Michael Johnson On The State Of Grand Slam Track With Less Than A Month Until It Debuts

"I think that it has gotten to a point where we've taken the racing out of racing. We've taken the sport and turned it into something else. Track is about racing. You have eight athletes on the track for a reason. You award a champion or award a winner of the race for a reason: because they outperformed everyone else. And that's not easy. That's one of my fears: that people will start to think that it's easy, because the winner is not really being highlighted for having won. They're being highlighted for having run a personal best. 

Ultimately, if you're not careful, you end up with this deconstructed competition where it's not about the athletes in the race… We're very excited about what we're bringing...I can't wait. That's what you want. One of the things that's funny to me is when I see people in the track world on social media talking about fantasy matchups. It’s like: We have the real fantasy over here. It's real. It's not fantasy. It's actually happening."

The countdown is on. We are just one month away from the launch of Grand Slam Track, a bold new league that promises to shake up the sport of track and field—and today, we’re talking to the man behind it all, Michael Johnson.

We’ve done multiple episodes with MJ as a four-time Olympic champion, world record holder and one of the most respected voices in the sport. If you haven’t listened to those, I suggest you go back and do so. Our 2022 CITIUS MAG Live at Worlds interview with him is one of the best big picture conversations we’ve done on the state of the sport.

 Johnson has spent years analyzing what’s missing in professional track. His solution? A structured, high-stakes, athlete-driven competition that puts rivalries, personalities, and pure racing at the forefront.

With 48 signed Racers, a multi-platform media deal, and a $30 million investment, Grand Slam Track is designed to change how the sport operates, creating a true professional league that’s built to last.

Today, we dive into:

• How the league is strategically structuring itself to maximize the talent track 

• What success really looks like in Year 1 from a business standpoint

• Inside the TV deal and how it came together

• The lessons from other sports (even WWE) that can help track engage more fans

• And more on what to expect when the first meet kicks off in Kingston

Michael Johnson isn’t here to wait for change—he’s making it happen. Let’s get into it.

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