Despite the blatant display of physical prowess that a person needs to be involved in motorsports, the contention that stock car drivers are not ‘real’ athletes continues polluting the atmosphere. NASCAR commentator Leigh Diffey harshly hit back at those carrying this opinion during a recent interview with Awful Announcing.
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He said, “I find that preposterous.” When prodded by the host that it is athletes from other sports who say that race car drivers aren’t athletes, Diffey strictly declared that such statements are stupid regardless of who they come from. He considers them offensive toward race car drivers, who are some of the most elite athletes in the world according to him.
One of the biggest reasons why drivers face this criticism is because they would be physically indistinguishable in a crowd. They aren’t noticeably muscular or well-defined. However, that’s part of the game for them, just like for gymnasts. If it wasn’t for athleticism, anybody who knew racecraft would be able to race and win, and Diffey’s take on the same topic is definitely assertive.
“It is ridiculous, and anybody who says that — we can solve the argument in something as insignificant as a Mazda Miata at a racetrack. After three laps, you’ll be done. So, happily take anybody up on that argument because they don’t know what they’re talking about,” he opined.
Former crew chief Steve Letarte made this same argument last year. He said, “Their physical ability to drive a race car is an athletic quality because… I can assure you they’re athletes because if they weren’t, I would be a race car driver. Because I can tell you exactly how it should be done.”
It is athleticism that enables them to steer 3,000-pound machines around oval race tracks for hours at great speeds. The heat inside the cars often becomes unbearable, to say the least. It causes them to lose nearly 12 pounds of fluids during a race. Multiple support systems are in place to help them overcome such extreme demands to a certain degree. The rest is up to them.
So, when Leigh Diffey states that it is ignorant to say that race car drivers aren’t athletes, he makes complete sense. The commentator will fulfill his announcing duties with NBC Sports later this season. His first year in NASCAR was a huge success with fans loving the way he made races more entertaining and informative.
