The effects of a topsy-turvy season can be long-lasting. A Halmar Friesen Racing driver who was enjoying a fantastic NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season until July 2025 is preparing for 2026. The four-time Truck race winner met with disaster in his dirt-racing ambitions, the ripple effect of which is not going away anytime soon. That is what the renowned racer updated recently, with the new NASCAR season only a few weeks away.
NASCAR driver is still on aid
“No, no marathons yet and no ballet in my future. But yeah, I’m good enough to do what I need to do in the race car. And I was pretty nervous about all that, but a couple of tests we’ve had went really well. It was A long time on crutches, then transitioned into a cane for a couple of weeks. But I started leaving that around the house, losing it in places. So I said, screw that. I just gotta push through it,” Stewart Friesen said in a recent interview with journalist Bob Pockrass.
Last year in July, a crash sent Stewart Friesen‘s No. 44 car flipping before catching fire in a Super DIRTcar Series race in Quebec, Canada. He got a fractured pelvis and multiple breaks in his right tibia after the Autodrome Drummond event, landing a lengthy 8-week absence. Friesen appeared multiple times since then – arriving at New Hampshire on crutches in September, and sim racing at Toyota Racing Development. Yet full recovery is still on the horizon.
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“Been in a lot of contact with my orthopedic surgeon, did an awesome job putting me back together. And then all the Bone healing went according to plan. I did have two Screws taken out around Thanksgiving time. It just a little bit slowed down the healing process,” Friesen continued.
Earlier this month, Stewart Friesen confirmed his return to the No. 52 Halmar Friesen Racing Toyota for the 2026 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season, ahead of the Daytona season opener. The 42-year-old Canadian will also be back behind the wheel of a Big Block Modified during Federated Auto Parts DIRTcar Nationals at Volusia Speedway Park, Feb. 11-14. However, Friesen has scaled down his dirt race schedule for 2026 in the interest of safety.
Despite the long recovery process, Stewart Friesen is focused on his ambitions.
A conscious effort for his targets
In 2025, Stewart Friesen qualified for the 2025 driver’s championship with a victory at Michigan. But four weeks later, his disastrous crash unfolded. Christopher Bell and Kaden Honeycutt took his wheel after that, with the latter taking the No. 52 Toyota to the Championship 4. It finished third in the 2025 owners’ points standings, Halmar Friesen Racing’s best result since going full-time in 2018. So, Friesen is focused on improving this 2025 achievement in 2026 with all the preparations.
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“We’re looking forward to real racing in February,” Friesen said. “We’ve updated some of the stuff, and kind of took some stuff that we do on the truck and applied it to the Modified. As far as my seats, just get more comfortable, not stuff needed, but what’s some stuff obviously learned going through safety stuff in NASCAR helps get modified a lot more comfy, maybe safer if something happens again.”
Clearly, the safety gears are in place, and the mindset is ready. All we need now is for Stewart Friesen to take adequate rest for full recovery before the season.
The post NASCAR Driver Admits Fitness Constraints Ahead of Daytona Return as Recovery Continues After Horrific Injury appeared first on EssentiallySports.
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