Dolphins Star Tyreek Hill, Olympic Gold Medalist Noah Lyles Officially Set To Race: ‘[NFL Players] Can Take Over Your Sport’

The highly anticipated showdown between two of the world’s fastest athletes is finally set. Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill and Olympic gold medalist Noah Lyles have been exchanging words online for months, and now they’ll settle the debate where it matters most — on the track.

The back-and-forth started when Hill, one of the NFL’s fastest and most exciting players, took issue with Lyles’ comments about American sports teams calling themselves “world champions” despite only competing domestically. Hill, unimpressed by Lyles’ remarks, issued a bold challenge: a head-to-head race. Lyles, who has dominated global sprinting for years, was more than happy to accept.

Tyreek Hill Wants To Prove NFL Speed Can Translate to the Track

“This has been an ongoing thing for quite some time now, and I mean, everybody’s seen the back and forth on social media,” Hill, 30, told People magazine. “I’ve been very adamant to show people what real, true speed looks like.”

Hill has long argued that elite NFL players could compete with the world’s best track athletes if they focused on sprinting full-time. He sees this race as a chance to prove that point.

“I’ve got a lot of respect for [Lyles],” Hill said. “But I feel like I’ve got to do this for the guys that play my sport. A lot of us did run track at some point, and we can come and take over your sport at any moment if we really wanted to.”

That’s a bold claim, considering Lyles’ dominance on the track. The 27-year-old sprinter recently won his fourth straight 60m title at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix, celebrating with a sign that read, “Tyreek Could Never.”

Noah Lyles wrote a little message on his bib for NFL star Tyreek Hill: “Tyreek could never.”

He held the bib up to his face after winning the NBIGP title with a 6.52🔥 pic.twitter.com/F2Pqjp63Vr

— Canadian Running (@CanadianRunning) February 2, 2025

Noah Lyles: ‘I Win When It Matters’

When asked about the sign, Lyles didn’t mince words.

“I think it speaks for itself,” Lyles told People. “Everybody says that they’re gonna be the world’s fastest, but when it comes down to it, you gotta be the winner every time, each and every time. And every time I show up to the biggest moments, I win.”

Lyles, who famously won his 100m Olympic gold medal at the Paris 2024 Olympics by just a millisecond with a personal-best time of 9.79 seconds, has plenty of reason to be confident.

Hill, who ran track in college, recorded a best 100m time of 10.19 seconds. And while Hill still has elite speed, Lyles consistently clocks between 6.4 and 6.5 seconds in the 60m dash — significantly faster than Hill’s last official track appearance, where he ran 6.70.

“That’s why I’m the world’s fastest,” Lyles continued. “I did it at the Olympics. I do it at world championships. I do it wherever it’s needed to be done. And if I gotta go down and, you know, beat up on Tyreek to prove that I’m the world’s fastest, then it’s gonna be done.”

No Shortage of Trash Talk Between Hill and Lyles

Despite the competitive fire, both athletes insist it’s all in good fun.

“As long as we ain’t putting people’s mamas in it, I don’t care,” Hill joked. “We can go as far as far can be. We’re here for a good time.”

Lyles, on the other hand, had a simple message: “If you’re gonna talk the talk, you gotta walk the walk.”

With the race officially on, the world will finally see if Hill can back up his words — or if Lyles will prove that Olympic track speed is a different beast. Either way, this battle of world-class sprinters is set to be one for the ages and will most likely take place sometime during the summer.