Hunt’s comments arrived the same week Swift revealed the release date, title, tracklist and artwork for her 12th album, “The Life of a Showgirl.” Swift unveiled the first look at the album during an appearance Wednesday on the latest episode of the “New Heights” podcast hosted by Jason and Travis Kelce, the latter of whom is a Chiefs player who has been in a relationship with Swift since 2023.

“This relationship with Taylor has garnered a whole lot more interest in the Chiefs,” Hunt told Entertainment Tonight about Kelce and Swift’s romance in an interview published Thursday. “I have people come up to me all the time and tell me, ‘Thank you.’ I’m like, ‘Thank you for what?’ And then they tell me, ‘Thank you because my 10-year-old daughter now insists on watching NFL football with me.’ Of course, that’s largely because of Taylor Swift.”

“It’s been fantastic and we love having her as part of the kingdom,” Hunt added, in a reference to the name of the Chiefs’ fandom. The Chiefs CEO went on to praise Swift not only for bringing more attention to the NFL organization, but also for the individual enthusiasm and support she has shown for the team.

“She’s a tremendous fan,” Hunt remarked. “If you’ve ever seen any of those shots of her sitting in the box cheering on the team, when we make a big play she’s as excited as anybody in the stadium. It’s great to have her support, for sure.”

When asked if he is looking forward to “The Life of a Showgirl,” which releases Oct. 3, Hunt admitted that both he and his family are fans of Swift’s music. “I’m very excited. I am a big fan of hers,” Hunt explained, revealing that he attended both of Swift’s Eras Tour performances at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City in 2023 with his family.

“She just doesn’t miss a beat. She’s an amazing performer,” Hunt observed. “As a family, we’re really excited about her 12th album.”

As for whether or not Swift chose orange as the primary color of her new, “Life of a Showgirl” era as a reference to the Chiefs’ red-and-gold color scheme, Hunt simply said, “I don’t know, but I like that. I like anything she does that in any way acknowledges or celebrates the Chiefs.”

The Chiefs CEO added that he “wouldn’t be surprised” if Swift attends most of the team’s games this coming season, as she is not as busy now as she was during her Eras Tour run over the course of the past two NFL seasons.

You can watch Hunt’s fully interview about Swift in the video above.

The post Kansas City Chiefs CEO Praises Taylor Swift, Calls ‘Life of a Showgirl’ Singer a ‘Tremendous Fan’ appeared first on TheWrap.

“I think it might have slipped a little bit because I did have a little bit more focus in trying to set myself up,” Kelce, who still beats himself over the Kansas City Chief’s 2025 Super Bowl loss, shared in an interview with GQ magazine. “Opportunities came up where I was excited to venture into a new world of acting and being an entertainer,” he added.

The Chiefs lost to the Philadelphia Eagles earlier this year in a 22 to 40 game.

Kelce, who recently appeared in “Happy Gilmore 2” and Ryan Murphy’s “Grotesquerie,” went on to say that while winning the Super Bowl is the “only goal,” he doesn’t regret opening himself up to new opportunities off the field.

“I don’t say this as ‘I shouldn’t have done it.’ I’m just saying that my work ethic is such that I have so much pride in how I do things that I never want the product to tail off, and I feel like these past two years haven’t been to my standard,” Kelce explained. “I just have such a motivation to show up this year for my guys.”

The athlete also expressed that his move into the entertainment industry was as organic as his relationship with his megastar girlfriend Taylor Swift.

“We fell in love just based off the people we were sitting in a room together with,” Kelce explained, rejecting the idea that the two’s pairing was any sort of orchestrated meet-cute. “We are two fun-loving people who have the morals to appreciate everyone for who they are. We share all those values. It kind of just took the f—k off.”

He adds that Swift’s experience with stardom creates a mutual understanding in their relationship.

“I hadn’t experienced somebody in the same shoes as me, having a partner who understands the scrutiny, understands the ups and downs of being in front of millions,” Kelce shared. “That was very relatable, seeing how exhausted she would get after shows. She may not think of herself as an athlete. She will never tell anyone that she is an athlete. But I’ve seen what she goes through. I’ve seen the amount of work that she puts on her body, and it’s mind-blowing.”

