I think he's got 1:42 in him right now if he's got competition
1:42 is a leap, but I could see 1:43.0-1:43.5 or faster in a race with better competition now that the rust is busted, which puts him in a great position for this season. Seeing that Brazier is typically a substantial positive split 800m racer, even splits and a straight face where a grimace should be tells me he likely didn’t run this one even perceptually all out today.
Where's the video of this race? No one had their phone out when they called these guys to the line? Sheesh!
Koech and Hoppel are locks. I've got Hoey getting that 3rd spot. Only reason he kind of looked bad in the GST 800 was because he tried to go with Arop, who is just at a different level right now. But the dude still even-split a 1:44 and has a 1:43 in his legs from earlier this season
Koech is not a lock. Only Hoppel is.
"Lock" suggests 100% certainty. Sorry, but illnesses, injuries, personal problems, family problems, banana peals, etc., subtract from 100%.
Yalding yaldi wrote: Love to see him thrash Hoppel again
Sorry if I am illiterate tonight. I realize, after rereading the post, "thrash" is not the same thing as "trash-talk" --- duh. That's on me for not knowing how to read.
p.s. Quick follow up question. Do you think Brazier will take more time off at the Portland Track Fest or is another 1:44 the most likely outcome? How insane would a 1:43 be at this point!
From what I’m gathering from interviews, he started training training in late January, so he’s probably just starting to get fit right now which means there’s a lot of room for improvement over the span of the season.
As I said in an earlier post, unless Mike Smith who is supposedly coaching him is turning him into an aerobic beast, even splits are a good indicator that Brazier had more in the tank. He didn’t look to be straining much either, and didn’t have anyone in that race to really push him over the final 200, so I think he had at least 52 and 51.x in a better race environment today.
If I was a betting guy i’d say his seasons best is 1:42.9 or faster this year. No doubt he’s physically capable of a 1:43.high performance right now and I think if he runs a smart race at portland that’s what we will see from him.
there is no such precedent in the history of our sport a guy stopped running and training at high level for 5-6 years and returns to his original form. show me where in the running literature im hard of finding. even bekele stopped training for the 10k for only 1 year and he was no longer a medal threat at 12 olympics. raid his phones, tap it, check his emails and whereabouts past 1 year. something is up.
there is no such precedent in the history of our sport a guy stopped running and training at high level for 5-6 years and returns to his original form. show me where in the running literature im hard of finding. even bekele stopped training for the 10k for only 1 year and he was no longer a medal threat at 12 olympics. raid his phones, tap it, check his emails and whereabouts past 1 year. something is up.
He was the best in the world off of 35 miles a week at age 22. Now he’s back in great shape after five months of training as a 28 year old. Why is that so hard to believe? The rare parts to this story are his incredible talent, which we all knew about, and that his surgeries were ultimately successful.
there is no such precedent in the history of our sport a guy stopped running and training at high level for 5-6 years and returns to his original form. show me where in the running literature im hard of finding. even bekele stopped training for the 10k for only 1 year and he was no longer a medal threat at 12 olympics. raid his phones, tap it, check his emails and whereabouts past 1 year. something is up.
there is no such precedent in the history of our sport a guy stopped running and training at high level for 5-6 years and returns to his original form. show me where in the running literature im hard of finding. even bekele stopped training for the 10k for only 1 year and he was no longer a medal threat at 12 olympics. raid his phones, tap it, check his emails and whereabouts past 1 year. something is up.
I hope he is doping. Only a fool thinks the rest of the pros don’t dope. It’s only fair. If he’s doped it still wouldn’t take away from the greatest of this comeback.
there is no such precedent in the history of our sport a guy stopped running and training at high level for 5-6 years and returns to his original form. show me where in the running literature im hard of finding. even bekele stopped training for the 10k for only 1 year and he was no longer a medal threat at 12 olympics. raid his phones, tap it, check his emails and whereabouts past 1 year. something is up.
5 or 6 years? he ran a 1:13 600 in 2022.
800m is different from 600m don’t get that mixed up. He wasn’t at a real high level from 2020 till all of 2024. That’s where the 5 years comes from and that’s his crime. Josh Hoey is the same problem but Donny is worse as he was with injuries. There is still time for him to give up and do something else. There are enough doped 800m runners around, let them implicate themselves but save our innocent Donny boy
there is no such precedent in the history of our sport a guy stopped running and training at high level for 5-6 years and returns to his original form. show me where in the running literature im hard of finding. even bekele stopped training for the 10k for only 1 year and he was no longer a medal threat at 12 olympics. raid his phones, tap it, check his emails and whereabouts past 1 year. something is up.
I hope he is doping. Only a fool thinks the rest of the pros don’t dope. It’s only fair. If he’s doped it still wouldn’t take away from the greatest of this comeback.
Your faith has set you free but it has imprisoned Donny boy with chains.
Sets him free I say and let him do what his degree has earned him.
