For the Killer Bartending Championship, Sam Olguin and Brenon Stuart are looking to mixed martial arts. They've devised a bracketed competition where 16 bartenders will vie for a $10,001 cash prize and a championship belt. Over eight weeks, the pool of mixologists will be whittled down until a champion is crowned on Sept. 2.
“Competing in combat sports for my entire life, I’ve done tons of competitions and events,” Olguin says. "That’s what we’re going off of – we’re trying to make it with a little more production, a little more show.”
The modern mixologists, who also own Roosevelt Row's Disco Dragon, F.Y.P.M., Pretty Penny and Legends Never Die, want to inject some of the theater of an MMA tournament. Think fight cards, walkout songs and Stuart as the referee during each event. But, the duo's primary goal is to elevate the competing bartenders.
“We want to take these people that are doing really cool stuff and give you a platform and help promote you,” Olguin explains.
How does the Killer Bartending Championship work?
Following an application and tryout round, 16 slingers have been selected. They are listed by their seed in the competition: - Arein Nguyen
- Mitch Lyons
- Justin Chard
- Delena Humble-Fischer
- Aspen Bingham
- Abby Kate Larson
- Robert Cate
- Vance Haywood
- Ruben Fernandez, III
- Ashley Cibor
- Mike Lopez
- Alana Tivnan
- Richie Sullivan
- Donald Dow
- Tiarnan O’Gara
- Nick Cabrera
Starting on July 15, the bartenders will face off in a variety of challenges ranging from trivia and cocktail presentation to speed rounds and “Chopped”-style mix-offs using mystery ingredients, Olguin says. The competition is spaced out over eight weeks to allow the bartenders time to prepare.
“It’s not just a one-and-done who makes the best drink sort of thing. It’s more encompassing,” Olguin explains. “It’s probably going to be the most difficult competition that we’ve had in Arizona.”
The Killer Bartending Championship joins notable local mixology throwdowns such as Last Slinger Standing, in which 16 bartenders go head-to-head to create cocktails using mystery ingredients, tools and techniques. The entire contest happens in one action-packed night.
For the Killer competition, Olguin says they want to spotlight mixologists who are at the top of their game but hope to present them in a format that's not buttoned up or run of the mill, much like MMA.
Combat spots are more freeing, he says, noting “people get to be themselves a little more. We want to bring that kind of element to it."
He also emphasizes the breadth of knowledge that competitors will have to flex to emerge victorious, from proving their understanding of current trends and modern techniques to accuracy and creativity.
The size of the prize matters, too – Olguin and Stuart set out to make it the cocktail competition with the highest purse.
“The biggest one I’ve ever seen is $10,000,” Olguin says.
He hopes the purse will set a new precedent among these contests, which sometimes just offer bragging rights.
“People are going to be very surprised when they come and see what they actually have to do and what they actually have to know. It’s very serious," Olguin says.
The size of the prize matters, too – Olguin and Stuart set out to make it the cocktail competition with the highest purse.
“The biggest one I’ve ever seen is $10,000,” Olguin says.
He hopes the purse will set a new precedent among these contests, which sometimes just offer bragging rights.
“A $10,000 cash prize could be a month or two or working,” he says. “I can’t pay rent with legacy. Money talks and we all go to work for money.”
The public is invited to each Monday night throwdown at Killer Whale Sex Club until a champion is named on Labor Day. There’s no cost to attend and entry is first come, first served. Olguin says his team will bring the grill from Pretty Penny to sell food. Although he's not naming names yet, Olguin says the competition judges will include "heavy hitters" from the Valley and beyond.
As Olguin and Stuart ready to kick off this inaugural competition, they have big dreams to host a larger, international competition in the future, too.
“The end goal is to always host a local competition," he says, "but then we want to be able to do something global."
