The debate has gone on for decades now: is motor racing a sport, and is it fair to classify the drivers as athletes? Well, apart from the fact that the drivers endure immense physical strain while driving for hours at a time, going through the massive G forces while wearing a thick racing suit, or the fact that they need to remain sharp and focused with their instincts, it’s quite apparent. Actually, the word ‘motorsports’ itself should clarify the issue, but it still hasn’t, at least for popular American TV personality Stephen A. Smith.

NASCAR drivers not athletes?

“Come on, man. That don’t count. You driving a car!” Stephen A. Smith sometimes finds quite a few controversial statements to say, and he repeated the same while discussing some of the top athletes in terms of longevity. When the likes of Richard Petty were mentioned, he didn’t seem too happy.

“You can be behind the wheel of a car in your 60s and 70s for crying out loud. A golfer is not an athlete. A NASCAR driver is not an athlete,” he added.

It was quite understandable when people had their doubts back in the day. There just wasn’t enough information available to the general population about just how much endurance you need while racing. However, Smith still seems to be stuck in that era.

His claims, as ridiculous as they sounded to many, were rather controversial. Drivers usually come out and speak about the physical toll they face racing inside the car. In fact, during the race at COTA this year, drivers had begun feeling physically unwell after their cooling systems failed.

In open-wheel motorsports like Formula 1, drivers also have to face massive G forces going into every single corner. This can sometimes be over 5Gs. There have been incidents when drivers have struggled to even get out of their cars after races.

Such massive endurance and physicality are what motorsports require, including NASCAR. But Stephen A. Smith, as it seemed, was too adamant with his statement, and didn’t spare golf either:

“A golfer is not an athlete,” Smith maintained. “NASCAR is a sport, are they athletes too, because they can get behind the wheel of a car and drive 100 plus miles per hour around the track 500 times, you trying to tell me they’re athletes too?… If you’re out there doing stuff that grandmas and grandpas can do, I’m not gonna look at you that way.”

At the end of the day, his words echoed across the NASCAR fandom. And they did get back at him, to say the least.

Fans slam Stephen A. Smith

“Take his sorry a** to Talladega this weekend in a full suit ride along, 15 to 20 laps. Then see what he says.” This was just one of the many solutions that the fans came up with. Although it sounds humorous, it seemed that many of them actually wanted Smith in one of the cars in the upcoming race at the Superspeedway.

Like this user wrote, replying to both of his golf and NASCAR claims: “Lets see Stevie walk 72… or stay focused in the heat of car for 200 laps…”

“Stephen A having never played any sports calling out professional athletes. Classic,” wrote another fan, alleging the lack of athletic activities Smith has done. Many echoed this sentiment, pointing out the same with twisted words.

NASCAR’s popular voice, Mike Joy, came across his comments too, wrapping his reaction in a single-worded X post: “Really ??”

A lot of fans also simply seemed a bit too agitated with simple allegations of Smith not knowing enough about the sport to comment on it, and yet he did deliver the statement. “Tell me you know NOTHING about nascar without telling me you know absolutely f–king NOTHING about nascar….he has said multiple times he knows nothing about it, but then says dumb shit like this.”

Even though a user shared their personal experience of racing, “I’ve driven race cars and I’ve run marathons. Driving was more taxing on me than running,” it seems quite apparent that Stephen A. Smith is not going to change his opinion on racing anytime soon. But the important question here is, would that matter?

At the end of the day, the drivers and the fans know just how physical the sport is. And if someone like Smith were to comment, would it make sense to try to explain the sport to them? Well, it seems that it is a choice left for the fans.