Elk Grove Native Kyle Larson Suspended Indefinitely By NASCAR After Using Racial Slur During Virtual Race
HUNTERSVILLE, N.C. (CBS13) — Elk Grove native and NASCAR star Kyle Larson has been suspended after he was heard using a racial slur on a Twitch live stream.
The incident happened during an iRacing event Sunday night.
Larson had apparently lost communication on his headset and was doing a microphone check when he used the N-word.
Another driver who was participating in the race immediately responded, saying "Kyle, you're talking to everyone, bud." Video of the incident has been posted online.
On Monday, NASCAR announced that Larson had been suspended indefinitely.
"NASCAR has made diversity and inclusion a priority and will not tolerate the type of language used by Kyle Larson during Sunday's iRacing event," NASCAR wrote in a statement.
Larson's team, Chip Ganassi Racing, followed suit and said he had been suspended without pay.
After the suspension was announced, Larson tweeted a video apologizing for using the slur.
— Kyle Larson (@KyleLarsonRacin) April 13, 2020
"Last night I made a mistake and said the word that should never, ever be said. There's no excuse for that. I wasn't raised that way," Larson said.
The 27-year-old driver has six career Cup victories in his seven full seasons with NASCAR.
An Elk Grove native and Pleasant Grove High School graduate, Larson was the first person given the Key to the City back in 2014.