Hunter McIntyre Thinks He Deserves CrossFit Games Wildcard
Hunter McIntyre is known for talking a good game. He’s also known for backing it up.
“They’re scared. I don’t give a damn,” McIntyre told our Editor-in-Chief Justin LoFranco in an exclusive interview. He’s referring to the legion of CrossFit Games athletes who’ve called McIntyre out on social media for saying he’s got what it takes to take on the world’s fittest athletes at the Games.
“I’m not an idiot. I’m not a CrossFit Games champion in this shape right now. But at the same time, a wildcard presents an amazing opportunity,” McIntyre said. “Greg Glassman suggests that he thinks this sport is the definite for the fittest athlete on earth…if you suggest that, then let us in.”
McIntyre means the four wildcard invitations recently introduced to the CrossFit Games process. He thinks he should get one and he’s training hard to prove that he can hang with the fittest, even knock a few athletes down the leaderboard.
“Greg Glassman suggests that he thinks this sport is the definite for the fittest athlete on earth…if you suggest that, then let us in.”
A champion looking to cross over.
The world champion obstacle course racer was named one of the top 50 fittest athletes by Sports Illustrated in 2017. He’s been the undefeated champion of Broken Skull Ranch for three years, the OCR world champion six times and OCR national champion four times.
He’s also the 2017/2018 Tough Mudder X Undefeated Champion.
But McIntyre is looking to branch out into the sport of competitive CrossFit. “I’ve been doing this obstacle course racing for eight seasons now. I need more purpose in life. I need to challenge myself and know that when I leave this career behind as an athlete, that I’ve tested all the boundaries,” he told LoFranco.
“I know I’ve got the talent, I’ve got the strength, I’ve got the capacity, I’ve got the tenacity, I’m focused. A real true champion athlete can walk in different directions and pretty much nail the spot if they want to,” Hunter said.
“I’ve got the talent, I’ve got the strength, I’ve got the capacity…A real true champion athlete can walk in different directions and pretty much nail the spot if they want to.”
Hunter means business.
He’s started a petition, Get Hunter to the Games, and kicked off a world tour with FITAID to cover his training with top Games athletes.
“Over the next four months, until the start of the CrossFit Games, I’m going to chase the best athletes in the world. I’m going to sit down with them, I’m going to learn from them, I’m going to work with them, I’m going to try to beat them or I’m going to get beat up by them,”McIntyre said in episode one.
He flew out to Kansas to train with Jacob Heppner, then headed to southern California for some training with Sara Sigmundsdottir. And he just wrapped up training in Cookeville with Tia-Clair Toomey, Mat Fraser, Chris Hinshaw and then Power Monkey Camp with the Dancers.
That’s a lot of training with the big guns.
It is, but Hunter’s ready, and he’s hungry.
“I don’t mind getting my ass beat. I love challenges. I think this is a great opportunity for myself to reassess who I am as a person, define myself as a person and reinvigorate my career,” he said.
McIntrye wants to be 100% ready if Greg Glassman gives him the wildcard.
To Greg Glassman, he’d say: “What you’ve done is you’ve basically created a closed pyramid that only allows a very select few people to fit into. And if you truly think that this incredible sport that you’ve designed creates the fittest athletes on earth, you need to bring in other people on earth. You need to bring in other people to challenge that title…let me in.”
And those elite athletes? The naysayers that don’t think he can do it?
“I have a list of names of people that I think about. They’re all there, and they’ve all talked trash about me, but I’m coming.”
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