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Five Guys Games: Who Will Reign Supreme?
A grand prize of $100,000 is at stake to the fastest and most accurate in three events: the potato race, cheese stack race and QC wrapping race.
Final preparations are underway for the Five Guys Games final, scheduled for May 13 at The Theater at MGM National Harbor in Maryland.
The Olympic-style competition began as an idea by the Murrell family to reward their hardworking store crew members. It evolved into a global phenomenon among the chain’s 50,000 employees. Crew members, managers and general managers have been competing in store, regional and semifinal rounds over the last six months.
A grand prize of $100,000 is at stake to the fastest and most accurate in three events: the potato race, cheese stack race and QC wrapping race. The games are judged by the Five Guys Training Team, who watch and time each competitor.
Let’s meet our eight 2026 Five Guys Games finalists:
- Jackson Chimbay | Wallkill, NY
- Chimbay is the man everyone must beat. Chimbay was the 2022 Five Guys Games champion and 2024 runner-up. He’s been to more finals than anyone in the field.
- Jonathan Martinez | Kingston, NY
- Martinez does not stop. At the NY/NJ regional, a blade broke on his second potato. He heard it. He saw it. He kept cutting. Martinez joined Five Guys three years ago at the Poughkeepsie store, commuting an hour each way. He regularly trains with Chimbay.
- Joshua Harvey | Albuquerque, NM
- Harvey is the defending champion, and he knows what it costs to lose. In the 2021 finals, he beat his opponent, but forgot to put a fork back in the container during the QC race. The penalty eliminated him.
- Jose Once | New York, NY
- Once is a 14-year Five Guys veteran and Chimbay’s older brother. Once helped Chimbay get hired at Five Guys. This is Once’s third finals appearance. The brothers regularly train together.
- Peter Le | Derry, NH
- Le was born in Vietnam and moved to New Hampshire at age 10 with his family. Before competitions, he takes days off and drives to New York and New Jersey to train with Chimbay, Once and Martinez.
- Carson Tate | Kingsport, TN
- Tate has been to the finals twice. Both times, he lost in the first round. Tate started with Five Guys at 16 to earn some gas money. Nine years later, he’s still there – now at general manager in Kingsport.
- Enock Akuwure | Liverpool, UK
- Akuwure broke his back a month before the London semifinals. He was attempting a deadlift personal record at the gym. He couldn’t work for two weeks. He found a stretching video on Instagram, watched YouTube tutorials, and started stretching morning and evening. Within a week, he could walk. He made it to London and won the whole thing.
- Aurelien Favreau | Paris, France
- Favreau finished third in the International Semifinals in London. He was just told a few days ago that due to circumstances beyond everyone’s control, the second-place finisher from London could not attend the finals. So, Favreau now will compete.