Fired

NASCAR driver Kyle Larson will have a NEW team when he returns to the track in 2021 -- signing with Hendrick Motorsports, 6 months after his infamous n-word incident.

The 28-year-old driver had been fired by his old team, Chip Ganassi Racing, after he hurled the n-word during a virtual race back in April ... and many wondered if he would ever race again.

But, Hendrick Motorsports announced Wednesday they've signed Larson to a multi-year contract to drive the #5 car in 2021.

As we previously reported, NASCAR had initially suspended Larson for the incident -- but later announced he was reinstated and eligible to race again beginning on Jan. 1, 2021.

"Hendrick Motorsports is a championship organization that has set a high bar for performance and for how its drivers represent the team and its partners,” Larson said in a statement.

"My goal is to win races, be a great teammate, continue my personal efforts to grow, and hold myself to that high standard personally and professionally."

Larson says he knows there is a high bar for him to be successful both on and off the track. He also says team owner Rick Hendrick was one of the few people who stood by him in the aftermath of the racial incident.

"Mr. Hendrick is one of the people who extended a hand to me over the past 6 months. Our initial conversations were not about racing. He cares about me as a person and wants to see me succeed beyond driving."

"I can’t put into words how grateful I am for the commitment, the faith and the confidence from him and everyone at Hendrick Motorsports."

For his part, Rick Hendrick says Kyle is "unquestionably one of the most talented race car drivers in the world."

"More importantly, I have full confidence that he understands our expectations and will be a tremendous ambassador for our team, our partners and NASCAR."

Miami Dolphins QB Ryan Fitzpatrick was CRUSHED to hear he'd been benched in favor of Tua Tagovailoa ... telling reporters Wednesday, "My heart just hurt all day."

Fitzmagic had the 'Fins rolling the past few weeks ... dude was 3-1 in his last 4 starts with 10 total TDs -- but the team decided to hand the keys over to Tua this week regardless.

And, when 37-year-old Fitzpatrick was asked how he felt about the decision ... he couldn't hide his pain.

"It was heartbreaking for me," Ryan said, before admitting he knew this day was coming eventually after the team had drafted Tagovailoa in the 1st-round last April.

"It still, just, it broke my heart yesterday," Fitzpatrick said, "and it's a tough thing for me to hear and to now have to deal with but I'm going to do my best with it."

Ryan learned of the decision Tuesday ... and he said having to head into meetings Wednesday was tough as hell for him.

In fact, Fitzpatrick straight-up said it felt like he had been fired by head coach Brian Flores.

"I basically got fired yesterday and today my day consisted of zoom meetings with the guy that fired me and sitting in a room with the guy who replaced me for four hours."

Fitzpatrick added, "I felt like it was my team."

The Dolphins are on a bye this week ... and have said Tua will take over the starting QB reins in Week 8 against the Rams.

The man in the LA Kings' "Bailey" mascot costume has just been CANNED ... after the team investigated sexual harassment claims made by a female employee.

We broke the story ... a woman using the pseudonym "Jane Doe" filed a lawsuit back in August claiming Tim Smith -- who has regularly played the role of Bailey at public events for years -- was repeatedly inappropriate toward her.

In her lawsuit, the woman accused Smith of making sexually-charged comments, jokes and leering at "her breasts and buttocks." She claims she was fired after complaining to management.

After Doe filed her suit, the organization suspended Smith -- who worked for the Kings since 2007. The team also launched an investigation into the allegations.

Now, the Kings have announced they're parting ways with Smith --  saying on Friday, "Today, the LA Kings terminated the employment of Tim Smith."

"We are not in a position to provide further details or comments on this matter due to pending litigation."

A pro cyclist has been booted off his racing team indefinitely ... and the squad's honchos say it's all because the dude got into an aggressive Twitter exchange over opinions on Donald Trump.

Here's the deal ... 19-year-old Quinn Simmons -- a rising star in cycling -- commented on a Dutch journalist's social media post Wednesday, showing his support for POTUS.

In the original post (which has since been deleted) ... the journalist wrote, "If you follow me and support Trump, you can go. There is zero excuse to follow or vote for the vile, horrible man.”

