the same time, we are teammates, and we’re going to help each other. At the end of the day, we want to see Arrow McLaren as a whole succeed.

Of course we’re going to have our own little competition, but that is a part of racing and very important to have those type of teammates to where you can all better each other.

Q. This is my last question. You will have new personal, new stuff to your car. How was the first contact, the first conversations?

DAVID MALUKAS: Can you elaborate?

Q. About the stuff on your car. The strategy, engineers, all the personal stuff on your car.

DAVID MALUKAS: Like I said, I’ve been trying my best to get to know everybody. With all these different tests, we’ve been swapping out everybody, different engineers, different mechanics, which has been good from my side because I’ve been able to get to know everybody and work on that chemistry and build on those relationships.

Overall, everybody that I’ve met — the engineers, mechanics, whoever it may be — everybody’s been incredible and awesome, and I very much love this team.

Q. I want to ask you about something that has been announced a few weeks ago. It’s the introduction of the hybrid power unit will be delayed after Indy 500. How much can this change affect your season in two different aspects? Firstly, in the performance that you made, you will make, in these first races with the old car and the performance that you’ve made in the — when this new change is applied. Also to prepare the season in specific for you, as it’s your first season with McLaren, you start with a different car than you will finish the season.

DAVID MALUKAS: With the whole hybrid deal, I think, when it does come along, yeah, maybe it could be a little bit of a performance boost from my side just because I’ve had some of that testing involved. But from my side, it’s more just getting laps under my belt and helping me overall.

It will be a little bit different going into the start of the season now not having the hybrid, and I think from my side that’s what I’m most intrigued about, seeing the differences between what a hybrid car feels like and what one doesn’t.

I will also be able to get already kind of a feedback of how the Arrow McLaren car and the setup is going to react between the two, so when the hybrid does come in later in the season, it will be something that I’ll have kind of that extra step to get to know it.

Q. Speaking of another thing that it has commented in the last weeks, it’s that Honda can leave IndyCar in 2025. What’s your thoughts about it? If you had the opportunity to speak with new customers that are interested in IndyCar, in doing a promo, a program with IndyCar, what do you say? What would you say to convince them?

DAVID MALUKAS: Sorry, to convince who?

Q. To convince some new manufacturers to enter into IndyCar, some new brands.

DAVID MALUKAS: Yeah, IndyCar, it’s a special sport. I think we have something very special, and I think we should do the best that we possibly can to let it be known and to show everybody.

I don’t think it would be very hard to convince another manufacturer to come in and to add more competition. I think overall it would help.

But from my side, I’m very happy with Chevy, and I’m excited to get the season going.

Q. Have you had a chance to sit down with your dad and your mom? You’ve made this long journey, and here you are now as an IndyCar driver that’s being paid to drive for one of the top teams.

DAVID MALUKAS: Of course. I had a conversation with my parents and they were very happy, but at the same time, it was interesting. It was a bit weird because it was almost like I was also doing another meeting. They were just like, well, if you stay with us, we could do this, this, this.

It was kind of weird because it’s my parents, but at the same time, we’re having a conversation about business. So it was weird, but it was interesting.

No, of course, from the whole side, everybody is very happy and excited. Yeah, it’s cool. My dad can achieve his dream of having HMD in the Ladder Series, and I get to achieve my dream of being an INDYCAR driver.

About Chevrolet
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, available in 79 countries with more than 3.2 million cars and trucks sold in 2020. Chevrolet models include electric and fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

CHEVROLET IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES
INDYCAR CONTENT DAYS MEDIA AVAILABILITY TRANSCRIPT
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA
January 10, 2024

WILL POWER, No. 12 Team Penske Chevrolet:

THE MODERATOR: Kicking off the afternoon session here day one of NTT INDYCAR Series content days at the JW Marriott in Indianapolis. We are led off by Will Power, driver of the No. 12 Verizon 5G Team Penske Chevrolet; enters his 20th season in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, two-time series champion. Of course the 2018 winner of the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge, 41 career wins, and of course the series record 70 NTT P1 Awards, and I’m just glad that the neck injury you posted on social media —

WILL POWER: It’s feeling a lot better. It was just a brief injury.

THE MODERATOR: That’s good to hear.

WILL POWER: You should not try to squat 300. That’s big.

THE MODERATOR: How does 2024 look for you?

WILL POWER: Yeah, I think we’ve made improvements on the team front. Disappointed with 2023. Very determined to turn up in ’24 with simply better performances.

I would say going to ’23 was not a very good situation and the preparation wasn’t normal, and that kind of continued into the year a bit. Yeah, turning up ready to go.

Q. If you look ahead to 2024, strong out of the gates; consistency, obviously that was a big factor in your second championship, as well.

