NASCAR star Kyle Larson suspended indefinitely for using the N-word during virtual race on Sunday, leaving his fellow drivers stunned

NASCAR star Kyle Larson was suspended indefinitely by the stock car circuit and without pay by Chip Ganassi Racing on Monday for using a racial slur on a live stream during a virtual race.

With all NASCAR events suspended amid the ongoing pandemic, Larson was competing in an iRacing event Sunday night when he appeared to lose communication on his headset with his spotter. During a check of his microphone, he said, 'You can't hear me?' That was followed by the N-word.

'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,' read a statement from Chip Ganassi Racing. 'As of this moment we are suspending Kyle without pay while we work through this situation with all appropriate parties.'

Larson has since apologized on social media.  'Last night I made a mistake and said the word that should never ever be said and there's no excuse for that,' he said.

The 27-year-old Larson was speaking with other drivers on an open line that was being broadcast on Twitch, which live streams video game competitions among other things.

The Twitch display shows viewers which driver is speaking at any given time. And although Larson appeared to think he was having communication issues, the audience could hear him clearly and see his name on the screen when he uttered the racial slur.

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