'The final is going to be bloody, I'm here to win' - Favour Ashe says ahead of NCAA 100m final

Favour Ashe is confident of having a memorable outing in the 100m final at the NCAA Championships.

The Auburn University sophomore student clocked a lifetime best of 9.96s, his fastest legal time on US soil, to smoothly win his semifinal race and advance to the final.

Interestingly, he isn't the only Nigerian sprinter that advanced as Godson Brume and Udodi Onwuzurike also secured their spots, making it the first time in NCAA history that three Nigerian male sprinters will be racing in a men's 100m final.

Likewise, Brume clocked a sub-10s and lifetime best of 9.93s for victory in his semifinal race, while Onwuzurike's 10.04s for fourth position was good enough to secure a spot.

Ashe, who will be making his second consecutive 100m final at the championship after winning a silver medal last year, said this time he's in Austin to win. He stated this in a post-race interview with Florack.

"I came to this championship with the mindset of winning. Even though I sprained my hamstring, and I'm still practicing and all that," he said.

The speedster also spoke on being happy to peak at the right time at the nationals and ahead of the World Championships in Budapest.

"When I pulled out from the indoor nationals and Florida, my coach was like let's take it easy till SEC's. So we were doing rehab.

In the SEC, my race wasn't what I wanted, I came second in 10.04s. Since the regionals, I've been taking it gradually. So I'm happy I peaked at the right time."

And on how fast the 100m final will be on Friday, Ashe predicted a 9.8s low.

"The final is going to be bloody, I know I'm here to win. I'm pretty sure the final is going to be 9.8s low."

If Ashe, Brume, and Onwuzurike succeed in winning medals in the 100m final, it'll be the first time a country other than the US secure a clean sweep in NCAA history.