Former Nigerian striker Obafemi Martins has claimed he was faster in his prime than Cristiano Ronaldo, Kylian Mbappe and Thierry Henry.
The 40-year-old made the remarks during an appearance on The Obi One Podcast, hosted by former Super Eagles captain John Obi Mikel and Chris McHardy.
In the interview released on August 31, Martins said: “I was faster than Cristiano Ronaldo, Mbappe and Henry in my prime. I'll say it again: in my prime, I was faster than all of them. I've said it before, and none of them said anything.”
The show, which is backed by BetWinner, focused on his career breakthrough at Inter Milan and his time in England.
It is not the first time Martins has made the assertion. In December 2024, during a speed challenge with ESPN UK at the CAF Awards in Morocco, he was shown images of several forwards and defenders known for pace, including Micky van de Ven, Kyle Walker, Arjen Robben, Gareth Bale, Mohamed Salah and Ronaldo Nazario, and said he was faster than all of them.
Martins built his reputation on speed after breaking through at Inter Milan in 2002, where he was once clocked at 36 kilometers per hour and earned a 99 pace rating in the Pro Evolution Soccer video game series.