Zharnel Hughes has challenged his team-mate Matthew Hudson-Smith to a Battle of Britain over 300 metres as he bids to get more eyeballs on athletics.
The 30-year-old is the national record holder over 200m, while Hudson-Smith holds that accolade in the 400m. Now Hughes hopes they can meet in the middle in a blockbuster race at Birmingham’s Alexander Stadium.
‘Matt and I in the 300m is a perfect clash,’ said Hughes, who also owns the British 100m record.
‘You’re going to be playing cat and mouse. Can I get out and hold on? Or will Matt catch me in the last 30 to 40m because of his strengths?
‘I think it would be pretty cool. I think it’ll bring excitement. People will definitely tune in as long as the hype is good enough.
‘I really want to make it happen. He wants to race. I want to race as well. We just haven’t had anyone that can help make it happen. That’s the only thing that’s holding us back.
Zharnel Hughes has challenged his team-mate Matthew Hudson-Smith to a Battle of Britain
‘I would actually like it to be in Birmingham. That’s where he is from. Let’s compete in Birmingham – just so he can shut up.’
Hughes will be in Birmingham this weekend at the UK Athletics Championships, but Hudson-Smith is missing because he is preparing for the arrival of his baby.
Hughes also became a father for the first time last November and admits his son has given him extra motivation to bring a medal home from next month’s World Championships.
‘He’s back in Jamaica and I am missing him,’ he admitted. ‘It’s more personal now because I’m away from him for quite some time.
‘I would love to bring him some hardware home, in the form of a medal. That would be a great accomplishment, a great achievement.
‘He wouldn’t know what it is, but when he grows up, he can understand that when Daddy was away for a couple of months in the early part of his upbringing, this was one of the reasons why.’
The UK Championships double up as trials for the World Championships, but Hughes and Hudson-Smith already have UKA wildcards for Tokyo as recent global medallists.
Hughes won a 100m bronze at the World Championships in 2023, but failed to reach the 100m final at last summer’s Paris Olympics and pulled out of the 200m with injury following a disrupted season.
Hudson-Smith holds that accolade in the 400m and the pair could now meet in the middle
‘Last year was disappointing,’ added Hughes, who clocked a season’s best 9.91sec at last month’s London Diamond League event. ‘No athlete wants to be injured going into the Olympics. It definitely motivated me going into this season.
‘I’m now 9.91 for the season, so it’s good to be back there. London showed me that I improved on certain bits, but there’s still some bits that can be fixed.
‘I’m looking forward to the next weeks to see how much faster we can go.’
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