Simmons responded by writing, "Bye" with an emoji of a dark-skinned hand waving. The cyclist later told a commenter "That's right" after the person had called him a "Trumper."

Turns out, Simmons' racing team -- Trek-Segafredo -- didn't like the exchange one bit ... and hit him with an indefinite ban.

But, the team says the punishment was NOT for Simmons' pro-Trump political views ... but rather, they say they just didn't like the way he went about expressing them.

"He was suspended for engaging in conversation on Twitter in a way that we felt was conduct unbefitting a Trek athlete," the team said in a statement.

Added the team's manager, Luca Guercilena ... "We hold all Trek staff and management to a high ethical standard and our athletes are no exception."

For his part, Simmons released a statement on it all ... writing, "As an American rider, I have always been proud to represent my country. Riding for an American team has been a lifelong dream. A big reason I chose this team was because of the American values behind it."

Simmons continued, "To those who found the color of the emoji racist, I can promise that I did not mean for it to be interpreted that way. I would like to apologize to everyone who found this offensive as I strongly stand against racism in any form."

Soccer star Mason Greenwood has issued an apology for the "embarrassment" he caused after getting busted sneaking women into England's team hotel in Iceland.

18-year-old Greenwood -- along with England teammate Phil Foden -- were cut from the England national team Monday after officials say they broke COVID-19 quarantine protocol to meet up with the women at the team hotel.

At least one of the women is an Icelandic model and beauty queen, according to the Daily Mail.

The players were specifically told not to leave a certain part of the hotel that was sectioned off for the team -- but they decided to venture outside of that zone to meet up with the ladies.

Bad news for the players ... they got caught -- and were immediately dropped by the team.

Greenwood -- a striker for Manchester United -- issued an apology Tuesday morning.

"Having now had the chance to reflect on what’s happened, I can only apologise to everyone for the embarrassment I have caused," Greenwood said.

"It was irresponsible of me to break the COVID-19 protocols which are in place to protect players, staff and the public."

"Playing for England was one of the proudest moments in my life and I only have myself to blame for this huge mistake."

"I promise my family, the fans, Manchester United and England that this is a lesson I will learn from."

Foden has also apologized -- saying, "I breached COVID-19 protocols put in place to protect myself and my England colleagues. As a consequence I will now miss the opportunity to travel to Denmark with the squad, and that hurts."

Recently fired Washington Capitals head coach Todd Reirden wasted NO time getting the hell outta town ... listing his D.C. mansion for $2.25 million.

Of course, Reirden was the Caps' head coach from 2018 to 2020 ... and was canned after Washington lost in the first round of the playoffs for 2 consecutive seasons.

Now that Reirden has a new gig as an assistant with the Pittsburgh Penguins, the coach is parting ways with his 6-bed, 8-bath, 6,352-square-foot Virginia pad.

The crib comes with an industrial chef kitchen, rec room, home theater, exercise/game room, and a walk-in wine cellar.

The owner's suite comes with all the bells and whistles ... including walk-in closets, gas fireplace and surround sound speaker system.

The outdoor area is decked out with a heated pool, kitchen and bar, cabana house and a playground that looks like any kid's dream come true.

The house was listed by Jordan Stuart of Keller Williams Capital Properties for $2.25 million just days ago.

And, if ya can't make it in person ... check out the virtual tour.

Ya knew this was coming ...

The Charlotte Hornets have officially cut ties with play-by-play guy John Focke ... after the broadcaster says he "mistyped" when tweeting out the N-word last month.

Remember, Focke was tweeting about the Utah vs. Denver playoff series and went to comment on the teams ... only he didn't say "Nuggets."

"Shot making in this Jazz-(n-word) game is awesome!" Focke posted in the since-deleted tweet. "Murray and Mitchell going back and forth what a game!"

Focke quickly apologized, saying, "I don’t know how I mistyped, I had (and have) no intention of ever using that word."

The Hornets have concluded their investigation into the incident ... and have decided to part ways with the first-year broadcaster.

