Donavan Brazier comes from behind, crushes last lap (24.89) and sets American record - 1:44.20!!

Standard Nike Victory elite 2. Been available for since Rio. No shoes debate here, this is all Brazier baby

600yd/600m man wrote:

U.S. runners feel the pressure to perform well from January through April. A need to make money for their handlers. I already knew Brazier was a good 800m runner. Brazier knows he's a good 800m runner. Peaking January through April during an Olympic year is a high risk. Does anyone remember Michael Norman peaking April, 2019? Posters then here on Letsrun were patting Norman's coach on the back, April, 2019. All the best runners 800m runners are not peaking like this at this time. What is the upside being an indoor hero?

I normally agree with this sentiment but this is different. We are seeing a sporting legend in the making. He ran 1:44 with ease in this race, coasting then sprinting the last 200. This guy will dominate outdoors, pending Amos. If world indoors wasn't cancelled then we might have seen 1:42 indoors.

Brazier is already world champion. He has a good chance as being Olympic champion. We will see 1:41 this year from Brazier.

Question for the stats experts:

Brazier split 53.04 / 51.16.

Is that the fastest second 400m ever in an 800 meters?

colorunner123 wrote:

Question for the stats experts:

Brazier split 53.04 / 51.16.

Is that the fastest second 400m ever in an 800 meters?

No I'm sure Rudisha closed in 50 at Rio Olympics and others would have run similarly fast also. However it might be indoors.

colorunner123 wrote:

Question for the stats experts:

Brazier split 53.04 / 51.16.

Is that the fastest second 400m ever in an 800 meters?

Steve Ovett's second lap in Moscow was 50.5

And he would have won the 5000m without GDR sponsored Yifter.

*or would have been favourite without Yifter.

ex-runner wrote:

colorunner123 wrote:

Question for the stats experts:

Brazier split 53.04 / 51.16.

Is that the fastest second 400m ever in an 800 meters?

No I'm sure Rudisha closed in 50 at Rio Olympics and others would have run similarly fast also. However it might be indoors.

Rudisha was 49.28/51.63 for his splits.

Marty McVaporfky wrote:

ex-runner wrote:

No I'm sure Rudisha closed in 50 at Rio Olympics and others would have run similarly fast also. However it might be indoors.

Rudisha was 49.28/51.63 for his splits.

Those were his London splits, but he didn't close in 50 in Rio - it was a 53.x because he slowed the race down a lot in the 3rd 200

Coevett wrote:

colorunner123 wrote:

Question for the stats experts:

Brazier split 53.04 / 51.16.

Is that the fastest second 400m ever in an 800 meters?

Steve Ovett's second lap in Moscow was 50.5.

This says 50.9:

So Brazier was 2/10 of a second off Ovett.

Im going to repeat it here.

Donovan Brazier is the best overall 800m runner today. Amos is better, but too inconsistent.

That was like: I think I'll just run to win today, oh and I might break the AR, too.

wrong but right wrote:

Marty McVaporfky wrote:

Rudisha was 49.28/51.63 for his splits.

Those were his London splits, but he didn't close in 50 in Rio - it was a 53.x because he slowed the race down a lot in the 3rd 200

Sorry I meant Beijing in 2015 for the world champs. Everyone stated Rudisha could only win a fast time trial not a tactical race so he showed them different. Ran something like 24 flat for the last 200m

He's ready for Olympic gold

That may be the fastest closing lap of a 1:44 or better performance.

ex-runner wrote:

wrong but right wrote:

Those were his London splits, but he didn't close in 50 in Rio - it was a 53.x because he slowed the race down a lot in the 3rd 200

Sorry I meant Beijing in 2015 for the world champs. Everyone stated Rudisha could only win a fast time trial not a tactical race so he showed them different. Ran something like 24 flat for the last 200m

Ah yeah that's the one, though looks like that was 54.15 - 51.69 to 1:45:84, but reportedly with a last 200 of 24.34

rudisha 2.0 wrote:

Brazier is running very dominantly right now. His speed and his stride remind me of 2011/2012 rudisha...I hope we will see a sub 1:42 from him this year

I’m in Paris but for the first time contemplated whether Brazier ever breaks the world record after I saw video of final lap.

Brazier is very, very sharp right now. Looking at those splits, I think he could take a second off his second 200m and maybe his third 200m as well, and then still close in under 26, so low 1:43 or high 1:42 was possible. However, I don't really want to see him do that indoors. Blast through to a U.S. indoors championship and then pull it back until close to trials. It is a long season. Right now, he looks like the easy favorite but Korir and Saruni, who've both run faster indoors, I think, could someday conquer their problems with World's, and a healthy Amos is a dangerous two-time 1:41 guy. I do think that 1:41.5-1:41.8 is going to happen for Brazier this year. That claim from a Michigan coach that there was a better high school talent than Grant Fisher has sure turned out well. This is what a top 400m talent who could run low 15 xc in hs can do. Although he may not recognize it himself, Clayton Murphy is the same kind of talent, sub 46 relay type with overdistance ability, but was being trained too much like a miler in recent years. After the world gold in the 800m, they might not put Brazier back into the 1500m/mile this year but he has a very high ceiling in the event as well.

I just cannot see anyone outrunning Amos if he is in shape. Not Korir, not Brazier.

He is a tenacious runner. He scraps. He will hang on to any athlete until he has literally nothing left and then still kick.

If Amos is in shape then no athlete can beat him. Personally I think that Amos last year before his mid season injury could have beaten 2012 Rudisha...

colorunner123 wrote:

Coevett wrote:

Steve Ovett's second lap in Moscow was 50.5.

This says 50.9:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athletics_at_the_1980_Summer_Olympics_%E2%80%93_Men%27s_800_metres

So Brazier was 2/10 of a second off Ovett.

It’s wrong. Ovett’s 2nd lap in Moscow was 50.5.