Kyle Larson Back In A Midget, Back On Dirt

[CIRF]

The best dirt track driver of the past 10 years is going to return to dirt track racing this winter off season. Really glad to have bought Chili Bowl tickets this year. Larson is especially hungry and determined to win the Chili Bowl and I hope we're there to see it!

Larson Planning Winter Dirt Return

CONCORD, N.C. — Fans of NASCAR driver Kyle Larson who are hoping to see him return to his dirt racing roots this offseason are in luck.
Larson confirmed to SPEED SPORT that he will contest a schedule similar to the one he ran last winter, beginning with the 75th annual Turkey Night Grand Prix midget race Nov. 26 at Perris (Calif.) Auto Speedway.
Larson also plans to race his winged sprint car during the early January Winter Heat Sprint Car Showdown at Cocopah Speedway in Arizona before turning his attention to the Jan. 12-16 Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Midget Nationals in Tulsa, Okla.
“As soon as our season is done I’ll go to Perris to do the Turkey Night,” Larson confirmed while at Phoenix Int’l Raceway over the weekend. “I’ll do the first three nights at Cocopah Speedway and then I’ll do the Chili Bowl. So that’ll be my open-wheel schedule for the offseason.”
Last year Larson ran the same group of races and was fairly successful. He finished third in the Turkey Night Grand Prix, won a sprint car feature during the Winter Heat Sprint Car Showdown and won a Chili Bowl preliminary feature after racing his way into the feature from the C main.
Larson’s focus the last few years has been on his career in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, so he hasn’t done nearly as much open-wheel racing as he did while climbing the racing ladder. He said in the future he hopes to do more open-wheel racing when his schedule allows, but he said he needs permission from his team owner Chip Ganassi in order to do that.
“I’d like to (run more open-wheel races), but I just don’t know about that. I’d have to get permission,” Larson said.

[oldfart50]

Maybe he can win something. They really should quit calling them Midgets in this day and age. I also would not say he is the best dirt track racer in the last ten years.

[CIRF]

Well, let's see here. Larson has won races run on dirt tracks ranging in size from 1/5th mile to one mile while driving 5 different types of race cars. Midgets, winged 410 sprints, winged 360 sprints, wingless 410 sprints and USAC Silver Crown.

He won the Belleville Midget Nationals having never seen the scariest fast dirt track shorter than 1 mile in length. He won at Du Quoin on the mile in Keith Kunz' USAC Silver Crown car. He won all 3 USAC national touring series (midgets, wingless sprints and Silver Crown) races at the 2011 4 Crown Nationals at Eldora and he'd never seen the place before. Jack Hewitt is the only driver to win all the events that comprise 4 Crown and he'd been racing at Eldora for 20 years and probably had more laps in competition at Eldora than any man alive at that time. Jack even admitted that what Larson did at The 4 Crown Nationals was probably more impressive than his 4 feature wins in one night because Larson had never seen the place before.

Larson won the 72nd running of the Turkey Night Grand Prix in November of 2012 being one of 80 midgets in the pits at Perris that Thanksgiving Night. He's won A-mains at the Chili Bowl on several occasions, has won a preliminary a night A-main at The Knoxville Nationals in a winged sprint car. He swept the both nights of the Gold Cup in 2011 and came back and won the Gold Cup again in 2012.

And top it all off with a few facts concerning his early stock car asphalt career, Larson won the first stock car race he ever competed in and won the K&N All Pro Series championship in his rookie season.

Plus, he has a Rolex watch which he received for winning the Rolex 24 at Daytona. That is the overall winner, not a class winner.

None of this includes his successes driving outlaw karts or quarter midgets.

Now if you can find anyone who's dirt resume' is better than that in as many different tracks driving as many completely different types of race cars please feel free to name them and list their accomplishments.

I can't wait to learn the name of the driver who's had a better dirt career over the past 10 seasons.

This oughta' be good. Hehehehe!

[oldfart50]

You should really stop calling them midgets...

