Still sore, Larson bows out of sprint-car race – Nascar

Kyle Larson said Wednesday that he is still sore from his hard crash Sunday at Auto Club Speedway and that he has placed some of his extracurricular racing on hold.

Larson was scheduled to drive in the Short Track Outlaw Showdown sprint-car race Wednesday night at Placerville (Calif.) Speedway. But the 23-year-old driver indicated through Twitter that he was still feeling the effects from a heavy, nose-first impact during Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race.

“I am very sorry to say that I won’t be racing at Placerville Speedway today,” Larson wrote. “After the wreck I had in Sunday’s Cup race, my body is still too sore to compete today. With the NASCAR off weekend coming up, I feel it is best to use that time to let my body recover and not risk anything else. It kills me to make this decision because I’ve been looking forward to this race for months now.”

Larson finished last in the 39-car field in Sunday’s Auto Club 400 after a shredded tire sent his Chip Ganassi Racing No. 42 Chevrolet out of control and into the backstretch’s inside retaining wall, which was protected by the SAFER (Steel and Foam Energy Reduction) barrier system.

“I couldn’t slow down and had a hard hit there, head-on,” Larson said Sunday after he was evaluated and released from the infield care center. “I’m OK. I’m thankful for SAFER barriers and thankful that I’m all right. That was definitely probably the hardest hit I’ve ever had in my career. I’m glad to be on my feet right here.”

Larson wrote in his Tweet that he intended to attend Wednesday night’s race at the quarter-mile dirt track where he logged his first sprint-car victory in 2007. He also thanked fans for their support and said he would be signing autographs at the California track.