Is Dallin Pepper Ready to Take Over?
Dallin Pepper won the 2026 Rogue Invitational. Some might ask: how did he get here? The answer isn’t always linear, and for Pepper it meant starting as a teen in his family’s garage.
Remind me: The 2026 Rogue Invitational wrapped up last month in Aberdeen, Scotland, where the best of the best competed over three days. Pepper stayed consistent for most of the weekend, with eight top-five finishes. He held the lead over fellow competitor and friend James Sprague and was crowned champion of the 2026 Rogue Invitational.
- “The last event was great movements for me, and I had the cushion I wanted going into the final event, so it wasn’t until then that I felt pretty confident I was going to take it home,” Pepper said in a video on his YouTube page recapping the event. “Before that, it was still the mindset of fighting for every single point you can.”
Pepper’s story begins with the teen division of the CrossFit Games, not as a competitor but as a spectator. He watched the teen division at the 2015 CrossFit Games and, shortly after, began training with his dad in their family’s garage.
Only two years later, in 2017, he qualified for the boys 14-15 division at the CrossFit Games and came in first place. This began a streak of three first-place finishes in the teen division for Pepper. In 2022, he moved from the teen division to the individual competition and began to make a name for himself as a young athlete.
- Pepper made his CrossFit Games debut as an individual in 2023, finishing 19th.
- The next year he made a big jump, finishing the 2023 CrossFit Games in fifth place overall. Since that year, he’s placed no lower than fourth.
- Pepper began working with Matt Torres, currently CEO of Brute Strength Training, early on, as he transitioned from a teen to an individual athlete.
Pepper, best known as the King of the Echo Bike, shares a fun camaraderie with friends and training partners James Sprague and Jayson Hopper. The three often trade friendly, competitive banter on social media and can be seen on the competition floor glancing over to check one another’s pace on a machine or during a movement.
Sprague is now a two-time CrossFit Games champion, and Hopper was the 2025 CrossFit Games champion. The question is, will 2027 be Pepper’s year? Pepper’s closest finish was 2nd place at the 2026 CrossFit Games, just 27 points behind Sprague.
Pepper hasn’t shared his plans for the 2027 season yet; however, he seems to be eyeing a clean sweep of competitions. In a recent YouTube video reflecting on Rogue and answering viewer questions, Pepper indicated that Rogue is just one win on his list.
When asked why he got choked up when he was crowned Rogue champion, he replied, “I think that emotion just came from a very long year being so close at the CrossFit Games to reaching that goal. And now I finally, finally checked one off the list, and it feels pretty good.”
One last thing: The CrossFit Open begins in February 2027, marking the start of the Games season. Brute Strength Training athletes not only stood on the podium this year but also took home first-place finishes, setting a major precedent for the season ahead.
