London Marathon: Mo Farah to 'obliterate' Steve Jones' 1985 record
- Published
Mo Farah is ranked 27th in the world in the marathon
Mo Farah will not only break the British marathon record this weekend, he will "obliterate" it.
That is according to current holder, Welshman Steve Jones, who ran the Chicago Marathon in 2:07:13 in 1985.
"It's been a long time coming," said Jones, "I don't think it's going to be broke by a second of two, it's going to be smashed."
Sunday will be Farah's second London Marathon attempt, after finishing eighth in 2014.
Having retired from track racing, the four-time Olympic champion said he is better prepared this time around.
Steve Jones won the London and Chicago marathons in 1985
Jones, who won races in Chicago, London, New York and Toronto, said he believed Farah's first London Marathon attempt was more of a test than a serious race.
He finished with a time of 2:08:21, which Jones said was "not bad for a semi-hard training run".
He said Farah has "the pedigree" to compete with the best in the world, and thinks he is "quietly confident in his abilities".
"It's going to take a very fast time to win the race, and I hope that Mo would be there, not necessarily in the front, but manipulating the pace from behind as he does on the track.
"Those guys are going to be a bit concerned with Mo Farah sat on their back tails."
Jones believes if Farah is still with the leaders after 23 miles (37km) "he will put the hammer down and try to get rid of them".
"He has a sprint-finish second to none."