NASCAR Phenom Kyle Larson Says ‘Talladega Nights’ Turned the Sport ‘Into a Joke’: ‘Did Not Do Anything Good’

Kyle Larson is arguably the best all-around driver currently behind any wheel, and is a first-place contender every time he competes in the NASCAR Cup Series – just don’t compare him to Ricky Bobby.

The series champ appeared on Tuesday’s episode of the “Games With Names” podcast, hosted by New England Patriots Super Bowl MVP Julian Edelman. Mid-conversation he was asked whether he liked “Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby,” the 2006 hit comedy starring Will Ferrell as a wildly successful but dim-witted NASCAR driver who coined the phrase “If you’re not first, you’re last.”

“Do (drivers) like ‘Talladega Nights?’ Is that movie funny or is that dumb for you guys?,” co-host Sam Morrill asked Larson, who somewhat hesitated to answer.

“I — I mean I like the movie,” Larson said. “I think it did not do anything good for our sport. I think it turned our sport into like a joke unfortunately. But uh, it is — I mean that’s got to be like the most — one of the most popular race movies.”

Edelman tried to block-and-tackle for the 2006 hit by Adam McKay – “It’s just a funny comedy with those boys,” he said – but Larson stayed in the gas.

“Yeah. But that’s just — I feel like it — just the rest of the world, like that’s what they think about our sport now,” Larson said.

[Note to Larson: They already thought that.]

“I still think of … one of the hottest short men of all time getting pulled over by some really smoke-show scene after winning the Daytona 500,” Edelman said. “Yeah, that’s what I think of. The coolest.”

“That might be one of the best movie scenes in the history of movies, dude,” Larson said.

Alright, so maybe not great for NASCAR, but good for short dudes.

“That’s what I always used to say when I had a taller girlfriend,” the relatively diminutive (for the NFL) Edelman said. “Real relationship right there, baby. I feel like a NASCAR driver right now. I’m about to get in my car.”

Larson also noted that his friend (and Hendrick Motorsports boss) Jeff Gordon told him the other night that a “Days of Thunder” sequel is seriously on the mind of Tom Cruise.

“[Gordon] is good friends with Tom and he went to … the premiere or whatever of ‘Mission Impossible,'” Larson said. “When [Gordon saw] Tom, he’s like, ‘We’re doing it. We got to do another ‘Days of Thunder.’ So, let’s go.”

Watch the entire exchange in the video above.

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