"The Charlotte Hornets announced today that John Focke will not return as the team's radio broadcaster due to a violation of the organization's social media policy," the team said Friday.

An up-and-down road in Jacksonville has finally come to an end for Leonard Fournette ... the Jaguars star running back was just released Monday, the team announced.

The former LSU superstar -- the 4th overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft -- was able to post solid numbers when he was in the Jags' lineup ... but injuries and off-field drama constantly plagued him.

The 25-year-old was only able to start 36 of a possible 48 games in 3 seasons ... and he consistently found himself butting heads with the team and former exec Tom Coughlin.

Remember, Fournette was ejected for fighting with Bills players during a game in 2018 ... and was later suspended by the league over it -- hurting the hell out of the Jags' chances to make back-to-back playoff runs.

Later that season, Fournette was made inactive for the team's final game of the season ... and was ripped by Coughlin for his "disrespectful" and "selfish" body language on the sidelines.

Fournette was also reportedly repeatedly fined and admonished for being late to or skipping team events ... and even famously threatened to beat a heckler's ass during a Jags-Titans game in 2018 as well.

Fournette was also arrested in 2019 over an unpaid speeding ticket ... and wasn't shy about voicing his concerns over Jaguars personnel decisions over the past year too.

Jags head coach Doug Marrone spoke about the move Monday morning -- say the team tried like hell to trade Fournette, but "there wasn't anything there."

He added cutting Fournette was "what's best for our team."

After his cut Monday, Leonard can now be claimed off waivers by any team ... but if he clears there, he's free to choose to sign with any of the 31 other teams in the league as a free agent.

In his career, Fournette has rushed for 2,631 yards and 17 TDs on 666 carries.

Ex-Seattle DB Kemah Siverand says he's sorry for sneaking a woman into the Seahawks' hotel earlier this month ... saying straight-up his actions were "absolutely inexcusable."

Kemah was fired by Pete Carroll 2 weeks ago after Seahawks officials caught him dressing up a female companion in player gear in an effort to get her past security and into his room.

The 23-year-old says after stewing over it all the past 14-or-so days ... he's realized the whole operation was a boneheaded idea -- and called the entire thing a "lapse in judgment."

"I violated team rules," Siverand says, "which would be unacceptable in normal times, but absolutely inexcusable now during a pandemic."

Siverand says he's apologized to Seahawks officials vehemently ... with ESPN reporting he even personally handwrote a sorry note to the team.

Siverand was an undrafted free agent cornerback who had a small chance of making Seattle's roster ... and now has an even smaller chance of catching on again in the NFL.

But, Kemah says he's learned from the incident ... and is vowing to do everything he can to sign with another team.

Tony Stewart says it's time for NASCAR to welcome back Kyle Larson after it fired him over his use of the n-word ... saying this week, "he served his penalty long enough."

"NASCAR has gotta get off their ass and do the right thing and give this kid an opportunity to get back in a car," the racing legend said in an interview with CBS Sports.

"I think he's paid his penalty and he's served the penalty long enough where you know we've had similar instances in the sport that have happened and the penalties didn't last as near as long as this has lasted with Kyle."

As we previously reported, 27-year-old Larson dropped an n-bomb during a virtual race back in April ... clearly not realizing his audio was streaming out to people watching along on Twitch.

After crashing during a lap, Larson apparently had a difficult time communicating on his headset and radioed out, "You can't hear me? Hey, n*****."

Larson vehemently apologized afterward -- but NASCAR and several of Larson's biggest sponsors (including McDonald's and Credit One Bank) dropped him HARD.

Stewart says the cancellation of the guy has gone on long enough ... and he's urging the sport to bring Larson back ASAP.

"It's changed Kyle's world, it turned everything upside down and not only did it affect him, it affected his family and a lot of other people that didn't deserve to be affected," Stewart said.

"So I think it's been long enough. I think it's time for NASCAR to get off their ass and to do the right thing and allow him to come back to the series now."

For his part, Larson said in an interview with the Associated Press this week he's grown tremendously since the incident ... adding, "I was just ignorant. And immature."

The Tennessee cop who threatened a man who was shooting video of a police stop and then ripped the guy's face mask off has been fired.

