NASCAR

Scary moment for NASCAR driver Bubba Wallace -- who PASSED OUT during a post-race interview Sunday ... and the whole thing went down on live TV.

... but good news, he's OKAY!!

Wallace had just completed the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway -- where the temperature was above 85 all day long with high humidity.

When reporter Jamie Little began asking Bubba about the race -- he finished 21st -- Wallace began to nod off in a scary way. It was obvious something was wrong.

A crew member immediately called for the medical crew -- and Little says, "He's not okay" ... before the broadcast cut away from the shot.

Wallace was taken to the infield care center for treatment -- and at one point, he was seen laying down on a stretcher.

The good news ... Wallace has recovered and late Sunday night, he issued a statement on Twitter.

"Got sent to the Gulag ... Won that ... Where we dropping. Aka I’m good."

So, what happened?

Earlier in the broadcast ... Wallace had said he felt "lightheaded" -- insisting he had "sat down and got up too fast."

Wallace -- the only black driver who competes in the NASCAR Cup Series -- made headlines before the race by wearing an "I Can't Breathe" shirt, a show of support to George Floyd.

NASCAR President Steve Phelps also spoke about racial issues -- after all 40 drivers had pulled over and turned off their engines during warm-up laps, Phelps delivering a message over their radio sets.

"Our country is in pain and people are justifiably angry, demanding to be heard," Phelps said.

Thousands of people packed into Ace Speedway in North Carolina Saturday ... and it's a vision of coronavirus.

Check out the pics ... most people aren't wearing masks as they squeezed in like sardines to watch the race.

Around 4,000 fans paid $15 a pop in rural Alamance County. Only around 1 in 10 folks were wearing masks.

There were hand sanitizer stations available, but it doesn't seem many of the fans were into it as they watched the races and hit up the concession stands.

North Carolina's Governor has partially opened the state, but the point is to practice social distancing and wear protective masks when out in public ... that message was lost here.   This is the first big sporting event in the state since March.

Fired NASCAR driver Kyle Larson is returning to the racetrack in a World of Outlaws event on Friday ... 3 weeks after getting the boot for saying the n-word.

27-year-old Larson was kicked off the Chip Ganassi Racing team and lost a bunch of sponsors -- including McDonald's and Credit One Bank -- after using the racial slur during an iRacing event last month.

NASCAR suspended Larson and required him to take sensitivity training before returning to competition ... and in the meantime, he's getting his fix by racing in the W.O.O. event at Knoxville Raceway in Iowa.

According to Racer reporter Kelly Crandall, Larson DID complete a sensitivity course to be able to compete in the dirt track race ... which will also feature ex-NASCAR driver Kasey Kahne.

FYI, World of Outlaws is NOT affiliated with NASCAR.

Larson has apologized for using the word .. saying, "I made a mistake and said the word that should never ever be said and there's no excuse for that."

"I wasn't raised that way and it's just an awful thing to say. I feel very sorry for my family, my friends, my partners, the NASCAR community and especially the African-American community."

Larsen is half-Japanese and has talked about how the NASCAR Driver for Diversity program helped him get to the big show.

DRIVERS, START YOUR ENGINES!!! ... Maybe.

The governor of North Carolina says he's working like crazy with NASCAR and health officials to keep the Coca-Cola 600 Memorial Weekend race on schedule as planned next month ... but without fans in the stands.

Gov. Roy Cooper announced the plan to keep the May 24 race as scheduled ... saying the state has been in contact with NASCAR and the Charlotte Motor Speedway to come up with the safest possible social distancing protocol.

"We believe that unless health conditions go down, we believe we can hold the Coca-Cola 600," Cooper said on Tuesday ... adding NASCAR will make a statement on the decision later this week.

The state of North Carolina has extended the stay-at-home order through May 8 ... but Cooper deemed pro race team shops "essential businesses" to allow them to prepare for the future.

"I'm mad, I'm pissed off. But, they're just kids."

That's Denny Hamlin trying to keep his composure after his adorable 7-year-old daughter accidentally SHUT OFF HIS SCREEN DURING A VIRTUAL RACE!!!

