SAN ANTONIO — Michael Phelps never minds a little trash-talking. It just makes him go faster.
After spending all day digesting Chad le Clos’ taunts from halfway around the world, Phelps beat the South African’s time from the world championships to win the 100-meter butterfly at the U.S. national championships Saturday night.
Phelps churned through the water on the return lap, far ahead of everyone, and touched in a dazzling 50.45 seconds. He was nearly a second faster than his gold-medal winning time at the London Olympics and, more important to Phelps, he went faster than le Clos’ time about eight hours earlier in Kazan, Russia, where he won the world championship in 50.56.
