 In real life, James Caan (qv) (who had been a football player in  high school) was a much better athlete than  Billy Dee Williams (qv); but in the movie Williams character,  Gale Sayers, was supposed to surpass Canns character, Brian  Piccolo, in playing ability. So when they were racing on film, Caan  was forced to slow down considerably so that Williams could beat  him.