Kyle Larson
FILE - In this Feb. 15, 2019, file photo, Kyle Larson gets into his car during Daytona 500 auto race practice at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla. Reinstated last week by NASCAR, Larson on Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2020, signed a multi-year contract with Hendrick Motorsports to drive the No. 5 Chevrolet next season. Hendrick has sold no sponsorship as of yet for Larson and only needed the blessing of Chevrolet, one of the partners that originally dropped Larson for using the n-word, to finalize the deal. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara, File)
Rick Hendrick eyeing balanced, stronger 2021 NASCAR season

By Jenna Fryer Oct. 29, 2020 03:02 PM EDT

FILE - In this Feb, 8, 2020, file photo, Kyle Larson climbs into his car as he gets ready for a NASCAR auto race practice at Daytona International Speedway, in Daytona Beach, Fla. Larson will be back in NASCAR next season driving the flagship No. 5 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports. Larson signed a multi-year contract Wednesday morning, Oct. 28, 2020, with Hendrick that ended his seven-month banishment from NASCAR for using a racial slur while playing an online racing game. (AP Photo/Terry Renna, File)
Hendrick hires banished Kyle Larson to drive flagship No. 5

By Jenna Fryer Oct. 28, 2020 11:46 AM EDT

Chip Ganassi speaks about driver Jimmie Johnson joining his IndyCar team for next season at a press conference during the IndyCar race weekend Saturday, Oct. 24, 2020, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (AP Photo/Mike Carlson)
Column: Chip Ganassi celebrates 30 years of winning

By Jenna Fryer Oct. 26, 2020 03:45 PM EDT

FILE - In this Sunday, Feb. 16, 2020, file photo, Kyle Larson greets fans before the NASCAR Daytona 500 auto race at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla. Larson has been working behind the scenes to educate himself on racial issues since his firing from NASCAR for using a racial slur. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara, File)
Kyle Larson reinstated to compete in NASCAR in 2021

By Jenna Fryer Oct. 19, 2020 04:47 PM EDT

Alex Bowman, left, Chase Elliott, center, and Denny Hamlin listen to the national anthem before the NASCAR Cup Series auto race Saturday, Sept. 19, 2020, in Bristol, Tenn. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
Alex Bowman shuffled to the No. 48 to replace Jimmie Johnson

By Jenna Fryer Oct. 06, 2020 03:46 PM EDT

FILE - In this Feb. 9, 2020, file photo, Erik Jones celebrates in Victory Lane after winning the NASCAR Busch Clash auto race at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla. The pandemic only accelerated the inevitable: The driver market bubble, pushed to its limit with multi-million dollar salaries for nearly two decades, is about to burst. A major reset has arrived and team owners have all the power. They can pick and choose between drivers who bring sponsorship dollars (Bubba Wallace) or drivers who have won races (Erik Jones). (AP Photo/John Raoux, FIlre)
NASCAR Cup Series at Daytona

Sep. 21, 2020 09:35 PM EDT

Alex Bowman, left, Chase Elliott, center, and Denny Hamlin listen to the national anthem before the NASCAR Cup Series auto race Saturday, Sept. 19, 2020, in Bristol, Tenn. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
Column: NASCAR's dizzying silly season will change landscape

By Jenna Fryer Sep. 21, 2020 09:34 PM EDT

FILE - In this Feb. 14, 2020, file photo, Kyle Larson gets ready to climb into his car to practice for the NASCAR Daytona 500 auto race at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla. He was supposed to be the top free agent this year but was banished to sprint cars after his firing five months ago. Larson is awaiting the appropriate time to apply for reinstatement to NASCAR and if sponsors agree to forgive him, he should get a job. (AP Photo/Terry Renna, File)
NASCAR Cup Series at Daytona

Sep. 21, 2020 02:13 PM EDT

Ross Chastain is introduced to the crowd before the NASCAR Xfinity Series auto race Friday, Sept. 18, 2020, in Bristol, Tenn. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
Chastain snags Ganassi Cup ride in busy NASCAR free agency

By Jenna Fryer Sep. 21, 2020 08:26 AM EDT

FILE - Daniel Suarez talks to the media before practice for a NASCAR Cup Series auto race on Friday, Nov. 15, 2019, at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Homestead, Fla. Suarez, who landed his ride two weeks before the season-opening Daytona 500, will not return to Gaunt Brothers Racing next season. The team said Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2020, it was a mutual decision for the Mexican driver to leave the team. (AP Photo/Terry Renna, File)
Suarez on the move again after parting with Gaunt Brothers