The video is HILARIOUS (unless you're Denny) -- showing the 39-year-old driving competition in an iRacing Pro Invitational Series event on Sunday ... when all of the sudden, his daughter, Taylor, enters the room mid-race!

Taylor clearly doesn't understand that daddy is in the middle of a very important race -- and starts asking him if she can play with the go-karts.

She also happens to be holding the remote control to the screen Denny is using to race ... and accidentally HIT THE POWER BUTTON!

Once the screen goes black, Denny is eliminated -- which made him finish LAST in a 39 car race at the virtual track at Talladega Superspeedway.

You can hear Denny say, "My screen just went black" ... as Taylor sheepishly says, "Uh-oh."

"That was unfortunate," Hamlin said after the incident ... "That's just something you don't hear every day, folks."

Bubba Wallace -- NASCAR's only top-level African-American driver -- says he spoke to Kyle Larson about his N-word incident ... and has accepted his apology.

26-year-old Wallace says Larson called him on the phone 5 minutes after using the slur Sunday night during an iRacing event that was publicly streamed on Twitch.

After ignoring multiple calls, Wallace says he finally accepted a FaceTime from Larson the following day, so they could speak "face to face."

"We had a good conversation, his apology was sincere. His emotions and pride were shattered."

Wallace says, "We discussed why he chose to use that language and I shared my thoughts. I told him, it was too easy for him to use the word and he has to do better and get it out of his vocabulary."

"There is no place for that word in this world. I am not mad at him, and I believe that he, along with most people, deserve second chances, and deserve space to improve."

"I do wish him and his family nothing but the best. And, I am more than willing to work with him to address diversity and inclusion in our sport."

Wallace also explained why the word is so damn offensive -- and has no place in any part of society ... especially NASCAR.

"It’s NOT just a word. There is a ton of negative meaning behind the word. Doesn’t matter if a person uses it in an offensive way or not. The word brings many terrible memories for people and families and brings them back to a time that WE as a community and human race have tried our hardest to get away from."

"The sport has made combatting this stereotype one of their top priorities. NASCAR has been doing what it can to get away from the ‘racist and redneck sport’ labels. Diversity and inclusion is a main priority for the sport across every team, every car, every crew member and employee. With that said, it hurts to see the African-American community immediately throw NASCAR under the bus with the ‘I’m not shocked it’s NASCAR.’"

He added, "NASCAR has been, and will be way better than how we’ve been represented in the last couple of weeks. As the person that arguably has the biggest voice on this topic in our sport, it’s tough for me to speak to because I didn’t imagine us being here."

For his part, Larson issued a public video apology -- but it didn't save his job or sponsors.

NY Mets ace Marcus Stroman is FURIOUS with NASCAR driver Kyle Larson for saying the n-word ... saying he should never race again and deserves to have his ass kicked.

Of course, the 27-year-old dropped an n-bomb during a virtual race on Easter Sunday ... apparently not realizing his audio was streaming out to thousands of people on Twitch.

Larson -- who later apologized for the slur -- was suspended by NASCAR, lost sponsorships, and was booted from his team.

Enter, Stroman -- whose parents are black and Puerto Rican. He's so pissed off about the incident, Stro wants to throw down with Larson in the Octagon.

"He should never be allowed to race again in @NASCAR," Stroman tweeted.

"Said that derogatory word so nonchalantly. Your apology doesn’t matter."

"Post-career...I’ll fight this man in a @ufc event for charity. He needs his ass beat. Would love to hear him say that word in the octagon."

Other athletes also went after Larson for his slur ... including Reggie Bush, who tweeted "apologize deez nuts."

"We not buying it and wear that racist badge with honor don’t hide we need to see who you really are!"

The fallout continues ...

NASCAR star Kyle Larson has been fired by his team, Chip Ganassi Racing, after using the n-word during an iRacing event.

"After much consideration, Chip Ganassi Racing has determined that it will end its relationship with driver Kyle Larson," the team said.

"As we said before, the comments that Kyle made were both offensive and unacceptable especially given the values of our organization."