[CIRF]

You should name the better dirt driver than Kyle Larson over the past 10 years. We anxiously await your stirring revelation cause your attempt at humor just fell on it's face..............again.










That's what I thought.

[kidrock]

Well, let's see here. Larson has won races run on dirt tracks ranging in size from 1/5th mile to one mile while driving 5 different types of race cars. Midgets, winged 410 sprints, winged 360 sprints, wingless 410 sprints and USAC Silver Crown.

He won the Belleville Midget Nationals having never seen the scariest fast dirt track shorter than 1 mile in length. He won at Du Quoin on the mile in Keith Kunz' USAC Silver Crown car. He won all 3 USAC national touring series (midgets, wingless sprints and Silver Crown) races at the 2011 4 Crown Nationals at Eldora and he'd never seen the place before. Jack Hewitt is the only driver to win all the events that comprise 4 Crown and he'd been racing at Eldora for 20 years and probably had more laps in competition at Eldora than any man alive at that time. Jack even admitted that what Larson did at The 4 Crown Nationals was probably more impressive than his 4 feature wins in one night because Larson had never seen the place before.

Larson won the 72nd running of the Turkey Night Grand Prix in November of 2012 being one of 80 midgets in the pits at Perris that Thanksgiving Night. He's won on A-mains at the Chili Bowl on several occasions, has won a preliminary a night A-main at The Knoxville Nationals in winged sprint car. He swept the both nights of the Gold Cup in 2011 and came back and won the Gold Cup again in 2012.

And top it all off with some a few facts concerning his early stock car asphalt career, Larson won the first stock car race he ever competed in and won the K&N All Pro Series championship in his rookie season.

Plus, he has a Rolex watch which he received for winning the Rolex 24 at Daytona. That is the overall winner, not a class winner.

None of this includes his successes driving outlaw karts or quarter midgets.

Now if you can find anyone who's dirt resume' is better than that in as many different tracks driving as many completely different types of race cars please feel free to name them and list their accomplishments.

I can't wait to learn the name of the driver who's had a better dirt career over the past 10 seasons.

This oughta' be good. Hehehehe!

I would agree especially in Midgets and Sprints he is probably the best I have ever seen.

[oldfart50]

It would be more politically correct to call them Little Sprint Cars...

[kidrock]

It would be more politically correct to call them Little Sprint Cars...

and why would that be?

[oldfart50]

The term midget is not politically correct.

[CIRF]

I would agree especially in Midgets and Sprints he is probably the best I have ever seen.

I don't know Kid, from my perspective Stan Fox and Rich Vogler might have been as good or better but it's really hard to compare in an objective way. I will say this, Larson is as thoughtful in the heat of the moment as anyone I've ever seen. We watched him win the Turkey Night Grand Prix out at Perris, CA and he flat out willed himself to stay in front of his opponents the last 25 laps of that race. There were some heavy hitters trying to pass him, too. Tracy Hines and Bryan Clauson just to name a couple. Keith Kunz said in a Sprint Car & Midget Magazine interview that Larson was the best he's ever had, in his cars anyway, and only a flaming fool would dispute what that guy says under any circumstances.

I also watched Larson and Bryan Clauson in the Ted Horn Memorial USAC Silver Crown race at Du Quoin put on a show on the mile that still will raise goose bumps just at the thought of it. They were interlocking wheels getting into turn 1 almost every lap for about 30 miles or more. To this day it's the single most impressive performance I have ever seen involving Silver Crown cars and we've seen a lot of 100 milers over the years.

The term midget is not politically correct.

Oh, I see!! Midgets=offensive to little people. Got it. However, I don't believe the little folks are offended by the use of the term midgets as it pertains to race cars but if you feel as if you're making comedic points then please, carry on.

Have you come up with that driver who's resume' is more impressive than Larson's over the past decade?

Hurry, the interest and tension is building!! Hehehehe!

[oldfart50]

I am glad he is so good on dirt. He will have something to return too in the next few years. He is an also ran in NASCAR so its good he will have a future.

[CIRF]

Come up with a name yet? Hehehehe!

