Sprint CEO Marcelo Claure
Sprint CEO Marcelo Claure

Editor’s note: This story was corrected to reflect that Claure referred to network performance, not subscriber count.

Sprint has some lofty ambitions.

Speaking at the Code Conference, Sprint CEO Marcelo Claure said on Wednesday that his company will rank No. 1 or No. 2 in network performance within two years.

That’s a big statement, particularly since Sprint lags behind AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile in the most recent third-party speed tests for call, text, and data performance, along with overall coverage.

CNET’s Roger Cheng noted that Claure thinks Sprint’s multiple bands of spectrum and investment in its network will help the company improve speeds in the next few years.

Sprint is currently the No. 3 network in America with 57.1 million customers, behind Verizon (133 million) and AT&T (121 million). The company is also fending off Bellevue-based T-Mobile, which now has 56.8 million customers and is poised to pass Sprint after eight consecutive quarters of more than one million net additions.

Sprint added 1.2 million net customers in the first quarter of 2015, retaining its position as the No. 3 U.S. wireless carrier, but revenue slipped by 7 percent to $8.3 billion, and the company’s net loss widened to $224 million for the quarter as customers shifted to new rate plans.

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Sprint, which also now has a physical presence in old RadioShack locations, has engaged in recent aggressive promotions in an attempt to attract new customers. USA TODAY noted that Sprint was losing 12,000 customers a day when Claure took over as CEO last year.

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