Trooper Harvey Briggs got his walking papers Friday ... terminated for unprofessional conduct. He had been placed on leave 2 days earlier, after video surfaced of the confrontation.

Briggs, a 22-year veteran of the Tennessee Highway Patrol, went on a power trip, threatening Andrew Golden, approaching him and then ripping his mask off in a fit of anger, before walking off. Briggs seemed to be triggered after Golden used a swear word ... and that's not a reason to threaten to arrest someone or rip their mask off.

The Seattle Seahawks ain't playin' around about COVID-19 precautions ... they just cut a rookie, reportedly all 'cause the guy tried to sneak a woman into the team's hotel.

Here's the deal ... NFL Network's Tom Pelissero says Kemah Siverand attempted to dress up a female companion like a Seahawks player in an attempt to get her past security and into his room.

The problem? Pelissero says Siverand's plan was all caught on camera ... and with Pete Carroll implementing a bubble-like atmosphere for the 'Hawks -- that's a big no-no.

Pelissero says the Seahawks busted the hell out of Siverand's little operation -- and fired him for putting the team at risk of a coronavirus outbreak.

Pelissero adds the cut was meant to send a message to both Siverand and Seattle's entire roster ... saying, "Put the team at risk, suffer the consequences."

Of course, the decision to fire Siverand was a pretty easy one ... the cornerback was an undrafted free agent who had little chance of making the roster anyway.

Texas Tech's women's basketball head coach, Marlene Stollings, was fired Thursday ... after multiple former players claimed she created a toxic culture and was straight-up "evil and manipulative."

More than 10 ex-Red Raiders made the allegations in a USA TODAY report this week ... with some saying Stollings was so abusive, they described some of her acts as "torture."

Several of the women claim Stollings (who took the head coaching job in 2018) and her staff berated them constantly, calling players things like "trash," "disgusting" and "fat pig."

Other former players say Stollings forced them to play through injuries ... and even developed a heart rate monitoring system for games in which players were punished if they dipped below a certain level for just a few minutes.

Things were allegedly so bad, 12 of 21 players had left the program over the past 2 years -- including 7 recruited under Stollings.

One ex-Red Raider, Emma Merriweather, says during a meeting with Stollings' strength and conditioning coach ... she was forced to step on a scale and then berated over her weight.

"I was just so embarrassed," Merriweather said of the incident. "I think that might have been the most embarrassing moment of my life."

Merriweather claims she went on to have a panic attack later in the day over it all.

"A lot of these girls had never experienced depression or extreme anxiety before they came to Tech and they experienced it with Marlene,” Merriweather said. “Coach Marlene was evil and manipulative and vindictive in a quiet watered-down manner, so you can’t outwardly say, 'This person is evil.'"

"That woman is a millionaire off being evil."

Other players say Stollings' strength and conditioning coach made sexual comments toward them ... and one former Red Raider accused the man of touching her inappropriately under the guise of a recovery exercise.

Earlier this week, Stollings had released a statement defending her team's culture, saying, "Our administration and my staff believe in the way we are building and turning this program around here. Our student athletes are developing a disciplined approach both on and off the court."

Initially, school athletic director Kirby Hocutt defended Stollings' program as well ... but in a statement Thursday night, he said he was firing the 45-year-old coach, and promised to reveal more details in a news conference Friday.

Nick Cannon is at his wit's end over his anti-Semitic comments and his apology for them -- he clearly feels he's in a no-win situation, and now some fans are concerned about his well being.

"The Masked Singer" host let his frustrations out Thursday night, saying ... "I hurt an entire community and it pained me to my core, I thought it couldn’t get any worse. Then I watched my own community turn on me and call me a sell-out for apologizing."

He added ... "Goodnight. Enjoy Earth."

An hour later, he followed that up, tweeting ... "Y'all can have this planet. I'm out!"

As you know ... Nick came under fire for pushing anti-Jewish rhetoric on his "Cannon's Class" podcast, which resulted in ViacomCBS dropping him. Instead of apologizing, he initially stuck to his guns and was defiant.

