The 2018 U.S. Pizza Team Winter Athletic Trials were held at the Mid-America Restaurant Expo in Columbus, Ohio, yesterday.
It was a close race, with top prize for freestyle dough spinning going to Michael Reyes-Casanova from Ynot Italian by only half a point. Reyes-Casanova will now travel with the U.S. Pizza team to Italy in April to compete at the World Pizza Championships.
All scores/rankings from the U.S. Pizza Team Winter Athletic Trials are below.
Freestyle:
1. Michael Reyes-Casanova (Ynot Italian, Virginia Beach, VA)
2. Ryan LaRose (Leones Pizza, Columbus, OH)
3. David Calderon (Mombo's Pizza)
Largest Dough:
1. Ryan LaRose 31.5"
2. Wilhelm Rodriguez 31 3/16" (Papa's Pizza/ Campioni Bar y Tapas, Puerto Rico)
3. Nate Wilson 30 7/8" (600 Downtown, Bellefontaine, OH)
Fastest Pie:
1. Rick Wheeler 41.79s (Mad Mushroom, Lafayette, IN)
2. Wilhelm Rodriguez 43.44s
3. Matt Hickey 48.84s (Caliente Pizza and Draft House, Pittsburgh)
Box Folding:
1. Tiffany Westfall 27.27s (600 Downtown, Bellefontaine, OH)
2. Michael Reyes-Casanova 29.88s
3. Matt Hickey 30.53s
For more information about the U.S. Pizza Team and how it promotes pizza through sportsmanship, visit USPizzaTeam.com.
2018 U.S. Pizza Team Sponsors: