Some people throw challenges around like confetti, but IShowSpeed? He’s a man of his word. After all, not everyone would drop everything to race Olympic champ Noah Lyles with just a few hours notice. But that’s exactly what happened when MrBeast called up the YouTube sensation. With Lyles and a glass container with a heap of dollars by his side, they tossed down the gauntlet for Speed to race in the 100m dash. And it wasn’t just for bragging rights—that icy container filled with a whopping $100,000 was on the line if Speed could beat the world-class sprinter.

At first, Speed hesitated, citing a 3-hour drive from Miami to Orlando. Who wouldn’t, right? But after Lyles and MrBeast threw in a few taunts, Speed caved and accepted the challenge. We all expected it to be one of those things where he’d say yes but then pull out at the last minute. Instead, he actually showed up.

And, of course, while co-ordinating with MrBeast on his journey to be ‘The Fastest Man alive,’ IShowSpeed was streaming the whole thing live, chatting with his fans along the way. “I lose my name and any platform where he doesn’t lose verification. Yeah, chat, any platform. My favorite case is I change it to “IShowSlow.” The stakes were high!

Three hours on the road later, Speed rolled up to the track in a custom Real Madrid kit, sipping on his PRIME energy drink, ready to go. And then it was on. Lyles and Speed lined up, MrBeast fired the gun, and the race was off. It was wild. Speed came out strong and even led in the early stages, leaving everyone wondering if he might actually pull off the upset. But Lyles wasn’t having it. The Olympic champion swiftly caught up and cruised to a win, but not before Speed made it an exciting finish.

After the race, Speed wasn’t exactly ready to wave the white flag. In typical Speed fashion, he first claimed the race was a tie—because, of course, that’s what you do when you lose by a whisker. Then, the 19-year-old got even bolder, saying, “I’m the fastest man alive; that was a tie… You barely won. If it were forty meters, I would’ve won, I promise you.”

It was a nice try, but the entire race was caught on video. Lyles wasn’t about to let that slip, pointing to the footage: “Everybody saw it on your stream; we’ve got video proof.” But Speed wasn’t backing down. When MrBeast joined in on the teasing, Speed doubled down, insisting, “Raw speed, I’m faster, bro.” You’ve got to respect the confidence, right?

And if that wasn’t enough, Noah Lyles, amused and slightly entertained by the bravado, agreed to race Speed again—but only if he trains for a solid year until July 2025. Whether that rematch actually happens is anyone’s guess, but right now, Speed’s audacity is the talk of the town. His fans are definitely here for it, and who knows? Maybe the 2025 race will end with a new contender for the title of “fastest man alive.” But as of now, Speed’s courage has surely mesmerized the fans.

Fans laud IShowSpeed’s incredible effort

One fan was left completely surprised at how close the race between IShowSpeed and Noah Lyles turned out. Although most people expected Lyles, an Olympic champion, to easily defeat Speed, the YouTuber surprisingly held his own for a portion of the 100-meter dash. The fan wrote, “Speed not getting smoked is actually impressive”.  Netizens are truly impressed by the performance that Speed pulled off unexpectedly well. By maintaining a tight race against a world-class sprinter, Speed proved his worth.

Another YouTube user praises IShowSpeed’s near-win against Olympic champion Noah Lyles, highlighting how challenging it was given Speed’s three-hour drive right before the race. The user wrote, “Speed barely lost against the olympic champion, straight after a 3 hour drive. That’s impressive. Huge W”. Despite his lack of training or professional experience, Speed managed to keep up with Lyles initially and only narrowly lost. This made fans go crazy as they didn’t expect him to pose much of a challenge.

Commenting on the unexpected competitiveness of the race between IShowSpeed and Olympic champion Noah Lyles, another user wrote, “All jokes aside this was CRAZY CLOSE”. Their race ignited a debate among netizens. And the discussions and debacles sparked humorous jokes on Instagram. However, going beyond all the jokes, the duo pulled off the race well.

Losing to Noah Lyles, an Olympic champion and one of the fastest men in the world, is an impressive feat in itself. More so for a YouTuber and not a professional sprinter. Despite Speed’s lack of formal training, he held his own and nearly kept pace with Lyles, even briefly leading the race. Referring to the same, one fan commented, “first lose on a race to the fastest man alive is a accomplishment itself.”

Thus, with Lyles taking the victory expectedly, it was surely a spectacle to see two of the most popular names clash. However, accepting such a daunting challenge within hours is surely an act of immense guts. With a possible rematch on the line, it remains to be seen whether Speed can turn the tables or not.