The statement continued, "As we continued to evaluate the situation with all the relevant parties, it became obvious that this was the only appropriate course of action to take."

The 27-year-old dropped an n-bomb during a virtual race on Easter Sunday ... apparently not realizing his audio was streaming out to thousands of people on Twitch.

After crashing during Lap 6, Larson apparently had a difficult time communicating with other drivers and said -- "You can't hear me? Hey, n*****."

Larson apologized on Monday -- but sponsors (including McDonald's and Credit One Bank) dropped him anyway.

NASCAR driver Kyle Larson has big problems -- the 27-year-old dropped an n-bomb during a virtual race on Easter Sunday ... with the hard R and all.

Larson -- who drives the #42 car during the NASCAR Cup Series -- was competing in an iRacing event, streamed live to thousands of people on Twitch.

After crashing during Lap 6, Larson apparently had a difficult time communicating with other drivers and that's when things got bad.

"You can't hear me? Hey, n****," Larson said casually.

WHAT?!?!

The comment was immediately met with shock from other drivers, who commented (vocally) on the live stream,

Anthony Alfredo: “Kyle, you’re talking to everyone, bud.”

Aaron MacEachern: “Yup, we heard that.”

Conor Daly: “Yikes!”

Justin Botelho: “Oh, damn! He did not just say that.”

Yeah, BAD.

By the way, Larson is half Japanese and has talked about how the NASCAR "Driver for Diversity" program helped him get to the big show.

He is the only active NASCAR driver of Japanese descent.

FYI, the race itself was called Monza Madness -- at the famous Autodromo Nazionale Monza in Italy -- and featured top drivers from NASCAR, IndyCar, NHRA and the eSports world.

Great news from Ryan Newman ... the NASCAR star who's recovering after an insane crash last month tells TMZ Sports he's back to driving, and has even hit a racing simulator!!

The 42-year-old miraculously survived a wild wreck at the Daytona 500 on Feb. 17 ... and when we got him out in NYC on Wednesday, he said things are starting to get back to normal.

Newman says he's feeling good ... and even got in a laugh with our photog about the coronavirus!

Ryan also tells us he's had ZERO thoughts about retiring from the sport in wake of the accident ... and says he's been cleared to get behind the wheel of his daily driver.

As for a return to the NASCAR wheel ... he says he has no timetable for that yet, but he did tell us he's already been in a race simulator to prepare for his comeback.

By the way, Newman says his outlook on life has changed a bit since he was hospitalized ... telling us, "I'm a little bit more appreciative."

Ryan Newman made his return to a NASCAR track Friday for the 1st time since his wreck at the Daytona 500 ... and he told reporters "it's a miracle" he's still breathing.

"It's great to be alive," the 42-year-old said. "After looking at my car, it's a miracle."

As we previously reported ... Newman flipped his car multiple times during the last lap of the NASCAR's biggest race on Feb. 17 ... and he was rushed to the hospital for emergency care.

Miraculously, he was able to WALK OUT of the hospital just two days later ... diagnosed with a head injury, but no broken bones or internal organ damage.

In his return to the track Friday at Phoenix Raceway in Arizona ... Newman was in good spirits, and said he felt healthy.

"I feel fine," Newman said ... "I feel fine. Do I look okay?!"

Ryan says he has no timetable to return to the driver's seat on the NASCAR circuit ... and added he was going to use his time away from racing to learn whatever he can from watching.

Ex-NASCAR CEO Brian France says the parody Twitter account "Drunken Brian France" is NOT funny ... and now, he's suing over it.

In the lawsuit, obtained by TMZ Sports, France says back in Feb. 2014 ... John Steele created the account, @drunkbrianf -- and has been tweeting about the famous NASCAR exec. ever since.

Some of the tweets from the account -- which has more than 18,000 followers -- included ribbing France over his drunk driving case, other jokes about the 57-year-old's lifestyle and general NASCAR talk.

But, in the suit, France claims Steele has taken it too damn far ... and now, he wants the guy to pay up.

