Connect with us

Latest

NASCAR, racing world reacts to Kyle Busch’s shocking death at 41: ‘Cannot comprehend this news’

Published

on

The NASCAR world was stunned on Thursday when Kyle Busch, one of the sport’s all-time greats, died suddenly at the age of 41.

Busch, 41, was hospitalized Thursday because of an undisclosed but “severe illness,” according to a statement put out by the Busch family. NASCAR, the Busch family and Richard Childress Racing announced the death Thursday evening, but did not offer a cause of death.

When news of Busch’s death broke, fellow NASCAR drivers mourned their lost competitor.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

One of those drivers was Ricky Stenhouse Jr., who had an infamous fistfight with Busch after a race roughly two years ago, but he put their differences aside to pay homage.

Plenty of others paid their respects.

Busch’s last Cup Series win came in June 2023. While he struggled for much of this season, Busch did start on the pole in February’s Daytona 500 and was coming off a season-best finish of eighth two weeks ago at Watkins Glen. He also just won a Truck Series race in Dover last week.

TWO-TIME NASCAR CUP SERIES CHAMPION KYLE BUSCH TRAGICALLY DIES AT 41 AFTER HOSPITALIZATION

The statement announcing Busch’s death said “the future Hall of Famer” was “a rare talent, one who comes along once in a generation. He was fierce, he was passionate, he was immensely skilled and he cared deeply about the sport and fans.”

Busch had been in the Cup Series since 2004, making 762 career starts with 63 wins. Busch won the championship in 2015 and 2019, and had 234 victories across all three NASCAR national series.

He is the all-time record-holder for wins in both the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (102) and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (69). His most recent win came last weekend at Dover, when he led 147 laps in a dominating Truck Series victory.

Busch leaves behind wife, Samantha, and two children. He is the first active NASCAR Cup Series driver to die since Dale Earnhardt died on the final lap of the 2001 Daytona 500.

OutKick’s Zach Dean contributed to this report.

Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.

Continue Reading

Latest

Reigning MVP Matthew Stafford locks in extension with Rams worth up to $60M with incentives

Published

on

There was no doubt Matthew Stafford would be returning for the 2026 season after saying so during his 2025 MVP Award acceptance speech, but the Los Angeles Rams officially reached an agreement on an extension with their starting quarterback on Thursday.

Stafford and the Rams agreed to a one-year extension, the team announced on Thursday. The extension is worth $55 million, and it can go as high as $60 million with incentives, according to ESPN.

He now has two years and up to $105 million remaining on his contract with the Rams.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

Stafford had one more year remaining on his two-year, $84 million deal he signed with Los Angeles before the 2025 season, but inking this extension shows the 38-year-old’s desire to play past this upcoming campaign.

It’s clear Stafford still has more in the tank for his career after tallying 4,707 passing yards and 46 touchdowns in his MVP season a year ago.

RAMS COACH SEAN MCVAY EXPLAINS WHY HE LOOKED UNHAPPY AFTER THE TEAM SURPRISINGLY SELECTED TY SIMPSON

This year, Stafford will turn 39 one week before Super Bowl LXI, which just so happens to be set for the Rams’ home stadium, SoFi Stadium. It’s also where Stafford helped deliver the Rams their most recent Super Bowl title during the 2021 season.

Stafford will be entering his 18th season in the NFL, his sixth with the Rams since he was traded by the Detroit Lions prior to the 2021 season.

Detroit made Stafford the No. 1 overall pick out of Georgia in 2009, and he spent 12 years with the franchise before their blockbuster trade, which involved their current starting quarterback, Jared Goff.

And while Stafford is now set through the 2027 season, the Rams clearly thought about their quarterback future this offseason, adding Alabama’s Ty Simpson with the 13th overall pick. It’s widely viewed that Simpson will learn behind Stafford, and ultimately become his successor.

Stafford’s mindset was clear for the 2026 season, telling everyone at the NFL Honors, “I’ll see you guys next year.”