Kelce and Swift have been dating since the summer of 2023, and since then the two have supported one another’s pursuits. Kelce attended Swift’s Eras tour and Swift sat suite side at a number of Kelce’s games. Monday night, Kelce released a snippet of an upcoming episode of “New Heights,” which will feature Swift as a guest. There, she is expected to share more details about her 12th album, “The Life of a Showgirl.”

The post Travis Kelce Admits His NFL Game ‘Slipped’ When He Started Acting: ‘Haven’t Been to My Standard’ appeared first on TheWrap.

“It is definitely going to happen,” White told the hosts of “CBS Mornings” Tuesday. “I talked to him last night, him being the president, and I’m flying out there at the end of this month. I’m going to sit down and walk him through all the plans and the renderings and we’re going to start deciding what he wants and doesn’t want. But yeah, it’s definitely going to happen.”

White additionally confirmed that he has been working with Trump’s eldest daughter, Ivanka, to put the July 2026 fight together.

“When [Trump] called me and asked me to do it, he said, ‘I want Ivanka in the middle of this,'” White revealed. “Ivanka reached out to me and her and I started talking about the possibilities, where it would be and I put together all the renderings.”

When asked if he knew which fighters would be headlining the high-profile event, White said, “No, it’s still almost a year away and, you know, the landscape will change.”

The UFC CEO did, however, note, “Everybody wants to be on this card.” You can watch the full interview yourself in the video below.

In addition to discussing his July 4 plans next year, White also touched on UFC’s $7.7 billion, 7-year deal with Paramount, which was announced Monday. The deal will make Paramount the exclusive U.S. home for UFC programming starting in 2026. Paramount+ will, consequently, stream all 13 marquee numbered UFC events and 30 Fight Nights next year, while certain, major matches are set to be simulcast on CBS.

The deal marks a major shift for UFC, which has long stuck to its existing pay-per-view model. Speaking with the hosts of “CBS Mornings,” White was careful to note that he does not necessarily see streaming as a “better” alternative to pay-per-view broadcasting.

“I don’t know if there’s a better way. There’s just lots of disruptors in the world right now,” White acknowledged. “Who would have thought that taxi cabs wouldn’t exist or that cable television would start to go away?”

The UFC CEO noted that he will be in Chicago on Saturday for a UFC pay-per-view event, before explaining why he believes sports will continue to emerge as an increasingly important pillar of the streaming era moving forward.

“If you drop a television show today and everybody’s talking about it and raving about it, it’s going to be there forever. I can go watch it whenever I want to,” White explained. “Live sports you have to watch live. You have to tune in. It’s a destination watch. This Saturday we have a live fight from Chicago, and you have to sit down [and] you have to watch it live. Nobody wants to watch it after it’s already happened. So sports are a big deal to these streaming services.”

“Obviously, if you see where we started and where we came from, to be sitting here today having this conversation with you is one of the massive, major milestones in my career and the history of the sport,” White added. “It’s been a great week for me.”

The post Dana White Says He’s Working With Ivanka Trump on a UFC Fight at the White House | Video appeared first on TheWrap.

The professional wrestler-turned-actor stars in the streaming service’s first commercial opposite a mascot dressed in the ESPN app’s logo. The commercial finds Cena standing in a room adorned with merchandise and banners promoting some of ESPN’s original programming, including “First Take,” “SportsCenter,” “Get Up” and “College GameDay.”

As Cena looks at a group of whiteboards listing the the “All New ESPN App Team,” he sees a rush of clips from past ESPN shows and sporting events, which prompts him to smile, bump fists with the ESPN app’s mascot and march with purpose out of the room.

Some of the names featured on Cena’s whiteboards include well-known ESPN personalities and sports commentators like Stephen A. Smith, Scott Van Pelt, Elle Duncan, Troy Aikman, Peyton Manning, Pat McAfee and more. You can watch the commercial yourself in the video below.