WILL POWER: Yeah, it does matter. It does. It really does. It puts you in that non-defensive mindset if you get the points early.

But it doesn’t necessarily have to play out like that, either. Every season has a different flow. Sometimes consistency matters, and sometimes you really have to win races to win a championship. You kind of get that feel as we take off.

The field is so tough and so strong and so close, yeah, you have to — it’s very hard to dominate. As we saw last year, someone did, like really dominated. That’s a tough level right there.

Q. When we talked after Laguna Seca you talked about reflecting on 2023 and how tough it was for you from a personal standpoint with everything going on in the background with Liz and her health. I don’t want to pry too much, but have things gone on this off-season that puts you in a better ability to be more focused on racing and not so much worried or anxious or focusing on things off track?

WILL POWER: Yeah, it does, yeah. Liz is doing a lot better. It’s actually about a year now since that happened. Yeah, she’s actually back, started working out a little bit. Way, way better from where she was.

Yeah, not having that stress, the constant thought in the back of your mind of what’s going on there frees up a bit of space. You can get back to the sort of normal routine of preparing for a season and working during the season.

Q. One of the toughest parts of that, was that just the mental load you were having to carry, where racing just couldn’t be your sole focus?

WILL POWER: Yeah, exactly, yeah. Those distractions really take away — you just cannot compete at a high level if you’re not 100 percent in on that thing, which is racing. If you’re not 100 percent in, you’re going to struggle in this field. It’s too tough. Depth is too strong.

You need to have everything going for you if you’re going to win in this series.

Q. We don’t know a debut date yet on the hybrid, but supposed to come at some point after the 500, so it’s probably somewhere around the halfway point in the series. As someone who’s put a lot of miles in the car testing that for the series and Chevy and Team Penske, how do you imagine that could factor into a championship hunt when you have some different rules and regulations splitting up this championship in 2024?

WILL POWER: It will be very interesting. There’s no question that it’s going to be a factor in the championship, how the car — obviously the weight distribution changes, the weight of the car goes up. You have this hybrid system that you have to use as efficiently as possible.

So there will be, yeah — people will be learning through those races on how to extract the most out of the system, which is a good thing. It’ll make for a very interesting championship. Very interesting.

Q. You were among the workhorses of the hybrid testing, so all those laps and all those miles that you did, how would you assess where it started and where it’s at right now?

WILL POWER: Yeah, I mean, I’ve done quite a few test days where you just run all day, two days, and no problems. No problems at all. I think it’s a bit of everything, a little bit of supply issue and so on.

To me, they’ve got to be able to — I think INDYCAR wants it to be absolutely bulletproof when it’s introduced, so I think they made the right decision there.

The testing has been good. The system has worked really well. I think the way it’s packaged and everything is really good. It just needs a little bit more time. That’s all. It just needs a little bit more time, and I think they want to introduce it with absolutely zero chance of problems, and that’s the smart way to do it.

Q. Now, one of the unintended benefits that comes with not having the hybrid is they lighten the car, so now you should be able to go faster because of the lighter car before the hybrid is put on. You always being a driver who loves speed, how important will that be for you?

WILL POWER: Oh, yeah, I love the fact that it’s lighter. It will make for a much nicer car. Well, a nicer car. Anytime you’re knocking weight out, it’s good.

Yeah, I don’t think it’ll be a big difference. It’s not like we’re knocking 100 pounds out of it. But it will be — it won’t be slower.

Q. But with the hybrid development, wasn’t there concern because of the added weight, even with the extra horsepower, it could be slower?

WILL POWER: It would depend on the track. Obviously track with long straights and all that, you’re going to get benefit from the horsepower.

Yeah, I think there’s a lot of potential in that hybrid. I reckon it’ll be started pretty conservatively, so if the lap times happen to be slower, that’s the reason. But eventually they’ll be faster because you don’t want to — you want to ease into it. I don’t think you just want to go, yeah, this thing will give 150 horsepower, bang, let’s go do it.

It’s still a hit, like it really — it jumps out of the corner when you’re using the hybrid. And you’re only using a third of what it’s capable of.

Q. Finally, a lot of people focus on race strategy, and Rick Mears told me the other day, the best race strategy is a fast race car. I guess in many ways is that your best strategy, the fastest car?

WILL POWER: Oh, it makes things so much easier. As you can see, if you’re just a little bit outside the window, you just struggle to even get in the top 10. Yeah, when you have that slight advantage, you just have a bit — you’re right in the window, just eases everything off of it.

You’re not making those little mistakes trying to make up for time. You’re just able to nail all your braking points and apexes and everything comes together nicely.

