-
AFP
—
1/7
On Easter Sunday, like many racers in the Corona crisis, Kyle Larson drives a virtual race.
—-
AFP
—
2/7
In training, he loses the sound connection to his spotter. In the live stream you could hear him then asking: “Hey nigger, can you hear me?”
—-
keystone-sda.ch
—
3/7
The team owner Chip Ganassi has suspended his driver for an indefinite period.
—-
keystone-sda.ch
—
7/7
The Californian’s motorsport future is uncertain given what is happening.
—-
—-
On Easter Sunday, like many racers in the Corona crisis, Nascar driver Kyle Larson is driving a virtual race. In training, he loses the sound connection to his spotter. In the live stream you could hear him then asking: “Hey nigger, can you hear me?”
–
And it was precisely this statement that triggered a real shitstorm in social media. It doesn’t take long for the Nascar Cup series and his Chip-Ganassi-Racing team to speak up. They are not at all impressed by the choice of words and initially suspend the driver indefinitely.
–
Sorry by video
A short time later, the 27-year-old racing driver logs in via video message on Twitter and apologizes to the Nascar Cup series, his team and the fans for his careless choice of words. He had used a word that he should never have said.
–
But his insight no longer seems to bring him anything. His Ganassi Chevrolet team – with whom he has been involved since 2014 – is now even kicking him out with immediate effect! “After much deliberation, Chip-Ganassi-Racing decided that the connection with driver Kyle Larson will be ended,” is the team’s statement. It goes on to say, “As we have emphasized, the comments Kyle made were both offensive and unacceptable, especially given the values of our organization. While we continued to evaluate the situation with all relevant parties, it became clear that this would be the only appropriate course of action. »
–
Sponsors distance themselves
And as if that wasn’t enough punishment, its main sponsors – including Chevrolet and McDonald’s – are now jumping out and terminating current contracts. However, the large companies make it clear that they only distance themselves from the driver, but not necessarily from his former Ganassi team. Furthermore, the racing driver may no longer take part in e-sports events organized by iRacing.
–
The future is uncertain
So far, he has competed in 223 Nascar Cup Series races and has taken six wins. It is still unclear what the Californian’s entire history will have on his motorsport future. It is difficult to remain in the Nascar Cup series after being thrown out by Chevrolet. Before the verbal slip he was also a possible candidate in the Ford camp. How the other teams will react to the events remains open. (sst)
—
Related
