When Alex Bowman suffered a fractured vertebrae following a crash in last Tuesday's High Limit Sprint Car race at 34 Raceway, a question was raised: will Kyle Larson continue on with the heavy dose of dirt races on his schedule or will he be put on some kind of restriction?

Based upon the response of Hendrick Motorsports president Jeff Andrews during Saturday’s NASCAR media availability at Dover Motor Speedway, no changes or limitations to Larson’s busy schedule are imminent.

Larson remains a full go on this year’s High Limit Series, which resumes Wednesday at Kokomo (Ind.) Speedway, and he plans to pull double duty Thursday at Ohio’s Atomic Speedway with the All Star Circuit of Champions and Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series.

While Andrews said “we certainly don’t want to tell them no to something we feel like would help them on Sundays,” he did say the company will reevaluate their drivers’ involvement in other forms of racing here forward.

Hendrick Motorsports President Jeff Andrews says the team will evaluate the races the drivers do outside of the Cup Series but drivers can get something different out of it than in a racing simulator. pic.twitter.com/QeCzvzK4Nh

— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) April 29, 2023

“Just the racing in general, some of our guys enjoy that involvement,” Andrews said. “The hand-eye coordination and continued reps, whether that’d be in the offseason or through the regular season like this, they’ll tell you it’s something that helps them. From our perspective, we have to evaluate — we have to look at — what’s the right balance.

“As a company, we’ll continue to look at it, continue to talk to our guys, make sure that we’re making the right decisions together and that they’re in the right race cars — good race cars, safe race cars. From there, as I said before, our primary focus right now is Alex. We miss him here this weekend. We want him to get well and want him to get back here soon.”

Bowman’s injuries are slated to sideline the Tuscon, Ariz., driver the next three to four weeks. And Bowman isn’t the only Cup Series driver to recently suffer from a dirt-racing-related injury. Chase Briscoe broke a finger during April 6’s Dirt Late Model event at Volunteer Speedway in Bulls Gap, Tenn., a race promoted by Larson. Unlike Bowman, Briscoe can continue his day job as a Cup driver. Briscoe also plans to race on the dirt at some point again this year, too.

Chase Briscoe said while he won’t race outside of Cup while his broken finger heals, he does plan to do more dirt racing this year. pic.twitter.com/8oJJHNfnYp

— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) April 30, 2023

But Sprint Car racing on the whole has endured a painful spring. On April 8, Justin Owen suffered fatal injuries in USAC National Sprint Car competition at Lawrenceburg (Ind.) Speedway. Three days later, another frightful incident occurred in the High Limit opener April 11 at Lakeside Speedway in Kansas City, Kan., when Jake Neumann had to be transported to a local hospital after a nasty flip in qualifying that put the night’s program into an hour-long delay.

“Obviously, I understand the risk, as we’ve seen all sorts of drivers get injured throughout the years,” Larson said. “And I think a lot of recognition is brought to it when high-profile drivers like (when) Tony Stewart or Alex Bowman get injured. Unfortunately, guys like Bryan Clauson or Jason Leffler losing their lives. It’s just tough. It’s tough to argue it. There’s guys getting injured.”

It's a passion, a tool, a business, and a way of life.@KyleLarsonRacin explained his relentless commitment to dirt racing on the High Limit Room.

He'll be back in the Sprint Car on Tuesday at @KokomoSpeedway!

PODCAST 🎙️ https://t.co/URjJ5ZWTHM
TICKETS 🎟️ @TicketHoss App pic.twitter.com/qGr0R4zz68

— High Limit Racing (@HighLimitRacing) April 28, 2023

There’s also a reason why Larson hasn’t stepped foot in a wingless Sprint Car since 2013. He’s made it known he feels much safer in a winged Sprint Car.

On the High Limit podcast last week, Larson delivered some profound points as to why he fights for his involvement as a dirt racer.

“Number one, it’s a passion. Everything that we do outside our job in NASCAR is a passion of ours, whether it’d be skiing or snowboarding,” Larson said. “Chase unfortunately got hurt earlier this year (while snowboarding). … It’s a passion, but for me, it’s more than that.”

Kyle Larson doesn’t view the risk racing a sprint car as more than racing a stock car and indicating it is more of a risk to race at a superspeedway. pic.twitter.com/B3S3m3ZCMR

— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) April 29, 2023

“For me, on the driving part of it … I think Alex as well … I’ve read articles from (NASCAR writer) Jeff Gluck, where he’s using dirt racing as a tool to push himself into uncomfortable situations, to push himself to get better for Sundays,” Larson added. “And that’s really the main reason why I do the dirt racing. Yes, it’s a passion. But I feel the more opportunity I have to race, the more opportunity I have to get better, to hone my craft, sharpen my skills, sharpen my reaction, and ultimately benefit me for Hendrick Motorsports on Sunday. And allow us to go compete for wins, for championships.

“I think all the dirt racing I did in 2021 was a big reason I won the championship that season,” Larson added. “Potentially, could we win the championship without racing a single dirt race that year? Sure. I don’t know. I do feel like all the dirt racing I did helped me stay sharp, helped me keep that confidence throughout the year. That’s a good thing. That’s the No. 1 thing you need as a race car driver is confidence. There’s all of that.”

Larson’s brand, needless to say, is deeply rooted in dirt racing. Hypothetically putting an abrupt halt on, or applying strict limitations to, his bustling and productive schedule would not only hamper Larson’s influence, but it’ll have ramifications throughout grassroots racing.

“I think, two, it’s still a business for me,” Larson said. “I’m not racing dirt stuff for free. Like, I’m not going there racing for the purse. I’m going and making a really good living outside of my job in NASCAR, racing dirt cars … winning races, getting a cut of the winnings, selling my dirt merchandise, which does really well. So, yeah, I need to be at the track to supply for my family and supply for myself. There’s a lot that goes into it.”