By Jenna Fryer Sep. 15, 2020 10:25 AM EDT

FILE - In this Nov. 10, 2019, file photo, Joey Logano is shown prior to the NASCAR Cup Series auto race at ISM Raceway in Avondale, Ariz. Logano was sitting in his motorhome watching television when a shell-shocked Erik Jones was interviewed about his firing from Joe Gibbs Racing. Logano knew exactly how Jones felt. Logano had been in that exact spot eight years earlier. (AP Photo/Ralph Freso, File)
Jones gets advice on life after Joe Gibbs Racing from Logano

By Jenna Fryer Aug. 27, 2020 01:55 PM EDT

AUTO RACING: Auto Racing Glance

By The Associated Press Aug. 19, 2020 05:52 PM EDT
All Times Eastern NASCAR CUP SERIES Drydene 311 Site: Dover, Delaware ...

FILE - In this Oct. 18, 2019, file photo, Kyle Larson sits in his car before the final practice for a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Kan. Kyle Larson has been working behind the scenes to educate himself on racial issues since his firing from NASCAR for using a slur. (AP Photo/Colin E. Braley, File)
NASCAR's Kyle Larson to AP on slur: 'I was just ignorant'

By Jenna Fryer Aug. 19, 2020 05:23 PM EDT

FILE - In this Sunday, Feb. 16, 2020, file photo, Kyle Larson greets fans before the NASCAR Daytona 500 auto race at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla. Larson has been working behind the scenes to educate himself on racial issues since his firing from NASCAR for using a racial slur. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara, File)
NASCAR's Kyle Larson to AP on slur: 'I was just ignorant'

By Jenna Fryer Aug. 19, 2020 05:03 PM EDT

In this July 7, 2020 photo provided by NASCAR, Rajah Caruth competes in the Summer Shootout at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C. The sport has renewed optimism that its diversity program can field a bumper crop of promising prospects. Caruth might the one who can help lead the way. (NASCAR photo via (AP)
NASCAR banks on minority drivers to broaden sport's exposure

By Dan Gelston Jul. 28, 2020 02:06 AM EDT

FILE - In this June 22, 2020, file photo, team owner Richard Petty, right, stands next to driver Bubba Wallace during the national anthem prior to the start of the NASCAR Cup Series auto race at the Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega, Ala. NASCAR is ready to embrace all genders, ethnicities and backgrounds as moves ahead in its push for racial diversity. (AP Photo/John Bazemore, File)
'Yes we exist' - Black fans eye NASCAR's work to diversify

By Dan Gelston Jul. 17, 2020 02:20 AM EDT

AUTO RACING: Auto Racing Glance

By The Associated Press Jul. 14, 2020 08:14 PM EDT
All Times Eastern NASCAR CUP SERIES All-Star Race Site: Bristol, Tennessee ...

FILE - In this Feb. 16, 2020, file photo, President Donald Trump speaks before the start of the NASCAR Daytona 500 auto race at Daytona International Speedway, Sunday n Daytona Beach, Fla. NASCAR’s layered relationship with Trump took a sharp turn Monday, July 6, 2020, when Trump blasted the series for banning the Confederate flag and wrongly accused the sport’s only full-time Black driver of perpetrating “a hoax” when a crew member found a noose in the team garage stall.(AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)
Trump sideswipes NASCAR, Wallace over flag and noose

By Jill Colvin And Jenna Fryer Jul. 06, 2020 10:09 AM EDT

Kevin Harvick celebrates in the winners circle after winning the NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Pocono Raceway, Saturday, June 27, 2020, in Long Pond, Pa. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
Column: NASCAR rolls on, through crisis and controversy

By Jenna Fryer Jun. 29, 2020 02:47 PM EDT

NASCAR driver Bubba Wallace is consoled by team owner Richard Petty, right, prior to the start of the NASCAR Cup Series at the Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega, Ala., Monday, June 22, 2020. In an extraordinary act of solidarity with Wallace, NASCAR's only Black driver, dozens of drivers pushed his car to the front of the field before Monday's race. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
Column: NASCAR rallies around Wallace in poignant moment

By Jenna Fryer Jun. 23, 2020 04:43 PM EDT