Disney’s standalone ESPN streaming service is set to officially launch on Aug. 21. The platform will offer a combination of ESPN’s original network programming, new fantasy sports integrations, enhanced statistics and betting and e-commerce features. On Aug. 6, ESPN also announced that it has reached a domestic rights agreement with WWE, which will allow ESPN’s new streaming service to become the exclusive U.S. home for all of WWE’s Premium Live Events, including “WrestleMania,” starting in 2026.

A variety of subscription plans costing everywhere from $29.99 to $11.99 per month will be available to consumers. Subscribers will also be able to subscribe to ESPN’s app in ad-supported and ad-free bundles with Disney+ and Hulu for $35.99 and $44.99 per month.

The launch of ESPN’s new, Cena-centric ad campaign coincides with Disney and Fox’s Monday announcement that the two companies’ ESPN and Fox One streaming services will be packaged together in a $39.99 per month bundle starting Oct. 2.

Both streaming services are, notably, timed to launch on Aug. 21, just a few weeks before the NFL regular season kicks off in America with a game between the Dallas Cowboys and the Philadelphia Eagles on Thursday, Sept. 4.

The post John Cena Headlines New Ad Campaign Promoting ESPN’s All-In-One Streaming Service appeared first on TheWrap.

“Working with Fox One on this bundle offer allows us to bring ESPN’s world-class sports content to even more fans in a seamless and innovative way,” Disney Platform Distribution executive vice president Sean Breen said in a statement. “This collaboration reflects our shared commitment to delivering premium
experiences across platforms and meeting consumers where they are — anytime, anywhere.”

“Announcing ESPN as our first bundle partner is evidence of our desire to deliver the best possible value and viewing experience to our shared customers,” Fox direct-to-consumer strategy and business development senior vice president Tony Billetter added. “Viewers will have access to an incredible portfolio of content through this bundle, including NFL, NBA, WNBA, MLB, NHL, College Football and Basketball, NASCAR, INDYCAR, UFC, as well as the upcoming FIFA World Cup and more as we continue to look for opportunities to streamline the user experience, especially for the ultimate sports fan.”

On its own, ESPN’s Unlimited plan includes access to 47,000 live events, studio shows and more. It will cost $29.99 per month/$299.99 per year standalone, $35.99 in a bundle with ads on Disney+ and Hulu and $44.99 per month with no ads on Disney+ and Hulu. At launch, the bundle will cost $29.99 for the first 12 months.

Meanwhile, its cheaper Select plan, which includes over 32,000 live events currently available on ESPN+, will be $11.99 per month/$119.99 per year. It will cost $16.99 per month with ad-supported Disney+ and Hulu and $26.99 per month with ad-free Disney+ and Hulu.

As for Fox One, the service will cost $19.99 per month, giving users access to Fox News Channel, Fox Business, Fox Weather, Fox Sports, FS1, FS2, Fox Deportes, B1G, Fox Local Stations and the Fox network.

Fox Nation and B1G+ will also be available in the Fox One platform and users will be able to bundle Fox One and Fox Nation for $24.99 per month or the equivalent of $19.99 per month when purchasing the annual plan at launch.

The move comes after the two media giants scrapped Venu Sports, a streaming joint venture that also included Warner Bros. Discovery, after facing allegations that the service would be anticompetitive.

That followed a settlement of Fubo’s antitrust litigation against the trio after Disney announced plans to combine the streamer with Hulu + Live TV. Disney will have a 70% stake in the combined company, Fubo’s current management team will remain in place and both services will continue to exist as separate entities.

The Fubo-Hulu + Live TV merger will close between the fourth quarter of 2025 and the first quarter of 2026.

The post ESPN, Fox One to Launch $39.99 Per Month Bundle in October appeared first on TheWrap.

Next year, Paramount+ will stream all 13 marquee numbered events and 30 Fight Nights, with major matches simulcast on CBS. This will also mark the end of the promotion company’s pay-per-view model, the companies announced on Monday.

The deal boasts an average annual value of $1.1 billion, though the terms of the contract are weighted more towards the back end of the deal. The UFC will continue to air in international markets with its other existing partners.

