The New Balance Grand Prix was the event track and field fans had been counting down to. As the first major indoor event of the new season, it set the stage for athletes back in action on TRACK at  Brighton, Massachusetts. However, despite the hype, fans have already pointed out a certain flaw.

The organizers were outrightly questioned when the audience spotted that the venue wasn’t being used to the fullest. This particular question was put up to the officials after the fans watched Noah Lyles go to the finals of the 60m, but Lamont Marcell Jacobs missed out on this opportunity, as he placed 6th overall (3rd in heat 1).

On X, track and field photographer James Rhodes pointed out the issue, stating, “Eight lane track – so we’ll only have five in the finals? Why?” To which Owen on X replied, stating, “Because the organisers at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix are only using 5 lanes for the sprint finals, we won’t see Noah Lyles vs Marcell Jacobs in the 60m final, as Jacobs only finished 6th overall. The last time two men’s 100m Olympic champions raced against each other was Usain Bolt and Justin Gatlin in 2017.”

Brighton track features an eight-lane track. So the question was simple, as easily eight athletes could’ve been placed in the race. However, what exactly happened in the men’s 60m heat? The first heat saw Trayvon Bromell, PJ Austin, Lamont Marcell Jacobs, JT Smith, and Josephus Lyles. Similarly, in the second heat, the athletes who participated were Noah Lyles, Terrence Jones, Udodi Onwuzurike, Brandon Carnes, and Miles Lewis.

The fans wanted to see two 100m Olympic champions going head-to-head in the finals, but Jacobs didn’t qualify, owing to his timing of 6.69 seconds, which was 0.03 seconds slower than Onwuzurike, who qualified for the finals. Indeed, Lyles qualified for the finals with a time of 6.55 seconds, and the matchup between the two was something that the audience wanted to see. And why not?

It has been a long time since the track and field fans saw two 100m Olympic champions head-to-head in a 60m indoor race. But how different was their pace compared to each other?

Noah Lyles obliterating the competition

When it comes to races, Noah Lyles becomes a formidable competitor. He started his season at the RADD Sports College Invitational, where he ran 6.62 seconds in the 60m race. So it was evident that the next time he touched the track in the same distance, which would be the New Balance Grand Prix, he would not be too kind to his competitors.

In heat 1 only, the current 100m Olympic champion ran a blistering 6.55 seconds. And who was the second-place athlete that followed him? It was Terrence Jones, with a time of 6.59. Now if we compare this to Lamont Marcell Jacobs, the Italian just ran a 6.69. And in track and field terms, that’s just way too behind when it comes to 0.14 seconds.

Even though the finals are still about to take place, most of the bets will be on Lyles. Indeed, the 100m Olympic and World Champion is just unstoppable even indoors. And it doesn’t seem like his reign will be ending anytime soon.