Day Two of the 2022 World’s Strongest Man (WSM) contest has come to a close, and the Final is already taking shape. All five Qualifying groups have mathematically locked winners, with the Wrecking Ball Event still to come on Day Three of the competition.
The standout performances were Mitchell Hooper of Group 2, who won the Car Walk and took second in the Log Lift to claim an unofficial spot in the Final, and Maxime Boudreault’s retaliation in the Log Lift to shake up the standings in Group 4. Kearney posted a big win in the Car Walk out of Group 3 but couldn’t convert the needed points in his signature event — the Log Lift.
Four men have mathematically locked their spots in the Final, though it is not yet official. Tom Stoltman, Mitchell Hooper, Martins Licis, Oleksii Novikov, and Luke Stoltman need only to make an attempt in the Wrecking Ball Hold event on Day Three, and they will win their respective groups.
Check out the results of both Day Two events below:
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[Related: 2022 World’s Strongest Man Results and Leaderboard]
Car Walk Results
Athletes had to carry a red Volkswagen Bug that weighs 430 kilograms (950 pounds) down a 20-meter course as fast as possible.
Group 1
- Tom Stoltman — 14.65 seconds
- Gabriel Rhéaume — 16.44 seconds
- Kevin Faires — 19.32 seconds
- Aivars Šmaukstelis — 19.91 seconds
- Andy Black — 32.71 seconds
- Manuel Angulo — 60 seconds
Tom Stoltman knew the time to beat entering his heat, and he continued to prove why he currently bears the moniker of WSM. This was his third straight win and all but cemented his spot in the Final. Faires and Rhéaume furthered their hold on spots in the Stone-Off as Šmaukstelis couldn’t overtake them in the standings in this event.
Group 2
- Mitchell Hooper — 11.64 seconds
- Mark Felix — 13.96 seconds
- Bobby Thompson — 16.05 seconds
- Konstantine Janashia — 18.16 seconds
- Brian Shaw — 19.97 seconds
- Gabriel Peña — did not finish
Hooper showed up to show out again, scoring the hat trick of event wins in his WSM debut. He extended his lead and is guaranteed to make the Final as long as he shows up on Day Three and makes an attempt in the Wrecking Ball Hold.
Felix wowed the crowd with an incredible time that had the announcer of the event dumbfounded that he was reading a time of 13.96 seconds for the 56-year-old “Miracle Man.” Felix did not maintain that glory in the Log Lift, but what a memorable moment his Car Walk will remain for years to come.
Group 3
- Rob Kearney — 11.63 seconds
- Grzegorz Szymanski — 14.26 seconds
- Oleksii Novikov — 15.23 seconds
- Trey Mitchell — 19.24 seconds
- Adam Bishop — 23.38 seconds
- Mika Törrö — did not finish
The Car Walk yielded the best possible outcome for Kearney. After an unfortunate blunder in the Loading Race on Day One, he needed to score a big win in the Car Walk, which is exactly what happened. Furthermore, Syzmanski entered the event in last place but earned second-place points, posing as a solid blocker for Kearney to get further up the leaderboard.
Group 4
- Pavlo Kordiyaka — 12.92 seconds
- Martins Licis — 18.93 seconds
- Gavin Bilton — 23.67 seconds
- Maxime Boudreault — 49.28 seconds
- Nedžmin Ambešković — did not finish
- Shane Flowers — withdrew
Kordiyaka pulled out a big win in the Car Walk, which launched him into a second-place tie with Bilton heading into the Log Lift. A huge turnaround for Kordiyaka after falling victim to the overheated platform in the Deadlift Ladder at the end of Day One.
Group 5
- Evan Singleton —9.86 seconds
- Luke Stoltman — 16.65 seconds
- Jean-Stephen Coraboeuf —
- Eythor Ingolfsson Melsted — 29.07 seconds
- Kelvin De Ruiter — 60 seconds
- Kim Ujarak — did not finish (11.4 meters)
Singleton’s roller-coaster journey saw him withdraw from the competition halfway through Day One, only to return to competition at the start of Day Two. With the fastest time overall in the Car Walk, it seemed he might be able to get back into contention for a spot in the Stone-Off if he could also pull off a win in the Log Lift.
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[Related: Shane Flowers Withdraws From 2022 World’s Strongest Man]
Log Lift Results
Each athlete attempted to lift 145 kilograms (320 pounds) for as many reps as possible in 75 seconds.
Group 1
- Tom Stoltman — Eight reps
- Kevin Faires — Seven reps
- Gabriel Rhéaume — Six reps
- Aivars Šmaukstelis — Four reps
- Andy Black — Zero reps
- Manuel Angulo — Zero reps
Stoltman made won his fourth consecutive event, mathematically securing his place in the Final to defend the WSM title. He is thus far flawless at the 2022 WSM contest, and his prospects for being the first champion to earn back-to-back WSM wins since Brian Shaw in 2016 seem promising.
Group 2
- Bobby Thompson — Eight reps
- Mitchell Hooper — Seven reps
- Brian Shaw — Seven reps (T-second)
- Konstantine Janashia — Five reps
- Gabriel Peña — One rep
- Mark Felix — Zero reps
Thompson displayed why the Log Lift is his signature event, but the limelight remained on Hooper, who shared second-place points with Shaw. Hooper entered the competition as a dark horse but has emerged as the mathematically-locked winner of Group 2 with an event to spare.
Group 3
- Oleksii Novikov — Nine reps
- Trey Mitchell — Nine reps (T-first)
- Adam Bishop — Seven reps
- Rob Kearney — Six reps
- Grzegorz Szymanski — Three reps
- Mika Törrö — Two reps
Novikov showed up at the 2022 WSM to make up for his missed Final in 2021. He’s earned enough points to secure the Group win with the Wrecking Ball Hold still to come.
Group 4
- Maxime Boudreault — 10 reps
- Pavlo Kordiyaka — Nine reps
- Martins Licis — Nine reps (T-second)
- Gavin Bilton — Seven reps
- Nedžmin Ambešković — Two reps
- Shane Flowers — withdrew
Boudreault put on arguably the most impressive performance of in the Log Lift event. He power cleaned nearly half his reps. It shot him back into contention for a spot in the Stone-Off. Licis is a lock to win this group, so the question is whether he’ll take an additional rest day or play dreamcrusher.
Group 5
- Luke Stoltman — 10 reps
- Eythor Ingolfsson Melsted — Eight reps
- Jean-Stephen Coraboeuf — Seven reps
- Kim Ujarak — Six reps
- Kelvin De Ruiter — One rep
- Evan Singleton — One rep (T-fifth)
Luke Stoltman’s performance in the Log Lift was any other day at the office. Another event win under his belt secures his place in the Final, with the Wrecking Ball Event still to come.
Gonna Wreck It!
Day Three features the Wrecking Ball Hold at 8:00 a.m. PST. It is the last event to determine which athletes will compete in the Stone-Off at 1:30 p.m. PST. Each group’s second and third-ranked strongmen will battle head-to-head for a spot in the 2022 WSM Final. The 2022 WSM Final is scheduled for May 28-29, 2022.
Featured image via @theworldsstrongestman on Instagram
