Ferdinand Omanyala Finally Spills the Truth About the IShowSpeed Controversy: 'The Guy Never Reached Out'

Africa’s fastest man, Ferdinand Omanyala, has clarified the IShowSpeed controversy, noting that the American streamer never reached out to him.

Ferdinand Omanyala pointed out that he got the information from his friend in South Africa, Henricho Bruintjies, and they planned the best way to capitalise on the visit.

Speaking during an interview on TV47, Ferdinand Omanyala pointed out that he decided to let the situation unfold naturally, viewing it as an opportunity to generate attention and discussion, noting that he actually enjoys being in the spotlight and having people talk about him.

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“Funny thing is that the guy never reached out to me. So, this is where the branding aspects come in, you know. I heard he's coming, and I got it from a friend in South Africa who told me I should come. I was like, ‘Oh yeah, okay.’ I was just in a conversation,” Ferdinand Omanyala shared.

“Let him come. But then I slept it out, and like I can use this opportunity, man, for people to talk about me. And I'm that guy who loves when people talk about me.”

Ferdinand Omanyala explained that he and his team had crafted a visual of him racing IShowSpeed and that he instructed Henricho Bruintjies to share it online.

Afterwards, Ferdinand Omanyala reshared the post himself, adding a playful comment suggesting he would outperform the competitor from the very start.

The Commonwealth Games champion emphasised that most people wouldn’t know the behind-the-scenes strategy; they would only see the initial post sparking conversation.

Omanyala noted that he used the moment deliberately to generate buzz, increase engagement, and promote his personal brand, turning a simple idea into a tool for broader recognition.

Ferdinand Omanyala described how, once that wave of attention settled, he immediately looked for the next opportunity to create interest, reflecting on his understanding of social media trends and what content tends to capture attention and keep people talking.

“We created an image of me racing him, and then I told the guy to post, and then I reposted and said, ‘I'll whip this guy on the first step.’ You understand? Nobody knows that. They know how to start a conversation,” he revealed.

“I mean, I use this as a way of just getting people to talk about this and just use this opportunity to get numbers and just understand what the brand is all about. And then after a while, when that went down, I was like, let me look for something else. And you know what social media likes?”

Ferdinand Omanyala explained that he knew the other party was drawn to the finer things in life and motivated by money, so he decided to introduce a financial angle into their interactions.

Omanyala described how he suggested bringing people into the conversation and made it clear that if IShowSpeed wanted to race him, there would need to be a monetary commitment.

He said that this approach became a sort of ongoing discussion for about a month, setting the stage for negotiation. He recalled that in the final two days before the event, an actual contract was presented, which prompted him to take the arrangement seriously and move forward with the plans.

“They love luxurious life. They love money. So, I threw in the aspect of money, and I was like get some guys. Let's have a conversation. I was like, if that guy wants to rest me has to put in the money. So this Yeah. I mean, we are used to that, and we were on that for like a month. But then it was the last two days before he came, there was a contract that was put up, and I was like okay,” he added.