Kyle Larson, well-known in the motorsports world for living on the edge in both the NASCAR Cup Series and sprint car racing, continues to make headlines with his daring driving style. Recently, concern has grown among his supporters—especially his team owner Rick Hendrick—over the succession of Kyle Larson sprint car crashes, which have become a recurring theme in his racing career and now dominate private conversations and even TikTok feeds.
Relentless Risk: Recent Dramatic Crashes and Hendrick’s Social Media Vigilance
Larson has never shied away from the risks of racing, whether maneuvering on paved superspeedways or sliding across dirt at grassroots events. His aggressive approach has led to harrowing incidents throughout his career—from somersaults at local tracks to violent NASCAR wrecks. In 2025 alone, Larson’s participation in dirt racing events added notable entries to his long crash list, and each incident caught the attention of Rick Hendrick, who continually monitors Larson’s on-track fortunes closely via social media, especially TikTok.
One such incident occurred in June at Wisconsin’s Plymouth Dirt Track, where a broken axle caused Larson’s sprint car to flip end-over-end, eventually coming to rest twisted in the catch fencing. Just months later at the Hangtown 100 in Placerville, contact with Daison Pursley sent Larson tumbling multiple times while leading the USAC Midgets race. Despite Larson quickly giving a reassuring thumbs-up after each mishap, the images proved unsettling to those who care for his safety.
Private Conversations and TikTok Clips Highlight Hendrick’s Anxiety
Larson recounted on The Driver’s Project Podcast that Rick Hendrick has become something of an anxious spectator, reviewing every one of Larson’s flips as if watching a family member in danger. Instead of simply discussing the incidents, Hendrick often forwards TikTok videos of these crashes to Larson, highlighting the risks and his own rising distress. Hendrick’s personal feed has effectively become a record of the crashes that worry him most.
“We had like a party a few days later, and I was like talking to Rick. He’s like, ‘Yeah, you crashed, ride or whatever.’ I was like, ‘Do you see Cory’s?’ ‘No, I haven’t seen Cory’s.’ I was like, ‘Well, don’t go look for it.’”
— Kyle Larson, Driver
“Good to see how safe this is not…”
— Rick Hendrick, Team Owner
On another occasion, Hendrick’s anxiety was evident when he sent Larson a video of one of his old crashes, mistakenly thinking it was recent, prompting Larson to reply,
‘Rick, That was from like six years ago.’ — Kyle Larson, Driver
Hendrick’s Protective Stance Shaped by Past Injuries
The concern Rick Hendrick displays toward Larson is rooted in difficult experiences with other drivers under his banner. In 2023, fellow Hendrick Motorsports driver Chase Elliott fractured his tibia in a snowboarding accident, forcing him to miss valuable race time. Not long after, Alex Bowman suffered a vertebra fracture from a sprint car crash in Iowa, also missing several races. These back-to-back injuries spurred Hendrick and his team into serious conversations about the risks associated with drivers’ extracurricular activities and how much they should be allowed to push personal boundaries away from NASCAR tracks.
While Hendrick has not imposed an outright ban on sprint car or extracurricular racing, he has openly signaled that there are limits to his patience and understanding. Nevertheless, Larson’s passion for dirt racing remains undiminished, as he continues to walk away from intense crashes, sometimes carrying fresh scars, but never wavering from the challenge.
What Lies Ahead for Larson, Hendrick, and the Conversation Surrounding Driver Risk
For the time being, Kyle Larson is determined to keep pursuing victories in sprint cars, despite the clear dangers involved. Meanwhile, Rick Hendrick’s steady stream of TikTok alerts and private messages signals his ongoing apprehension. With recent accidents involving Larson and even Corey Day fueling the debate, it is evident that concerns about safety and acceptable risk in motorsports are far from resolved. The next time the No. 5 driver faces a flip, he knows Rick Hendrick’s name—and potentially another TikTok video—will not be far behind.
The Driver’s Project Podcast Ep. 67 Presented by @keizerwheels
Rick Hendrick still gets nervous about @KyleLarsonRacin & @corey_day_ running sprint cars.
Full episode links 👇
YouTube: https://t.co/dzS9qzr1A0
Spotify: https://t.co/kEtXsSIoGn
Apple: https://t.co/8dJJJqSzol pic.twitter.com/vQ8Qd6naA7
— The Drivers Project (@thedriversproj) December 7, 2025