But the future Hall of Famer seems to want another year added to that clock, focused on continuing his run with Rams head coach Sean McVay.

Continue Reading

Latest

Logan Paul’s WWE success as an outsider ‘messed it up’ for everyone else, Austin Theory says

Published

on

Austin Theory and Logan Paul have one of their biggest tests as world tag team champions this weekend as they defend their titles against The Street Profits at Saturday Night’s Main Event.

Theory and Paul are members of The Vision – the top faction on “Monday Night Raw” featuring the future of the WWE. Bron Breakker may be the in-ring leader of the group as he made a thunderous return to the roster at WrestleMania 42 and then defeated Seth Rollins at Backlash. Theory and Paul are the ones with the gold while Paul Heyman is the mouthpiece for the next generation of superstars.

With the tag team title around his waist, Paul has now held gold twice in WWE since making his debut with the company in 2021. Paul has the tools that any pro wrestler dreams of – the athletic prowess in the ring coupled with immense heat from the crowd along with his skills on the mic.

Theory told Fox News Digital that Paul’s rise in the WWE has made it tougher for any outsider to come in and have success, suggesting the YouTube sensation has set the bar enormously high.

LOGAN PAUL’S JAW-DROPPING SPRINGBOARD MOONSAULT WOW FANS AT WWE MONEY IN THE BANK

“I say with Logan Paul, with his athletic ability and his skills in wrestling and how he’s been able to just develop it so quick,” he said. “It’s impressive to me – somebody who’s wanted to be in WWE since I was eight, started training at 18, signed with the WWE at 22 and took that longer path. But I have to give Logan his respect. This is a dude, as a young kid, started with YouTube and streaming and pretty much – dude created YouTube. He put it on the map, his whole streaming thing.

“Kind of both of us building our dreams in different ways and kind of meeting in the middle. I just think he kinda just messed it up for everybody on the outside that wants to come into WWE and thinks like, ‘Oh wow, this is easy. Like, I can pick up a mic and talk trash and I can do these cool moves off the ropes like Logan Paul,’ but you can’t. There’s an art to it. Logan Paul is exceptional on the mic. In the ring, he does things even highflyers we have in WWE couldn’t even do. He’s just a phenomenal athlete. When it comes to me and Logan Paul, we’re freaks of nature. That’s why I say we’re gonna motivate everybody this Saturday at Saturday Night’s Main Event in Fort Wayne.”

The Vision, which also includes an injured Bronson Reed, is under the tutelage of Heyman, who has been a “wiseman” and an “advocate” for many young talents in WWE.

ZERO BS. JUST DAKICH. TAKE THE DON’T @ ME PODCAST ON THE ROAD. DOWNLOAD NOW!

Theory had the utmost confidence that Heyman was sending him and his stablemates in the right direction.

“With Paul Heyman, you know, this history with him having Brock Lesnar, having Roman Reigns, CM Punk, Seth Rollins – you know, before he realized he was a loser,” he said. “Paul Heyman, man, he’s the ‘wiseman.’ I think anything that comes out of his mouth is gold and especially kind of molding The Vision and sending us in the right direction. I couldn’t ask for more. It’s just sitting under the knowledge tree of history. He’s from back in the 80s to present day. The dude’s done it all. I’m very grateful for the wiseman, Paul Heyman.”

Montez Ford and Angelo Dawkins will challenge for the tag titles. The two returned to “Monday Night Raw” after WrestleMania 42 after a prolonged absence.

Theory gave them credit where credit is due. They are three-time WWE tag champions and won the tag titles at NXT and Evolve. However, Theory made clear that Ford and Dawkins are running into “the greatest tag team champions of the world.”