But he changed his tune after a discussion with Rabbi Abraham Cooper, and posted a lengthy apology for his "hurtful and divisive words."

Nick's frustration is clear from his Thursday night tweets -- after initially getting backlash for the anti-Semitic remarks, he's now getting backlash for apologizing. It's interesting ... you could read the apology backlash as a reflection of just how much anti-Semitism there is out there.

Some fans online took Nick's tweets as a sign he might harm himself.

Nick Cannon says his eyes have been opened to the horribly anti-Semitic things he said, and he's offering an apology -- one that might have saved his 'Masked Singer' gig.

24 hours after Viacom cut all ties with Nick for anti-Semitic remarks he made on his podcast, he says, "First and foremost I extend my deepest and most sincere apologies to my Jewish sisters and brothers for the hurtful and divisive words that came out of my mouth during my interview with Richard Griffin."

He continued, "They reinforced the worst stereotypes of a proud and magnificent people and I feel ashamed of the uninformed and naive place that these words came from."

If you missed it, Nick defended Griffin -- aka Professor Griff, ex-Public Enemy member -- over comments he made in the late '80s about Jews spreading wickedness around the world.

On the podcast, Nick supported Griffin ... saying he couldn't be anti-Semitic because black people are the real Semites. He also said Griffin was speaking the truth, and repeated long-held -- going back to Hitler -- stereotypes about Jews controlling banks and much of the world's wealth.

While he got tons of backlash online -- in addition to the Viacom axing -- Nick says several rabbis, including Rabbi Abraham Cooper from the Simon Wiesenthal Center, have also tried to educate him. As he put it on social media ... "I have had at least a minor history lesson over the past few days and to say that it is eye-opening would be a vast understatement."

Late Wednesday, FOX -- home of "The Masked Singer" -- said it had been in talks with Nick regarding the podcast and felt he was "clear and remorseful that his words were wrong and lacked both understanding and context, and inadvertently promoted hate." The network said, based on that convo, it would move forward with him.

Cannon also vowed he is now committed to strengthening the bond between black and Jewish cultures going forward. He says he's also taken down the Professor Griff episode of his podcast.

It's interesting ... Viacom said Nick was unwilling to apologize when they contacted him about his podcast comments and, in fact, said that was a big part of why they were cutting ties.

It's unclear, at this point, if his mea culpa will change anything for Viacom. Nick had demanded the company give him ownership of his show, 'Wild 'N Out.'

Nick Cannon's firing back at ViacomCBS after it dropped him for making anti-Semitic comments -- and he's now claiming it's the media giant that's being divisive, not him ... and he has a list of demands.

"The Masked Singer" host responded to Viacom's decision Wednesday morning, saying, he's "deeply saddened" the company "misused an important moment for us to all grow closer together and learn more about one another" and, instead ... he claims it's trying to "make an example of an outspoken black man."

Cannon vows to not be bullied or silenced, and says Viacom "does not understand or respect the power of the black community."

As we reported, Viacom cut bait with Nick over his comments on his podcast "Cannon's Class" ... where he openly espoused Anti-Jewish, and clearly divisive, rhetoric from Minister Farrakhan. He got a ton of backlash online, and then Viacom dropped the hammer, but Nick alleges the pot's calling the kettle black.

Cannon says ... "I honestly can’t believe that Viacom has such poor council that would allow them to make such a divisive decision in the midst of protests and civil uprising within our current pandemic. Truly an unwise decision."

He goes on to say he hoped his comments could lead to reconciliation and he could "use this moment to show healing and acceptance" ... but claims Viacom has no interest. He also accuses the media giant of banning all advertising that supported George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.

Nick acknowledges he's had an incredibly successful past with Viacom -- including his Nickelodeon days and the creation of 'Wild 'N Out,' but says the company is "now on the wrong side of history."

He did apologize "if I have furthered the hate speech" ... but also makes it clear he's gonna fight for "full ownership of my billion-dollar 'Wild ‘N Out' brand that I created, and they will continue to misuse and destroy without my leadership! I demand that the hate and back door bullying cease and while we are at it, now that the truth is out, I demand the Apology!"