Athletes in every sport have the chance to practice their craft and prepare themselves for the big stage. But for the drivers in the NASCAR Cup Series, that’s a privilege out of their reach. The practice time ahead of races has been systematically reduced over recent years, and seldom do drivers get to test their cars out on the race track. How do they balance this lack?
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The 2025 Cup Series champion and Hendrick Motorsports star driver, Kyle Larson, was presented with this question during a recent interview.
He replied, “Yeah, it’s definitely interesting in NASCAR. Everybody probably has their own way of doing it. For me, that’s why I race in the offseason. I love to race, but I also use it as a kind of a tool to stay sharp, and you get less cobwebs when you get to the Clash.”
Larson has never not raced in the offseason. So, he isn’t entirely sure if not racing would negatively impact his season. Either way, he has gotten used to a good habit and is not willing to let go of it. The majority of the Cup Series weekends today feature 20 minutes or less of practice time. This has been done to cut costs for the teams and prevent unwanted accidents ahead of races.
But there have been claims that reducing the practice time has actually increased or kept the running costs the same because now, teams and drivers rely on simulators to get their practice ahead of races. The cost for simulators is not an easy penny, and also, by not letting drivers practice on the track enough, NASCAR increases the risk of accidents during the race.
Larson’s plans for the offseason
The No. 5 driver has already begun racing again, a mere number of days after winning the 2025 Cup Series championship. Talking about his plans for the rest of the offseason, he revealed how he will soon be traveling to Australia and more.
He said, “Hopefully, if the weather breaks, we’ll get to race midgets this weekend at Placerville, and then I’ll be back in a couple of weeks for a Turkey night in Ventura. Then I go to Australia for a weekend over New Year’s and then the [Tulsa] shootout.” While he is unsure about whether he would race in the shootout, he hopes to be back in time to support his children.
The offseason will roll by pretty quickly with all the racing he does. It is through such a hardcore work ethic does he improves his race craft and is known as the best race car driver of the current generation.