“Well, the Street Profits. They’ve been in the WWE a very long time,” he said. “Feels like too long, like 60 years. I do realize every time I have a title, they’re around, which makes sense because they’re irrelevant and I’m relevant. But not to push them too low down, they’re very athletic, they have a great resume. But it’s just that comparison to Austin Theory and Logan Paul – The Vision. The greatest tag team champions of the world, of the universe. You can’t really compare.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

“Unfortunately, yes, I said unfortunately, the show is in Fort Wayne, Indiana. I look at this match as more of a big motivational moment for those people because they’re gonna see two guys that don’t look like anybody from Fort Wayne. We look like freaking superheroes. We’re really there to inspire everybody and then after the match, get the hell out of there.”

Saturday Night’s Main Event will take place Saturday in Fort Wayne, Indiana, much to Theory’s chagrin. And, it’s a loaded card.

Aside from the tag team title match, read below for how the rest of the card looks.

Continue Reading

Latest

Generational divide overshadows policy push in NYC Mayor Mamdani’s inaugural Twitch stream

Published

on

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s attempt to connect with Gen Z voters during his first-ever Twitch stream Thursday exposed a generational divide, as the progressive leader admitted he’d never played Minecraft, struggled with internet slang and appeared unfamiliar with modern rap culture.

During the broadcast, which was also available on other social media platforms, Fox News Digital observed numerous Twitch viewers questioning why there were no moderators in the chatroom, as spam and explicit messages filled the message board.

When a commenter asked if the mayor plays the popular video game Minecraft, Mamdani admitted he had never played it and confessed, “I sound so old because, to me, Minecraft is a movie that I knew was based on a video game.”

GEN Z LOVES BOTH TRUMP AND MAMDANI FOR THE SAME REASON

The disconnect continued when he was asked to name his favorite “underground” rapper.

The mayor admitted he felt a “little bit washed” and cited early-2000s Canadian artists like k-os and K’naan, leaving his younger co-host, popular pro-Palestinian TikTok creator “Moose,” unfamiliar with the references.

Twitch has more than 240 million monthly active users, with 72% under the age of 34, according to a report from data solution company Demand Sage.

SEN SLOTKIN SAYS DEM SOCIALIST NYC CANDIDATE MAMDANI REPRESENTS ‘NEW GENERATION’ OF LEADERS YOUNG VOTERS WANT

Throughout the stream, Mamdani was heavily coached on internet culture, with Moose teaching him to address the audience as “chat” instead of “ladies and gentlemen,” explaining the slang term “bussin” [good or impressive], and prompting him to ask viewers for “W’s in the chat.”

Despite the cultural disconnect, Mamdani leaned into his core democratic socialist political agenda, touting his administration’s success in closing the $12 billion budget deficit by raising revenue through his controversial “pied-à-terre” tax on non-residents who own secondary homes worth more than $5 million.

He proposed further taxing the “hyper-wealthy” through a 2% income tax hike on New Yorkers making more than $1 million a year to help fund a $1.2 billion universal childcare initiative.

NEW YORK CITY IS ABOUT TO TEST MAMDANI’S PROGRESSIVE ECONOMIC VISION

The mayor also pushed several city initiatives, announcing a lottery that will allow New York City residents to purchase 1,000 World Cup tickets for just $50 each. He noted the discounted tickets come with free bus transit directly to the stadium, which he tied to his long-term goal of eventually making all public buses in New York City free and faster.

Mamdani went on to address recent severe flooding in the city, pointing to the “climate crisis” and highlighting a near-$300 million investment in “Cloudburst technology” to help the city’s infrastructure absorb sudden, heavy rainfall.

The livestream was marketed as a “shameless homage” to former New York City Mayor Fiorello La Guardia, who spoke to New Yorkers on a radio show called “Talk to the People.”

The Mayor’s Office later shared the recorded stream on X, with his office writing, “Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani becomes the first elected official to launch a regularly occurring, multi-platform interactive streaming series.”

Mamdani’s press office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment on the success of the livestream or future moderating details.

Continue Reading

Trending

Copyright © 2026 Political Signal