Mike Smith - that's what I heard today from a source but haven't confirmed it.
that was also previously reported on the forums here.
The post race interview by flotrack was such crap. A lot of questions come to mind after this, how are you not ready to ask them? Who’s coaching you? What kind of training are you doing? Anything in training let you know 1:44 was doable? How’s the back, foot? What do you think of the advancements of 2025?
there is no such precedent in the history of our sport a guy stopped running and training at high level for 5-6 years and returns to his original form. show me where in the running literature im hard of finding. even bekele stopped training for the 10k for only 1 year and he was no longer a medal threat at 12 olympics. raid his phones, tap it, check his emails and whereabouts past 1 year. something is up.
I hope he is doping. Only a fool thinks the rest of the pros don’t dope. It’s only fair. If he’s doped it still wouldn’t take away from the greatest of this comeback.
If he is training under Dave Smith or Mike smith he is clean but if it’s Ed eyestone or Jerry Schumacher he is dirty. Pick and choose your coaches wisely as they determine your doping destiny. It’s possible to race and train at high level clean but you have to generally be under 25 to do that examples are:
there is no such precedent in the history of our sport a guy stopped running and training at high level for 5-6 years and returns to his original form. show me where in the running literature im hard of finding. even bekele stopped training for the 10k for only 1 year and he was no longer a medal threat at 12 olympics. raid his phones, tap it, check his emails and whereabouts past 1 year. something is up.
He was the best in the world off of 35 miles a week at age 22. Now he’s back in great shape after five months of training as a 28 year old. Why is that so hard to believe? The rare parts to this story are his incredible talent, which we all knew about, and that his surgeries were ultimately successful.
Every single 28 year old I know who either made a comeback or suddenly got good so fast all follow a certain pattern. The same pattern too. Can all of these say 20 28 year olds worldwide from any country all happen to have the same circumstances both before and after their breakout comeback performance? Surely the stars had to align in order for every single one to follow the same success? There are so many more talented 28 year olds who are bedridden and unable to move a single limb, unemployed, physically incapacitated which is what makes Donny boy’s comeback impossible without drugs
What a likeable, humble man. Wishing him a little bit of luck to go with his talent.
Unfortunately, a man of integrity would not have returned to the sport that gave him so much darkness. He would have said aight it’s time to move on quit the sport get married to my baby girl and set up a new business. Time to try something new. It’s important to ask what we’re his reasons for coming back to the sport. I would know the legitimacy of his reasons once an interview has been called for him. I will know if he lied about those reasons.
Hks body language will give it away. Lie detector that’s me.
there is no such precedent in the history of our sport a guy stopped running and training at high level for 5-6 years and returns to his original form. show me where in the running literature im hard of finding. even bekele stopped training for the 10k for only 1 year and he was no longer a medal threat at 12 olympics. raid his phones, tap it, check his emails and whereabouts past 1 year. something is up.
Yes there is, Carlos Lopes. Medalled in the 76 Olympics then reappeared after struggling with injury in 1982 and then won Olympic gold in the marathon as well as winning world xc.
there is no such precedent in the history of our sport a guy stopped running and training at high level for 5-6 years and returns to his original form. show me where in the running literature im hard of finding. even bekele stopped training for the 10k for only 1 year and he was no longer a medal threat at 12 olympics. raid his phones, tap it, check his emails and whereabouts past 1 year. something is up.
Brazier is far less crazy than Georgia Hunter-Bell let’s say. Also let’s not stretch his injury woes. He ran 1:44.21i to smoke everyone in a meet in February, 2021. So it’s about a 4 year, 4 month saga.
He’s still young, so it’s really whether his body could be made right. He never had a huge training load as posters have mentioned 35 mpw, and he’s been fragile since well before 2021, so not a training monster like Arop or Wanyonyi. So we’ll see, the game has changed but he will benefit as well from bicarb, better pacing, and superior footwear. IF he can stay healthy, we’ll see if he can get close to prime Brazier (1:42.6).
Every single 28 year old I know who either made a comeback or suddenly got good so fast all follow a certain pattern. The same pattern too. Can all of these say 20 28 year olds worldwide from any country all happen to have the same circumstances both before and after their breakout comeback performance? Surely the stars had to align in order for every single one to follow the same success? There are so many more talented 28 year olds who are bedridden and unable to move a single limb, unemployed, physically incapacitated which is what makes Donny boy’s comeback impossible without drugs
I'm just a mediocre masters hobby jogger, but I'm coming back from the same injuries and surgeries he has. I understand what he's dealt with, and I cannot stress enough how much it must have been holding back his training and recovery. The weight lifted from being healed and recovered - and finally feeling normal again - is a greater impact than any drug could possibly have. I started training seriously again in March of this year, and not only am I already close to where I was before, but I feel like I can get even faster and reach levels I haven't thought possible in many years.
I'm kind of astonished he was as good as he was in 2020 and 2021. These issues don't just pop up overnight, and I'm sure it was severely limiting his training then, even if he didn't realize it yet.