Being a race car driver is arguably one of the toughest jobs out there. From the outside looking in, it feels as if all the drivers have to do is show up on Friday and race till Sunday. But this is the lifestyle the drivers wished they had, as the reality is far more demanding for them. One of the big challenges they have to navigate is travel; one week they might be on the East Coast, and the very next they could be headed West to Las Vegas or California.
Well, more ambitious drivers like Kyle Larson notch the difficulty factor even higher with international trips in the off-season. Larson has a history of travelling to Australia for sprint car events, but the High Limit Racing’s International event was a special one for him. After struggling to find his feet on the first two days, Yung Money roared back to life and claimed the big win on the final day. Not only did he break his duck in the Land Down Under, but he also took home $100,000 in winnings.
Any normal racer after winning a big event would lay back and enjoy their triumph, but Larson is just a different animal. Having won the race at Perth Motorplex, he is now making haste to reach Oklahoma for the Tulsa Shootout.
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Kyle Larson needs everything to go according to his plans
There’s a 14-hour time difference between Tulsa and Perth, and Larson will be departing at 3:10 p.m. ET on Monday. After landing in Los Angeles, the next morning he will have a window of 24 minutes to clear customs and board his next flight to Tulsa.
“I have Global Entry, so I hope I can get through customs quickly and get to a 9:34 American Airlines flight to Tulsa. I think I can make it work because those long flights usually get in a little bit early. We’ll see. If not, I have another flight that gets in time for the races. Yeah, a little bit of a tight schedule, but it will all be worth it. We won’t miss out on any racing if there are no flight delays.” Larson said this to Flo Racing.
This isn’t the first time the HMS star is against the clock to reach his racing destination. He had a similar experience while attempting “The Double” and making his Indy 500 debut. Thanks to the tormenting rains, he wasn’t able to head back to Charlotte, but that travel wasn’t hectic for the 32-year-old. “It was actually really, really easy. That was the only time of the year I was in one place for a solid week. Flying back and forth for the All-Star Race—and obviously, the 500/600 was hectic with the weather—but I’ve done that a lot with sprint cars and getting back at night for NASCAR the next day. So that was nothing new.”
The drivers and the team will be heading to Tulsa on the 30th of December, and the very next day, on the 31st, they have practice in the morning followed by events in the night. The next four days will host racing events spread across different classes. Originally, Larson had planned to celebrate the New Year in Perth, but he had plans to be with his family for his youngest son Cooper’s birthday. But as far as Larson’s plans to host a High Limit race overseas are concerned, it was indeed a huge success. And this is indeed a perfect start to kick off the ambitious 2025 run.
Kubota High Limit Racing adds more tracks and events across 20 states
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High Limit Racing isn’t the only sprint car racing series in the United States. The World of Outlaws is a historic racing series that runs parallel with High Limit. Having made the debut run in 2024 with a shorter schedule and lucrative prize purse, the series was unable to attract a lot of entries. This is why they made some changes to lure in more racers to compete in their series.
The series has planned 61 events across 36 unique racing venues. Out of these 36 tracks that have been scheduled for races, 14 of them will be hosting their first-ever High Limit Racing event. This includes Las Vegas, Bakersfield, Perris, Central Arizona, Vado, Route 66, Dodge City, Texarkana, 81, Fremont, Ransomville, 141, Red Cedar, and Florence.
When Kyle Larson and five-time World of Outlaw champion Brad Sweet started the series, they didn’t envision themselves competing against the Outlaws. This is why the HMS star is even open to merging forces with them to deliver a better racing product to the sprint car racing community.
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“I think that’s a thought probably—it’s at least a topic that we’ve talked about as something that could potentially happen down the road, and I’m sure even World Racing Group has probably had that run through their minds as well. I don’t think we’re to that point yet, but hopefully whatever happens will be for the betterment of the sport.” Larson said to Adam Stern from Sports Business Journal.
What are your thoughts about High Limit partnering with World of Outlaws? Do share your opinions or views in the comments section.