"Nobody is confident and has the balls to challenge me"- Jakob Ingebrigtsen makes a bold comment after losing to Josh Kerr at the Prefontaine Classic

Jakob Ingebrigtsen, the indoor world record holder in the 1500m, was defeated by arch-rival Josh Kerr in the Bowerman Mile at the 2024 Prefontaine Classic. However, he does not think any athlete has the nerve to challenge his position, thus allowing him to lead every race.

Jakob Ingebrigtsen, 23, is the reigning Tokyo Olympics champion in the 1500m. With 1500m and 3000m indoor world records in his name, Ingebrigtsen was maintaining his win streak until Jake Wightman outsprinted him in the 1500m at the 2022 World Championships. The following year, Josh Kerr repeated the same, shifting the Olympic gold medalist to silver.

After that race, Ingebrigsten and Josh Kerr's rivalry took shape, going back and forth with comments against each other. At 'The Sunday Podcast' in November 2023, Kerr finally opened up about what differentiates Ingebrigtsen from other pacers, claiming that his 'ego is pretty high'.

In a recent CITIUS Mag interview, when asked about the reason for giving himself the advantage of running the race upfront, Jakob Ingebrigtsen said that the other sprinters don't dare to challenge him or not let him lead.

"I think nobody is confident and has the balls enough to challenge me when I'm in that position when I'm 100%. I think that's my competitor's biggest issue of course."

Having sat out on the 2024 World Indoor Championships in Glasgow for an Achilles injury, Ingebrigtsen pitched up for the Prefontaine Classic, vying for the Bowerman Mile pole position. The same event where he swept the mile and 3000m titles in 2023, earned him a silver podium over rival Josh Kerr in 2024.

For Kerr, the time of 3:45.34 was a British record break. Steve Cram, who held the record for 39 years, witnessed his record time of 3:46.32 get lowered while commentating at the 2024 Eugene Diamond League.

"I would have beaten him in that race, blindfolded" - Jakob Ingebrigtsen on Josh Kerr's two-mile record-breaking race

Day 9 - World Athletics Championships Budapest 2023

At the 2024 Milrose Games, the Scottish middle-distance runner broke the two-mile world record. But the outdoor two-mile record holder, Jakob Ingebrigtsen was not ready to give Josh Kerr any credit. In an interview with Norway's TV2, the latter said that he could have defeated Kerr blindfolded had he participated in the race.

"It is not certain that he runs any better now than last year at the same time; he did not run two miles then. I would have beaten him in that race, blindfolded… But it’s good that people run better than they have done before.”

The 23-year-old two-time World Champion returned to the track after an eight-month hiatus because of an Achilles injury.