Stephen A. Smith delivered another one of his patented hot takes this week. He said that NASCAR drivers and professional golfers should not be considered athletes while discussing sports longevity on his SiriusXM show.
The comment surfaced after a caller brought up NASCAR legend Richard Petty in a debate about the greatest athletes ever in terms of lasting power.
Smith shut that idea down in a hurry. The famous television personality is one of the loudest voices in sports media, especially in the NASCAR world.
His remarks also touched two sports whose competitors would say, with good reason, that stamina, strength, coordination, and mental toughness are not optional.
1. What Was Said?
Smith made the comments while reacting to Petty’s name being suggested during a conversation about all-time greatness and longevity. Smith did not really ease into the take. He went straight for the windshield. “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,” Smith said.
He made a similar case about golf, saying that walking 18 holes over four days does not make someone an athlete. “Just because you gotta walk the course for 18 holes for four days, that doesn’t make you an athlete.” In typical Smith fashion, the delivery was not exactly wrapped in bubble wrap. He also pushed the point further, essentially saying that if a grandparent can do the basic version of the activity, he is not putting it in the same category as sports that demand what he views as more obvious physical exertion.
The Petty reference added an extra layer to the debate. Petty is one of the biggest names in NASCAR history, a seven-time Cup Series champion whose career stretched across more than 40 years. Even people who do not follow NASCAR closely know Petty as a giant of the sport.
Smith, however, was not buying the idea that Petty belonged in a discussion of the greatest endurance athletes and staying power. That is really where the conversation split. One side is about longevity. The other is whether Smith is using too narrow a definition of ‘athlete’ in the first place.
2. Smith Did Leave Himself Some Wiggle Room
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To be fair, Smith did not completely dismiss the physical preparation of golfers and NASCAR drivers. The 58-year-old acknowledged that athletes in those sports can be in outstanding physical condition. He even made an exception of sorts for Tiger Woods, pointing to Woods’ build and overall athleticism rather than just his golf swing. That is a very Smith move, by the way. Slam the door, then leave a window cracked open just enough to say, “See? I was being nuanced.”
He also called golfers and drivers “skilled players” and “elite at what they do.” So this was not Smith arguing that either sport is easy. His point was narrower, even if it came wrapped in a flamethrower. He sees elite skill and athleticism as related, but not identical. That distinction will make sense to some people. It will sound ridiculous to others. Which, coincidentally, is often where Smith does his best business. Here is where the backlash writes itself.
NASCAR drivers deal with punishing cockpit temperatures, sustained G-forces, reaction-time demands, and races that can last for hours. These are not casual Sunday drives with the windows down and a coffee in the cup holder. Drivers train their neck, core, endurance, and reflexes because they have to. If they do not, the car and the race will expose them quickly.
Golf has also evolved far beyond the old stereotype of a guy strolling fairways and tapping in putts. Modern pro golfers train for flexibility, rotational power, balance, recovery, and endurance. The top players look more like year-round performance athletes than weekend hobbyists. The sport still demands precision over brute force, but that does not make the physical demands any less real. So while Smith’s line drew attention, it also ignored a fair amount of what these sports actually require in 2026.
3. Smith Knows Exactly What He’s Doing
It is also worth noting that this is not the first time Smith has wandered into NASCAR territory and left some sparks behind.
One report noted that he has weighed in on the sport before, in his usual punchy style. That history matters because it shows this was not some accidental slip. Smith knows the audience, knows the pressure points, and knows how to frame a sports argument so it travels fast.
That does not automatically make them wrong. But it does mean the performance element cannot be ignored.
Smith is a commentator who understands the value of a clean, sharp opinion in a crowded media space. He throws the fastball high and lets everyone else decide whether to swing.