Q. Question with the hybrid engine. I know you’ve done a lot of testing, and you make it sound like it’s really easy. Do you feel that some of the younger drivers or the rookies are going to have a harder time adjusting to that change, or…

WILL POWER: I think it’s an easy — honestly, it’s hardly changed anything. The car pretty much behaves the same, and they’ve given you the ability just to push a button out of a corner and that’s it. I think it’s auto-regen, so you’re not holding the paddle or anything like that. It’s pretty straightforward.

I think it’ll be a pretty — it’ll be more about extracting the most out of the system, where you deploy it, all those strategies which kind of makes it a — it’s up to the teams to do the simulations and understand where to do that and where to regen, all that sort of stuff.

So yeah, I think it’s pretty straightforward. It’s not that complicated. Pretty straightforward.

Q. So it won’t take a couple races to get the hang of it?

WILL POWER: I mean, yeah, you’re just pressing a button. That’s the long and short of it. All the simulations will be saying out of this corner is where you should be hitting the button, and that’s what will happen.

Maybe in the races, slightly different strategies, maybe hitting a different spot to pass or something like that.

But yeah, I think it’ll be good.

Q. I’m curious your thoughts, you’ve been with Penske a while now. Do you feel since you’ve been there the morale at that team, with Team Penske, is as high as it’s ever been? I know you’ve got two straight Cup Series championships; you won the championship a few years ago; Josef just won the 500. Do you feel that yourself?

WILL POWER: Yeah, I do. It has changed quite a bit since I started there. Obviously the process has changed, the competition changes, and you evolve with it, and Penske is very good at being ahead of the curve on that stuff.

It’s a good tight-knit team. And I wouldn’t say as far as the number of people that work within the team, it’s not like a — it’s run lean but very efficiently, so everyone works very well together.

But yeah, winning two Cup championships back-to-back is very big. The 500 Championship last year, 500 this year in INDYCAR. So, yeah, the team certainly is firing on all cylinders. It’s pretty cool to be a part of it.

Q. It’s already ridiculously difficult to win an INDYCAR championship; when you introduce a hybrid and it creates that required adaptability mid-season that we’re going to get this year, how much more difficult or how much more weight does that put on maybe or how much does this championship stand out, or will the eventual champion stand out compared maybe to other years?

WILL POWER: Yeah, like I said, I think it certainly will be — it’s definitely going to be a factor in the championship. Like what engine does it — what manufacturer does it complement the most, is it the Chevy or the Honda, because it’s going to hit in a certain power range.

Yeah, it’s hard to say how that will all play out, because it’s not like you’re going back to the same tracks. It’s sort of — yeah, it will play a factor in the championship. I don’t know how. I think it’ll be about adapting because it’s difficult to say what the struggles will be until you’re in the situation.

Q. Once upon a time, anybody could get maybe one, possibly two bad finishes and be right there at the end for the title hunt. You’ve got Dixon only had one finish outside the top 10 last year; Palou didn’t have a single finish lower than eighth. Can you make a mistake in this championship?

WILL POWER: When someone doesn’t have a lower finishing place than eighth and wins, what, four or five? Five wins, nothing outside the top eight, man, that is — what was the average finishing position for him? My God, you’re just sitting at such a high level there.

That’s why I said, like that is — yeah, people say he wrapped it up with one to go or he was almost done with two to go. He probably could have — he was on his way to winning the last race. He had taken off the lead in that thing obviously with a lot of mayhem.

But that’s a championship to remember in this field. That is a very, very impressive run. Very strong.

I couldn’t see anyone beating that — there’s no one sitting back going, if I just finish this race — like everyone is just going, this dude just absolutely mopped the floor, like he nailed it. But very strong.

Q. Does that kind of reset how you attack a championship in the sense that you just can’t have mistakes when guys are on that kind of level?

WILL POWER: Yeah, it’s not having mistakes plus winning races, not just finishing — you can’t just be top 5 every time. You’ve got to win races. Yeah, that’s one tough team and competitor right there. It just resets the bar in this series, which is a very high bar already, which is pretty cool. Pretty cool to see.

Q. You had a very long off-season but also did a lot of the hybrid testing, as well. How important is it to be able to take a step back from driving and testing and all that kind of good stuff and be at home away from everything and just recharge away from the shop, away from personnel, texts, social media and everything and just be a dad and be Will Power?

WILL POWER: That is important, to completely just disconnect from everything because of all the connectivity we have now.

Yeah, that’s great for two or three weeks, but then you want to get back to the job at hand and go hard again. That’s what it requires anyway, to be competitive.

Q. What is the most valuable advice Roger Penske has given to you that has left you thinking deeply as a person or racer?

WILL POWER: He often says to me before the race, just finish. He never really says go out there and win. Which is good advice. Just go out there, just be careful on — yeah, there’s many things Roger has told me. But when he talks, you listen.

About Chevrolet
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, available in 79 countries with more than 3.2 million cars and trucks sold in 2020. Chevrolet models include electric and fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.