Want to Go to the UAE to Win $30,000? Meet Mayhem Desert Heat

Mayhem Nation announced a new elite and RX level invitational competition — Mayhem Desert Heat — that will be putting up more than $150,000 in prize money split between 20 elite men and women. The competition is scheduled for November 12 and 13, 2021 located in Ras Al Khaimah, UAE. 

One big thing: Mayhem Desert Heat will be structured similar to the former CrossFit Invitational in the sense that it’s a handful of events in a shorter, compressed timeline that’s made for TV. It’s also the start of a long-term relationship between Mayhem and Ras Al Khaimah. 

• Athletes won’t be spending long days going from event to event, and fans will be able to watch their favorite athletes live in one sitting. Translation: think six-pack of beer versus an entire keg. 
• There will be a lot of extra amenities for elite athletes typically not included in other events. A modest registration fee will go towards providing things like transportation inside of the UAE, lodging, food and (potentially) some excursions. 
• The top prize hasn’t been set, but discussions indicate it could be at or above the $25,000 cash payout level. 

The details: The competition will be held in Ras Al Khaimah, UAE from November 12-13, 2021. 

• Rich Froning will be programming all the events and will also be onsite at the competition running training with Rich seminars. 
• Five male and female elite athlete spots are being reserved as invite-only. 
• 15 elite athlete spots can be earned by going through the online qualifier, which will run an entire month starting on Thursday, August 13. 
• 40 male and female RX athletes will earn spots by going through the same online qualifier. 
• To secure a special invite for the elite division, email events@mayhemnation.com.

Who’s on the roster? So far, we’re hearing that Saxon Panchik, Haley Adams, Jeff Adler, Khan Porter and Roman Khrennikov have expressed interest.  

The big picture: We’re seeing a shift away from expensive, day-long, multi-day competitions with 40+ athlete rosters towards more micro, themed events that are made for entertainment and optimized to live stream to an internet audience. 

• In Spain, the Freakest Challenge is a wildly successful event run annually in Barcelona that works in partnership with NIKE to put on a single-day, multi-lingual, two-and-a-half hour event that has featured athletes like Mat Fraser, Sara Sigmundsdottir, Laura Horvath and Noah Ohlsen.
• In Ireland, the organizers of the former Filthy150 Sanctional are already working hard on a new event for late November that follows a similar format in terms of entertainment and viewing experience. 
• In Denmark, the Butcher’s Classic is a three-day same sex team of two competition with about $8,000 up for grabs. Annie Thorisdottir and Katrin Davidsdottir won the event pre-pandemic.