Wagner Holds Off Wright at Chickin’ Pickin’ VIII

Defending Chickin’ Pickin’ Champion Jonathan Wagner held off a strong challenge from his top rival, Chester Wright, during Chickin’ Pickin’ VIII at the 63^rd Annual Delmarva Chicken Festival.

(Salisbury, MD) On Saturday, June 16^th in Salisbury, Maryland, a large crowd and perfect weather at this year’s Delmarva Festival set the stage for the one of the most competitive Mountaire Chickin’ Pickin’ Championships to date.  Beginning at 1:30pm, amid a frenzied crowd, twenty lucky contestants began their march towards championship fame and the $500 prize with Cat Country 97.5 and 105.9’s EJ Foxx calling the action.

Event partner, EM-ING’S BBQ Chicken and Catering, prepared 180 Mountaire oven roasted ‘birds for the four preliminary heats and final round that comprise Chickin’ Pickin’.  With a mix of new faces and seasoned veterans, some young and some more experienced in life, there were some intense moments along with some comic relief. 

In round 1, four-time runner-up Chester Wright of Dagsboro, Delaware topped the scales at 8.4 lbs of shredded meat.  Rounds 2 and 3 were taken by newcomers John Depod (7.6 lbs) and Mike Enixson (7.3 lbs).  Round 4 featured reigning champion Jonathan Wagner of Parsonsburg, Maryland who delivered the best weight of the day at 11.6 lbs.

Once again the final round came down to Wagner versus Wright as both John Depod and Mike Enixson experience from earlier rounds wasn’t enough to keep them in contention.  After five minutes of furious action that saw chicken slamming, chicken punching and plenty of chicken crushing two overflowing meat trays stood out with neither looking to have an edge.   Chester Wright, who was looking to finally claim his first title, weighed in first at 15.15 lbs.  Wagner was last up, and as the crowd fell silent with anticipation, Chester Wright just shook his head in disbelief as he snuck a peak at the scale which read 17 lbs.   Jonathan Wagner has successfully defended his Mountaire Chickin’ Pickin’ Title and claimed the $500 in prize money.  Wright did not go home empty handed though; he landed $250 for 2^nd place.

The next Mountaire Chickin’ Pickin’ Championship is slated for Friday, July 20^th from 5pm to 6:30pm inside the Free Entertainment tent at the Delaware State Fair in Harrington, Delaware.  For more information on the Mountaire Chickin’ Pickin’ Championship visit www.mountaire.comor contact Roger Marino at rmarino@mountaire.com

About Chickin’ Pickin’

The Mountaire Chickin’ Pickin’ Championship pits 20 contestants against one another in a contest of speed, skill and strategy.  Each event features four preliminary heats of five competitors each, with our four winners advancing to the finals.  In the simplest terms, our winners are determined by who can pick and shred the most meat from our oven roasted chicken(s) in a 5 minute time frame.  Contestants have access to an unlimited amount of cooked ‘birds, HOWEVER, they must pick and shred all the meat and skin from a single ‘bird before moving on to a new one.  That includes meat from the breast, thighs, legs, wings and back.  The picked meat is thrown into a collection tray, which gets weighed at competitions end to determine our winner. Contest judges are on hand to specify when a contestants ‘bird is deemed fully picked, thus allowing them to start a new one.  This process will go on for the entire (5) minutes. There can be zero bones or large chunks of meat in the collection tray.  Such items will be removed before being weighed.