“I couldn’t be more excited to join forces with Dana, Ari and Mark. Rarely do opportunities arise to partner on an exclusive basis with a global sports powerhouse like UFC — an organization with extraordinary global recognition, scale and cultural impact,” Paramount CEO and chairman David Ellison said in a statement. “Paramount’s advantage lies in the expansive reach of our linear and streaming platforms. Live sports continue to be a cornerstone of our broader strategy — driving engagement, subscriber growth and long-term loyalty, and the addition of UFC’s year-round must-watch events to our platforms is a major win. We look forward to delivering this premium content to millions of fans in the U.S., and potentially beyond.”

“This is a milestone moment and landmark deal for UFC, solidifying its position as a preeminent global sports asset,” Ari Emanuel, executive chair and CEO of TKO, agreed. “Our decade-long journey with UFC has been defined by continuous growth and expansion, and this agreement is an important realization of our strategy. We believe wholeheartedly in David’s vision and look forward to being in business with a company that will prioritize technology as a means to enhance storytelling and the overall viewing experience.”

“Paramount is a platinum partner with significant reach,” TKO president and COO Mark Shapiro added. “Our new agreement unlocks powerful opportunities at TKO for years to come – meaningful economics for investors; expanded premium inventory for global brand partners; and deeper engagement for UFC’s passionate fanbase. Just as importantly, our athletes will love this new stage.”

Until then, UFC 319 is set to take place this Saturday, with middleweights Dricus Du Plessis and Khamzat Chimaev as the main event.

The post UFC Moves to Paramount+ and Ends PPV in 7-Year, $7.7 Billion Deal appeared first on TheWrap.

Cineverse and Air Bud Entertainment have launched a nationwide search to discover their next golden retriever star – “embodying the charm, athleticism and heart that made Air Bud a beloved character,” according to Friday’s press release. The next chapter in the 25-year series, “Air Bud Returns,” will be written and directed by original “Air Bud” creator Robert Vince and will arrive in theaters next summer. But what canine will carry the torch?

Beginning this month, the studios behind the new movie are inviting dog owners across the country to submit “their purebred retrievers” (no mutts please) to be part of the “Air Bud” legacy. In order to apply, visit the official site. “All submissions will be eligible to win a variety of prizes as the film’s release approaches, from official Air Bud jerseys and signed movie merchandise, to a trip to the Hollywood premiere,” per the release.

The production has also partnered with Birds & Animals Unlimited, described as “Hollywood’s premier animal trainers,” to fill a variety of positions on the film. It will be the eighth collaboration between Vince and lead animal trainer Mark Forbes. Perhaps more enlightened viewers – and certainly animal rights groups like PETA – would suggest that, in 2025, actual animals are no longer needed for these kinds of roles, given the advancements in computer animation. But here we are.

The official synopsis for “Air Bud Returns” reads: “12-year-old Jacob has always dreamt of being a star basketball player. After the passing of his father, that dream felt even more impossible. But everything changes when he and his mom move into his dad’s childhood home in Fernfield. There, Jacob discovers an original VHS of the ‘Air Bud’ movie in his father’s belongings and has a chance meeting of a neglected golden retriever he names Buddy. Together, they embark on a journey of healing, unite a team of misfits and chase a championship. Through it all they learn to play from the heart, believe in each other and always take the shot!”

“Air Bud Returns” is shooting for a Summer 2026 theatrical release.

The post ‘Air Bud Returns’: Nationwide Search for Dog Star Begins appeared first on TheWrap.

The athletics equipment company announced Thursday that they will be launching a new studio for in-house content and production. Cookie Jar & A Dream Studios will allow DICK’s to continue the production of feature-length and short-form projects, as they have done since 2014 with the release of the documentary “We Could Be King.”

“DICK’S believes that sports have the power to change lives,” Mark Rooks, VP of Creative, Entertainment & Sponsorships at DICK’S Sporting Goods, said in a statement. “And we’ve seen through our work how true that is for so many who have excelled, triumphed against the odds and been defeated in sport. There are so many incredible and inspiring human stories that deserve to be told, and we could not be more excited to showcase how individuals, teams and communities are shaping sport, bringing people together and unifying and building communities for thousands.”

