NASCAR's Kyle Larson and Jeff Gordon Challenge Stephen A. Smith's Claim Drivers Aren't Athletes

Stephen A. Smith drew backlash from NASCAR drivers after calling them non-athletes on his SiriusXM show last month.

"Come on, man. That don’t count. You driving a car!" Smith said. "I’m being honest. It’s a great sport. But come on, bro. Getting behind the wheel of a car is not the same. You can be behind the wheel of a car in your 60s and 70s for crying out loud."

Kyle Larson, the reigning NASCAR Cup Series champion, and Jeff Gordon responded to Smith's remarks. Gordon told Fox News Digital that Smith does not understand the sport or the athletic demands of motorsports.

"My first response is, do we really want to give clicks and attention to Stephen A. for, I feel like that's what he's asking for there," Gordon said. "But at the same time, clearly he doesn't know a whole lot about the sport, and he doesn't know what it takes to be an athlete in motorsports. There's no doubt about the mental fatigue it takes to be in the car for hours, the competitiveness and things that make drivers true athletes. It's just in a different sense of how a stick-and-ball sport is perceived as an athlete."

Larson challenged Smith or anyone else to try one lap in a race car without feeling like they would die. "Everybody's got a little bit different definition for what an athlete might mean to them. So his definition is different than the way I would feel about it," Larson said. "Do I get worked up about it when I hear somebody say that we're not athletes? No."

"I do," Gordon interjected.

Larson showed more understanding. He said people who question drivers' athleticism simply cannot grasp the experience of strapping into a car that goes 200 miles an hour. "If they did, I don't think they would be able to make it a lap without feeling like they're going to die," he added.

Larson described the physical toll of three-and-a-half-hour races in cars reaching 150 degrees, with heart rates around 150 for three hours and peaks of 190 for him. "I think then they would quickly realize that although you're not shooting a ball into a hoop, this is definitely a sport and definitely a tough one where you have to be an athlete — maybe more on the endurance side of things."

Gordon recently invited Jason Kelce to take a lap and drive a car on a course. "I'm pretty sure he'd have a different opinion about it," Gordon said. "Just ask him."