body master: "So you agree that Powell is clean? Possibly the fastest clean sprinter ever."
Yes, possibly. His best times are down in that range that I believe the best could theoretically get, the only problem being that they didn't have absolutely max wind.
He is a good height, neither very tall nor very short. He uses his height well in his running style. His start and acceleration represent the perfect balance of efficiency and power for his body, IMO. His body is well-balanced. He has been consistently good for a long time.
The knocks against him are that he seems to disappear from big meets, and that his brother tested positive for ephedrine and was given a 3-month ban.
He has shown flashes of brilliance--like his 9.74 (+1.7) and, even better, 9.78 (0.0) day in Rieti, and his 8.70 split on the Beijing anchor. Absolute brilliance. If he could exhibit his top-speed form and endurance from Beijing in any of his races, he would be under 9.80 every single time he steps on a track, the first half of his race is that good.
He is getting older, I think he's 30 now--but that just means that he has to be smarter about things than he has been in the past. In fact, he was recently quoted as having said just exactly that. In the London final, he stumbled because he tried to get out too fast even for him, and drove too low; he knew that his inferior SE would get him swallowed-up in the second half of the race. If he's smarter about training, he can save his body, keep his start, AND exhibit his Beijing SE. I agree that he should run fewer races, even though it will mean less money.
He will apparently do only 2 races before Jamaican nationals, and I question even that requirement. Hopefully he can find 2 relatively easy races, where he does not have to really push himself. I hope to see him not do very many races this year, and not travel too much, and come out battling with Gay at the end of the season for top spot overall, while the obvious dopers sit in the stands and lick their wounds.