ROCKLIN, Calif. – Robert Ballou, the 2015 USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car Series champion, continues to recover from an arm injury suffered last year that will force him to miss the season-opening races this week at Florida’s Bubba Raceway Park.

Ballou suffered the injury during a crash on June 23, 2019, seconds after winning the Bob Darland Memorial at Kokomo (Ind.) Speedway and has been sidelined since. He has undergone multiple surgeries.

“I am bummed not to be kicking my season off this weekend, but this injury was a lot more severe than we thought initially,” Ballou said. “The good news is things are going really well, and there seems to be some light at the end of the tunnel. I just hate it for my friends and partners that I am still sidelined.”

Undergoing his final surgery on Jan. 9 to remove some hardware from earlier surgeries, Ballou has been working to rehab and regain strength. He admits it has been a long process.

“My medical team has been great, and they continue to tell me things are going the right direction,” he added. “I definitely feel the strength coming back and to me that is a huge win.”

Ballou estimates he’ll be back in action by the end of March.

“I am excited to finally get back in the seat of my car and have some really cool things set for this season that I will release very soon,” Ballou said. “I want to thank everyone for the continued support as I continue to rehab.”