Stephen A. Smith has been criticized by a NASCAR star after the ESPN host controversially said drivers are not athletes.
Ryan Preece, who suffered a shocking crash at Daytona in 2023, fired back at Smith in the wake of his comments during his SiriusXM radio show this week.
During a debate on whether LeBron James is one of the greatest athletes ever in terms of his career longevity, a caller put forward legendary race car driver Richard Petty.
‘Come on, man. That don’t count. You driving a car!’ Smith fired back in response.
‘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. A golfer is not an athlete. A NASCAR driver is not an athlete.’
Stephen A. Smith has been blasted by an ex-NASCAR star after he said drivers aren’t athletes
Ryan Preece suffered a shocking crash at Daytona in 2023 and questioned Smith’s logic
Those comments angered Preece, who barrel-rolled 10 times down the backstretch at Daytona in 2023.
‘I’d love for him to go tumbling 13 times, have black eyes, and show up next week doing what you gotta do,’ he said of Smith.
‘I think your definition of an athlete certainly varies from person to person.’
Preece has endured two sickening crashes at Daytona but managed to emerge unscathed after both, despite a stay in hospital after the first in 2023.
It’s not the first controversial thing Smith has done this week, either. On Friday he left his ESPN co-host stunned when he told a female colleague he was ‘turned on’ by her French accent.
During ‘First Take’, former WNBA star and ESPN basketball analyst Chiney Ogwumike was discussing the Minnesota Timberwolves’ playoff victory over the Denver Nuggets.
In her analysis, she spoke a little French as a tribute to the Timberwolves’ Rudy Gobert after he impressed in their 113-96 win on Thursday night.
Preece barrel-rolled 10 times down the backstretch at Dayton in 2023 in a terrifying collision
Once she was finished singing Gobert’s praises, Smith addressed her French accent and made a bizarre comment that stunned his co-host Shae Cornette, who was left covering her face in disbelief.
Smith said: ‘I gotta get a little personal for a second here. I’m living a good life, I’m pretty damn happy to say the least, but I must admit, in all my years on this Earth, I’ve never dated a woman from France or anything like that.
‘But after hearing Chiney, I was like, what have I been missing? That verbiage right there, that kinda turned me on.’
While initially taken aback, Ogwumike took Smith’s comments pretty well and brushed them off with a laugh.