[kidrock]

I don't know Kid, from my perspective Stan Fox and Rich Vogler might have been as good or better but it's really hard to compare in an objective way. I will say this, Larson is as thoughtful in the heat of the moment as anyone I've ever seen. We watched him win the Turkey Night Grand Prix out at Perris, CA and he flat out willed himself to stay in front of his opponents the last 25 laps of that race. There were some heavy hitters trying to pass him, too. Tracy Hines and Bryan Clauson just to name a couple. Keith Kunz said in a Sprint Car & Midget Magazine interview that Larson was the best he's ever had, in his cars anyway, and only a flaming fool would dispute what that guy says under any circumstances.

I also watched Larson and Bryan Clauson in the Ted Horn Memorial USAC Silver Crown race at Du Quoin put on a show on the mile that still will raise goose bumps just at the thought of it. They were interlocking wheels getting into turn 1 almost every lap for about 30 miles or more. To this day it's the single most impressive performance I have ever seen involving Silver Crown cars and we've seen a lot of 100 milers over the years.

Oh, I see!! Midgets=offensive to little people. Got it. However, I don't believe the little folks are offended by the use of the term midgets as it pertains to race cars but if you feel as if you're making comedic points then please, carry on.

Have you come up with that driver who's resume' is more impressive than Larson's over the past decade?

Hurry, the interest and tension is building!! Hehehehe!

Well I never had the pleasure to see Stan Fox or Rich Volger so, I can't make the comparison.

[CIRF]

Well I never had the pleasure to see Stan Fox or Rich Volger so, I can't make the comparison.

If you never watched Fox, Vogler, Sleepy Tripp or Jeff Gordon drive a midget then Larson is probably the best you've ever seen. A case could be made for any one of those 4 guys to be ranked ahead of Kyle Larson.

And you hit the nail on the head when you mentioned not having the pleasure of seeing those aforementioned drivers. All of those guys were definitely a pleasure to watch. Although, no more so than Larson.

[Dante Toledo, OH]

I think the best dirt racer in the last 10 years is Donny Schatz. But I like Larson a lot. He is really good.

[CIRF]

I think the best dirt racer in the last 10 years is Donny Schatz. But I like Larson a lot. He is really good.

You'll get no argument from me on that, Dante. I don't know much about Schatz due to the fact that we don't follow winged sprint car racing all that much, although I probably should. What is undeniable is that Schatz wins, and wins A LOT! Wins the big races, too.

The only advantage I'd give to Larson is that he won the big races regularly driving 4 or 5 different types of racecars. Midgets, wingless and winged sprints and USAC Silver Crown cars on all size dirt tracks from the smallest 1/5 mile to the big ol' 1 mile dirt tracks of Springfield, Du Quoin, The Indy Mile and everything in between.

[Dante Toledo, OH]

I am with you on that. I have a lot of respect for the guys that can get in anything, anywhere and run up front.

[DoubleZero]

Larson was Tony Stewart's choice to be his NASCAR replacement, but the legalities did not work out.

[CIRF]

Larson was Tony Stewart's choice to be his NASCAR replacement, but the legalities did not work out.

DZ, we've read that story many times. It seems I read that Ganassi got Kyle's name on the dotted line before anyone else, namely Stewart, could get to him. I have no proof that is how it came down but that's how the story goes.

I see where Rico Abreu signed a driver development deal with Ganassi, as well. That really surprised me since Rico and Stewart appear to be very close. Of course Rico and Kyle Larson are very close friends and Kyle may have had a hand in Rico signing with Ganassi. Again, I've got no proof, just a hunch.

[Late_Model_Mark]

Somehow the author of this post forgot to mention Ron Shuman. I attended every single Turkey night from 1966 until I moved out of California. The Turkey nights at Ascot were the best. The key to the authors post was in the last 10 years, very important fact. Overall my choices would be Vogler, Shuman, and Hewitt. Kyle Larson is one bad hombre.




Late Model Mark
Talladega Short Track Announcer