Well, Coach Rob has been under the spotlight recently, but not for the good reasons. He’s the American coach who’s always got these super strong opinions, and lately, he’s been saying stuff that’s really got the track world buzzing! He says exactly what he thinks, no filter at all. Recently, Rob took some shots at Kishane Thompson from Jamaica. Thompson’s only 23 and he’s already got an Olympic silver medal in the 100m! Remember how he almost beat Noah Lyles at the Paris Olympics in 2024? It was incredibly close.

Anyway, in a podcast, Rob called Thompson “unreliable.” He said that, “He [Thompson] is a thing. He is a situation. Every time he runs, it’s a situation. Like the idea of him running is a situation. Because he might not actually run.”, in other words he questioned Thompson’s consistency, even though the guy ran a world-leading 9.77 at Jamaica’s trials. Well, Fans didn’t take these remarks well, and they started an uproar against him. Yet, Rob doesn’t pay heed and now took another star in his crosshairs.

Rob has turned his attention to Akani Simbine from South Africa. You might have seen it—Simbine ran a 9.98 and edged out Thompson at the Shanghai Diamond League meet on May 3rd, 2025. In a recent episode of the The Final Leg Track & Field podcast, Rob just dismissed Simbine, saying he wasn’t really a threat to American sprinters like Lyles. He basically suggested that Simbine’s win in Keqiao—where he beat both Thompson and the Olympic champ Letsile Tebogo, who ran 10.03—was just a fluke.

Rob’s comments totally seemed to play down Simbine’s run, ignoring that it was his third time running under 10 seconds already in 2025, including a 9.90 he ran at the Golden Grand Prix in Botswana! And let’s not forget Simbine won a relay silver at the Paris Olympics and gold at the World Relays. Is Rob seriously underestimating a sprinter who seems to be at his peak?

With Rob having these bold opinions and taking aim at athletes like Kishane Thompson and Simbine, let’s just say the fans aren’t exactly quiet about it. People are really upset and pushing back hard against Rob’s comments online. It seems like a lot of fans are up in arms against him right now, feeling like he’s being disrespectful to some seriously talented sprinters.

Well, for Coach Rob, it seems like his mouth is running faster than any sprinter right now, and the fans? They are sprinting over to X to call him out!

Fans Bash Coach Rob Over His Akani Simbine Comments

His latest move was on a podcast where he took a jab at South African star Akani Simbine, suggesting the 31-year-old’s victory was just a fluke, not a sign that he’s dominating. And the fans on X did not hold back! One user snapped back, “Don’t worry Rob Akani will definitely be remembered as one of Africa’s greatest with or without medals,” making a great point about Simbine’s legacy.

Another fan just fired away, saying, “Man you and your hot takes are just wow, Akani is the man to beat not Noah or anyone as of now.” Seriously, how is Rob’s shade not fueling Simbine’s fire?

And the backlash is just getting hotter when you look at Simbine’s resume. One X fan raved, “Akani’s consistency really needs to be studied, he’s be a top performer since Rio 2016 when bolt was still running!” And someone else added, clearly enjoying the drama, “I really love how you guys keep undermining Akani, keep it coming, more fuel for him.” You have to wonder, is Rob’s doubt just pushing Simbine to new heights?

Rob’s history of controversial takes, like that earlier dig at Thompson, definitely keeps him in the crosshairs. You see fans saying stuff like, “Sometimes its you just say random stuff for the sake of it man, Akani will not be a dark horse,” just blasting him on X. As the 2025 Diamond League circuit moves on to Doha, Simbine seems totally ready to just let his performance do the talking with his spikes.

Can he actually get out there and prove Rob completely wrong on the track? It’s definitely got the fans talking on X, and everyone’s going to be watching!