Stephen A. Smith set off a fresh round of debate on his Mad Dog Sports Radio show on SiriusXM after saying golfers and NASCAR drivers are not athletes, even as callers pushed back with names like Richard Petty. Smith leaned into the argument for much of his two-hour show after first discussing LeBron James as one of the greatest athletes ever in terms of longevity.
One caller suggested Richard Petty, and Smith used the moment to double down. “A golfer is not an athlete,” he said. “NASCAR is a sport, are they athletes to 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?” He also said, “Come on, man. That don’t count. You driving a car!”
Smith made clear he was not dismissing either sport. He said pro golfers are elite at what they do, and that some golfers can be athletes, though not because of their golf abilities. He also said, “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.”
The exchange fits into a long-running sports argument over whether elite golfers and NASCAR drivers belong in the same athletic category as players in faster-contact sports. Smith also referenced Tiger Woods during the discussion, adding another layer to a conversation that has followed both sports for years.
What made this latest take land was the way Smith kept returning to it, hour after hour, rather than moving on once the phone lines lit up. For listeners, the discussion was not just about LeBron James, Richard Petty or Tiger Woods. It became a test of where people draw the line between skill, endurance and athleticism, and Smith was not budging.