Larson Says, "I Feel Fine" After Fainting Scare

Kyle Larson met with the media today, shortly after being cleared by doctors to return to competition after a mysterious fainting spell last Saturday afternoon at Martinsville Speedway.

“I feel great right now,” said Larson, who did not compete in Sunday’s STP 500. “I felt perfectly fine shortly after I fainted. I had to get a lot of tests run on me to make sure nothing serious was wrong with me, and all the tests came back negative. The whole time I felt fine, and hated it that I couldn't race (last) weekend in the Target Chevy. But Regan (Smith) did a really good job, and I’ve just got to thank all the doctors and nurses for how thorough they were with me.

Larson recalled the circumstance surrounding his fainting spell, saying, “I felt fine before we went to the autograph session. I got to the end of it, and I was talking to just one more fan, the last person there. I just started getting light‑headed, then tried to lean forward and see if that fixed it.

“And then I passed out.”

While doctors have still not provided a definitive diagnosis, Larson said all parties agree that dehydration is the most likely culprit.

 “It was kind of a weird morning,” admitted Larson. “I was almost late to practice, so I rushed myself… and didn't take very good care of myself throughout the day. I ended up dehydrating myself. I’ve just got to do a better job of taking care of myself, and that should never happen again.”

The Chip Ganassi Racing driver admitted being nervous while undergoing an exhaustive battery of tests, adding, “Any time you're in a hospital, you get nervous. I don't know what specific things they tested me for, but I had stuff hooked up to me from my head to my toes. Probably the only test they didn't get in there was a math test.”

At the end of it all, Larson expressed confidence that with more attention to proper hydration in the future, there should be no repeat of last weekend’s situation.

“It sucks any time you can't race, but I was happy that they were taking the time to make sure there wasn't anything major wrong,” he said. “I guess if there's a race you've got to miss, Martinsville is my least favorite track. But I would have loved to have been there. We had a really good car all weekend, but in the end, Regan did a really good job for our Target team."