Recently on-air personality Stephen A. Smith made some very disparaging remarks aimed at golfers and auto sports drivers saying that they weren’t athletes – “Come on, man. That don’t count. You driving a car! I’m being honest, it’s a great sport. But come on, bro. Getting behind the wheel of a car is not the same.”

Smith added, “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.”

As far as NASCAR is concerned, it’s an old argument.  But that didn’t keep drivers from striking back at Smith.

NASCAR Cup Series champion Kurt Busch fired back with not just a comment but a sincere challenge for Smith saying, “let’s go cupcake.  I will personally drive you around a NASCAR track for 30 minutes or when you pass out on lap 30.”

For the casual fan who does little more than watch the cars go in circles each week, may be inclined to agree with Smith; but both are overlooking some very important points….
drivers wear fire retardant undergarments plus a full fire suit, head sock, closed face helmet, and gloves.  Inside the car a driver has no exposed skin in case of a fire.

Frequently the temperatures inside the cockpit of the cars exceeds 100 degrees; especially in summer when they can reach 130 to 140 degrees.

On the high banked tracks the drivers experience G-forces of three and four G’s in the corners.

Races often last three and a half to four hours where a high degree of concentration and focus is required.  While drivers spend days before a race hydrating themselves for race day, dehydration is always an issue during the hotter temperatures.

In recent years NASCAR drivers have worked hard to become fit to endure the extremes their bodies go through; so much so, that some of them have run marathons and participated in tri-athlons.

Kurt Busch wasn’t the only driver to respond to Smith’s off kilter comments…

Front Row Motorsports responded with, “Stephen A., what’s going on, my man?  We heard that ABSOLUTELY PREPOSTEROUS take of yours claiming NASCAR drivers aren’t athletes, and quite frankly, we were stunned. Stunned!”

Adding, “the ball is in your court.”

“So here’s what we’re gonna do; we’re inviting you to step out of that studio, come down here, and hop in for a ride-along with one of our three Cup Series drivers. Then you can tell the world how ‘not athletic’ it feels going 180 miles per hour, pulling G-forces, and fighting that wheel for three straight hours. We’ll be waiting.”

No response from Smith yet.  The question is, will he own up and accept the challenge or cower in his air conditioned studio???