Injured NASCAR star Stewart Friesen “inspired” after attending the race

Stewart Friesen is back in the news after Motorsport shared a post on X about his recovery and his goal to return to NASCAR. The post included a direct quote from Friesen.

In his comments, Friesen spoke about the slow process of recovery. After weeks in bed, he lost weight and strength, but has now started moving with crutches. He said:

"It’s been a slow road. I have lost a lot of weight this last month and a half laying in bed so it feels good to start crutching around a little bit these last couple of days and to get back to the race track.” Stewart Friesen to Motorsport.com

Stewart Friesen has not been able to race for months, but his team is still active in the Truck Series playoffs. Kaden Honeycutt has taken over the No. 52 truck that Friesen co-owns with Chris Larsen.

The decision meant Friesen gave up his own playoff spot, but he explained that this was the best move. If he had stayed listed as the driver, NASCAR would have fined the team for missing playoff obligations. That would have hurt their effort to compete for the owner’s championship.

As per the extended article by Motorsports.com, despite the injuries, Friesen made it clear he does not plan to retire. He said returning to the track reminded him of why he loves racing, and he praised his wife Jessica for stepping up to handle team responsibilities while also taking care of him. Looking ahead, Friesen wants to be ready for the 2026 Truck Series opener at Daytona.

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Stewart Friesen’s crash and injuries

On July 28, Stewart Friesen was involved in a serious crash during the Super DIRTcar Series King of the North event at Autodrome Drummond in Quebec. On lap 16, while trying to move past Steve Bernard, he hit the outside wall, and his car flipped several times. While flipping, Alex Yankowski and Justin Stone struck the car before it came to rest on fire.

Jessica Friesen released a statement the next day explaining the extent of the injuries. Stewart Friesen suffered multiple pelvic fractures and a broken right leg. The pelvic fractures were severe and unstable, requiring immediate surgery.

At the track, safety crews stopped the race right away. Because of his injuries, getting Friesen out of the car was challenging. It took about 30 minutes before he was removed and taken to a local hospital. He was later transferred to a larger facility for surgery. Friesen stayed in contact with the safety crew the entire time despite being in pain.

The crash forced Friesen to miss the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series playoffs, even though he had already secured his place by winning at Michigan International Speedway earlier in the summer. The No. 52 team, however, stayed in the owner’s championship with Honeycutt as the driver.

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Edited by Samya Majumdar