France says Steele has harassed, demeaned and abused him from the handle ... and even says it misleads people to believe the account is actually run by France himself.

In fact, in the suit, France says one of the top results when you google his name shows the @drunkbrianf account.

France is suing for invasion of privacy and emotional distress ... and he's asking for damages.

Ryan Newman provided a detailed update on his recovery following the horrific crash at the Daytona 500 ... revealing he suffered a head injury, but says he WILL return to the track.

Remember, the 42-year-old's car flipped several times and caught fire during the final lap of the Feb. 17 race ... and was rushed to the hospital for immediate care.

Miraculously, Newman was able to WALK out of the hospital on Wednesday ... just 2 days after the wreck.

Now, the Roush Fenway driver is giving a status report via his team's president, Steve Newmark ... saying he's nursing a head injury, but thankfully avoided internal organ damage or broken bones.

"I'm sorry that I can’t be at the track in person, but I asked Steve to take a moment to express my sincere appreciation and gratitude for all the support that was shown last week to both me and my family," Newman said in the statement.

"The outpouring of emotion from not only the NASCAR community, but across the country has been truly humbling."

Newman thanks the entire racing world for the support ... saying the calls and visits "has been truly uplifting."

“Most importantly, I have to thank the guys back at the Roush Fenway Racing shop that built me a car not only fast enough to lead the final seconds of the Daytona 500, but strong enough to do its job under great distress, allowing me to survive such an accident."

Newman says his team will have the #6 car waiting for him when he's back to 100% ... and he fully intends to get behind the wheel again.

NASCAR driver Ryan Newman is in a Florida hospital after his car wrecked in a super-scary crash on the final lap of the Daytona 500 ... and video from the crash is INSANE.

As you can see ... Newman's car flips several times as it hurtles through the air, eventually catching fire, spinning onto the infield and crossing the finish line on its roof. Somewhat surprisingly, no other drivers were injured in the crash.

Newman was rushed to a local hospital ... but his current condition remains unclear.

It's pretty crazy ... Ryan was trying to hold on to the lead when his car was nudged by Ryan Blaney and hit the wall on the final lap of the weather-delayed race

Denny Hamlin ended up winning the first race of the NASCAR season, while Newman was credited with a fourth-place finish.

Denny Hamlin tells TMZ Sports the only reason he celebrated his Daytona 500 victory on Monday night is because he had no idea Ryan Newman was badly injured in a crash.

As Hamlin took the checkered flag, 42-year-old Newman had to be rescued from his car following a terrifying crash during the final lap.

Newman's car not only flipped on it's top -- but it was rammed by another car and exploded into flames on the track.

While emergency responders rushed to help Newman, Hamlin was doing victory donuts on the track as confetti fell from the sky -- shocking concerned viewers, who felt the celebration was incredibly insensitive.

But now 39-year-old Hamlin is explaining the situation ... claiming he simply had no idea Newman was battling serious injuries.

"We didn't know until we got into victory lane," Hamlin told us on the way out of the Sirius XM building in New York ... "So, it's unfortunate circumstances, but certainly thinking about Ryan."

We asked if he had spoken with Newman since the crash -- "No, I haven't spoken to him, but obviously they updated last night."

President Trump is pretty stoked to be at the Daytona 500 --  so much so, in fact, he might even get behind the wheel himself and zoom off into the night. Settle down, Donnie.

45's down in Florida right now taking in the annual NASCAR race with the First Lady, Melania, and while talking to a FOX Sports reporter, he made it clear he wants to drive again. It's funny and actually kinda interesting ... DT can't really do that anymore, huh?

In a somewhat rambling response, Trump calls Daytona "the great American race," going on to say he stopped by because he sees it as "almost a patriotism kind of thing." Well said!

Trump also gave a shout-out to the drivers, saying it takes great courage to drive in such a beast of a vehicle. Sounds like he wants to take one for a spin, actually -- joking he might hop in one himself and "get in this race." He won't, obviously, but imagine if he did 😅.

Another humorous moment during POTUS's Daytona day out -- he made sure to point out where exactly God is to the people listening to his opening remarks to kick off the event.