Street racer Chris "Block" Gordon, who starred in the Discovery Channel television series Street Outlaws: Fastest in America, has died in a crash at an Ohio racetrack. He was 55.
Gordon was competing at KD Motorsports Park on August 22 when the accident occurred. The Scioto County Sheriff's Office told CBS affiliate WOWK that Gordon was transported to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Gordon made his reality television debut in 2020 on Fastest in America, a spinoff of the Street Outlaws franchise. The series featured eight regional teams competing in the largest street race in the United States. He led Team South Carolina to victory on the program, which earned him the nickname "South Carolina Street King."
Tragic track incident
KD Motorsports Park confirmed the death in a statement published to Facebook on August 23. The track described the incident as a devastating accident and called Gordon a great friend and an absolute legend of the sport.
"As most of you know by now, we had a devastating accident last night at the track involving our great friend and fellow racer, Chris 'Block' Gordon...he was lost as a result of this terrible incident," the venue statement read.
The racetrack stated that its staff responded immediately alongside trained medical staff, firefighters and emergency medical technicians. Highly medically trained bystanders also helped, and the track said they exhausted all of their efforts at the time of the accident.
Family and friends mourn
Race organizers asked the public to keep speculation and uninformed opinions to a minimum as they process the tragedy. The organizers requested that people keep Gordon's wife and family in their thoughts and prayers.
"RIP 'Race in Peace' my friend," the track statement concluded, "you will be missed by so many."
Before his death, Gordon had posted a flyer for the event on his own Facebook page. He wrote in the caption: "It's race day at the Hill. Drivers meeting @ 6:15. Let's get busy."
Amanda Laport Grasty, Gordon's fiancée, published a tribute to her late partner on August 24. She asked for patience as she tries to process his death, writing that she does not know how to navigate life without her best friend.
"I don't know what to say, I don't know what to think, I don't know what to feel, I don't know what to do.... I AM SHATTERED!!!!" Grasty wrote on Facebook.
She asked her followers to pray that she would be able to make the best decisions and function following the loss, adding that the couple did everything together from morning to night.
"We were a TEAM and now I've lost my MVP," Grasty wrote. "There is no 'I' in 'team' so now I don't know how 'I' am supposed to move continue."
