NASCAR driver Kyle Larson was likely going to feel the wrath of the racial slur that he used on a livestream during a virtual race Sunday and it came fast and quick.
Chip Ganassi Racing has suspended him without pay as a result.
“We are extremely disappointed by what Kyle said last night during an iRacing Event. The words that he chose to use are offensive and unacceptable. As of this moment we are suspending Kyle without pay while we work through this situation with all appropriate parties,” Ganassi Racing said in a statement.
On Sunday, Larson thought he lost communication with his spotter on his headset, so during a check of his microphone, Larson said, “You can’t hear me?” That was followed by the N-word.
“NASCAR is aware of insensitive language used by a driver during an iRacing event on Sunday, and is currently gathering more information,” NASCAR said.
The comment was immediately met with shock from other drivers.
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Anthony Alfredo: “Kyle, you’re talking to everyone, bud.”
Aaron MacEachern: “Yup, we heard that.”
Conor Daly: “Yikes!”
Justin Botelho: “Oh, damn! He did not just say that.”
Larson is half-Japanese, who climbed from short-track racing into NASCAR through its “Drive for Diversity” program. He is the only driver of Japanese descent to win a major NASCAR race.
The 27-year-old had no immediate comment Monday.
