NASCAR driver who used racial slur during virtual race suspended

A NASCAR driver who used a racial slur during a live stream over the weekend has been suspended.

Kyle Larson on Sunday participated in a virtual race in the simulation game iRacing and at one point used the N-word after asking, "You can't hear me?" On Monday, Chip Ganassi Racing announced his suspension, The Associated Press reports.

"We are extremely disappointed by what Kyle said last night during an iRacing Event," Chip Ganassi Racing said. "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."

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NASCAR in a statement also said it has "made diversity and inclusion a priority and will not tolerate the type of language used by Kyle Larson during Sunday's iRacing event."

After Larson was heard using the racial slur during the stream, another driver noted, "Kyle, you're talking to everyone, bud."

Amid the coronavirus crisis, NASCAR has started holding virtual races via iRacing with drivers competing from home, though The Washington Post reports the Sunday event streamed on Twitch was for fun and not an official race. Larson's suspension, AP notes, comes just a week after another driver, Bubba Wallace, lost a sponsor after angrily quitting a virtual race.