Cookie Jar & A Dream Studios derives its name from the origins of the DICK’s brand itself. Dick Stack, founder of the sporting goods chain, started with a $300 loan from his grandmother in the 1940s when he was only 18. This loan came from Stack’s grandmother’s savings, stored safely in her cookie jar.

DICK’s productions have already won two sports Emmys in the past. The first came in 2015, when “We Could Be King” won Outstanding Sports Documentary. The second was only just this May, when “The Turnaround,” which released on Netflix, won Outstanding Short Documentary. Cookie Jar & A Dream Studios produced “The Turnaround,” partnered with the Obamas’ Higher Ground, for a 2024 release, though Thursday marked the official launch of the new DICK’s brand.

Altogether, DICK’s has produced five features and 10 short-form or episodic documentaries in the last decade. Next up, Cookie Jar & A Dream has “Big Dreams: The Little League World Series 2024,” a new documentary that will premiere Aug. 12 at 9:30 p.m. ET on ESPN. The doc follows a Little League tournament in rural Pennsylvania with a nearly 80-year history.

“‘Big Dreams’ is a great example of the kind of projects Cookie Jar & A Dream Studios aims to produce,” Rebecca Covington, Sr. Director, Creative Production at DICK’S Sporting Goods, added in a statement. “Being able to share big sports moments with fans is something that drives our team, and we look at the upcoming years with great excitement as we know there will be so many unforgettable stories deserving of the spotlight.”

The post Dick’s Sporting Goods Launches In-House Production Studio appeared first on TheWrap.

Eva Longoria has both. “Necaxa,” which debuts Thursday on FX, follows the namesake Mexican club, in which Longoria has a stake, as it strives to inch up Mexico’s top league and make the coveted playoffs.

It charts Longoria’s post-investment role as she becomes “La Patrona” (The Boss), as the players on the team call her. Yet soccer is a notoriously hard business, and one now saturated with celebrities who are using their investment to spawn accompanying entertainment. But Longoria said “Necaxa” (pronounced “Necaha”) has a standout story, and a potentially large audience in the U.S. Latino market.

Thanks to the success of “Welcome to Wrexham,” the TV series as an ancillary product to soccer investment is now almost a requirement, with Tom Brady’s “Built in Birmingham: Brady & the Blues” additionally streaming on Amazon’s Prime Video this month. The trend illustrates the closer ties that are being forged between the sports and entertainment worlds, with content being produced that blurs the line. These shows place viewers inside the action, which people want with sports. But to do that effectively, you need big names. 

“The traditional owners are not terribly photogenic,” said Stefan Szymanski, a sports economist at the University of Michigan who wrote the popular 2009 book, “Soccernomics.” “They’re not movie stars.”

Enter Longoria, who invested in 2021 as part of the Tylis-Porter Group, which bought 50% of the team. Longoria’s stake was undisclosed, but one report claims the club was valued in the “low nine figures” at the time; by 2022, the club had an estimated valuation of more than $200 million.  

She had previously invested with the group in the L.A.-based women’s team, Angel City F.C., but this was her first foray into Mexico’s Liga MX. “I was blown away by how big of an imprint the league has,” Longoria told TheWrap. “It is one of the most dynamic, passionate leagues in the world.”

Following the “Wrexham” model

“Necaxa” is a spiritual successor to Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac’s “Welcome to Wrexham” (the two are executive producers on this show as well). But unlike the Welsh football club, Necaxa struggles from a dearth of fandom. In 2003, it found a new home in Aguascalientes, a city more than six times smaller than Mexico City, where most residents already root for powerhouses from the capital like Club América and Cruz Azul. As many locals admit in the documentary, Necaxa is their No. 2 team. One of Longoria’s goals is to try and convert local fans.

The show follows the template set by Reynolds and Mac (who had his name legally changed in June) when in 2021, they acquired Welsh club Wrexham A.F.C. for $2.5 million and produced “Welcome to Wrexham.” 

