Kyle Kirkwood was the fastest driver in the opening 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 the No. 27 Sam’s Club Honda of Andretti Global held up as the fastest of the session, scheduled for one hour but reduced to about 52 minutes after Malukas’ accident in Turn 2 about 19 minutes into practice. All 25 drivers struggled for grip in tricky conditions and on the bumps of the 1.33-mile concrete oval.

SEE: Practice Results

“It’s not easy for anyone out there,” Kirkwood said. “Track is going to be pretty green right now, so we’ll just work through it and try to keep it clean. Loose (handling), definitely.”

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 stood up for third.

2026 Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge winner Felix Rosenqvist stopped the clocks fourth at 196.249 in the No. 60 Meyer Shank Racing w/Curb Agajanian Honda, while Santino Ferrucci rounded out the top five at 195.977 in the No. 14 Homes For Our Troops Chevrolet of AJ Foyt Racing.

All three Team Penske cars ended up in the top seven. Reigning Nashville winner Josef Newgarden was sixth at 195.940 in the No. 2 Astemo Team Penske Chevrolet, followed by teammate Scott McLaughlin in seventh at 195.907 in the No. 3 Odyssey Battery Team Penske Chevrolet.

Up next is NTT P1 Award qualifying at 3 p.m. ET today, with the 300-lap race starting at approximately 5:30 p.m. ET Sunday. FOX, FOX One and INDYCAR Radio powered by OnlyBulls will provide live coverage of both sessions.

Malukas was transported to a local hospital via private vehicle for further testing after his crash, said Dr. Angi Fiege, INDYCAR deputy medical director. His car did a half-spin in Turn 2 and hit the SAFER Barrier heavily with the rear. There was heavy damage to the rear of the car, and Malukas climbed from the car with the help of the AMR INDYCAR Safety Team.