The classic underdog story underpinned the narrative, as Wrexham went from a club in the fifth tier of the English football league to the EFL Championship, just one level below the top-tier English Premier League. The actors are trying to sell a stake that values the team at $475 million, according to Bloomberg.

Their success has made non-U.S. soccer an attractive investment opportunity. Barriers to entry are low compared to American sports, which have become cost-prohibitive, according to Jordan Gardner, a consultant at Twenty First Group who advises on M&A for U.S. investors in European football. He added there’s a perception that these clubs are undervalued and have ample opportunities to improve with the right management and players.

For those treating it as a passion project and ready to get their hands dirty like Reynolds and Mac, it can also be a more exciting business than American sports. Though Major League Soccer has attracted celebrities like Matthew McConaughey (Austin FC) and Reese Witherspoon (Nashville SC), the teams are franchises. “So what you are really is a one-30th owner of MLS,” Szymanski said. 

Liga MX is akin to the European model. “All the clubs are individual, and they all have their own personalities,” he added.

A European or Mexican club at a lower tier is also a more feasible investment for a Hollywood personality, especially with the growing trend of syndicated ownership, where a group of multiple investors pool their capital. “Media stars tend to be very rich, but they’re not in the mega-rich categories,” Szymanski says. “They can’t afford to buy a Manchester United outright.”

Someone like Longoria can put in a small equity piece, and gain the glory of name attachment.

Daytime talk show hosts Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos have also followed the playbook, having bought an ownership stake in Italian club Campobasso F.C. with their friend and media founder Matt Rizzetta. Ripa and Consuelos’ effort to navigate owning a team was chronicled in the ESPN series, “Running With the Wolves” that aired last month.

As Campobasso F.C. languished in the fifth league, the dream was “restoring it to its onetime glory,” Rizzetta said. He felt it was a less-saturated market than English football, and saw a cultural opening, with 17 million Americans of Italian descent.

“Necaxa” is hoping that the same opening — but with Mexican Americans — will propel its viewership.

Retelling the underdog tale

“Necaxa” benefits from a built-in audience already aware of Liga MX, which is the second-most-watched league in the U.S. after the English Premier League (with MLS in third). It’s a clear choice that “Necaxa” is almost entirely in Spanish — barring a few wisecracks in English from Reynolds.

But as the behind-the-scenes space gets saturated, narratives need a mark of differentiation even if their underlying template is similar. Rizzetta said theirs is the “scrappy underdog” story tied to the Italian-American immigrant narrative of chasing the American Dream. 

“Necaxa” also has its underdog story: its fight for fan relevance as it competes with the big guns in Liga MX. It’s a “story of going back to the glory days,” Longoria said, “of this great soccer empire that they used to be.”

From early in the first episode, there are poignant elements. They introduce a storyline about “La Tía” (The Auntie), an elderly cleaner at the club who has never been able to afford to go to a match. Such humanizing inclusions were a conscious decision, Longoria said, at a political moment when Latino communities are being persecuted with ICE raids across the U.S. The issue takes on more significance with the U.S. and Mexico just 10 months away from co-hosting the World Cup, which kicks off at the iconic Estadio Azteca in Mexico City.

For Longoria, the series is debuting at the right time. “I want to show positive images of Latinos, of Mexicans in particular,” she said. “So that the world sees the hardworking, family-oriented, kind human beings that we are.”

It’s compelling viewing, but Gardner questions whether — like tequila — the celebrity soccer business is a fleeting fad that will “probably fizzle.” Longoria, for her part, is bullish on sports, even as other TV trends ebb and flow. “If you’re smart as an investor you would invest in sports,” she said, “because that is the only form of entertainment that is practically foolproof.”

She’s turned her own words into action. In January, The Athletic reported that Longoria, with Reynolds and Mac, had invested in the Colombian club, La Equidad. Maybe her sports holdings will one day match her tequila empire.

The post Eva Longoria’s Soccer Play: Why Hollywood Stars Are Investing in Sports appeared first on TheWrap.

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.

The post NASCAR Phenom Kyle Larson Says ‘Talladega Nights’ Turned the Sport ‘Into a Joke’: ‘Did Not Do Anything Good’ appeared first on TheWrap.