Spoiler warning: this article covers results from episodes 1–5 of Physical 100: Italy.
Italy’s version of Netflix’s Physical 100 has already sent home an Olympic gymnastics champion, a TV star and one of the country’s biggest YouTubers. On Friday 2 October, the final decides who takes the €100,000 and the title of Italy’s most complete body.
- Italian title: Physical Italia: da 100 a 1
- Premiere: 11 September 2026 on Netflix
- Format: 8 episodes over four Fridays – episodes 1–3 on 11 Sept, 4–5 on 18 Sept, 6–7 on 25 Sept, final on 2 Oct
- Prize: €100,000
- Contestants: 100, aged 22 to 60, selected from more than 1,000 candidates
- Production: Endemol Shine Italy
- Still in after episode 5: 20 competitors
Who’s still in Physical 100: Italy?
After episode 5, 20 of the original 100 were still standing. Episodes 6 and 7, released on 25 September, cut that further ahead of the final. Among the team leaders still in contention after episode 5, according to The National’s episode tracker:
- Andrea Minguzzi – 2008 Olympic Greco-Roman wrestling champion
- Paolo Masella – butcher, bodybuilder and former Grande Fratello (Big Brother Italy) contestant
- Sebastian Rodwell – Calcio Storico Fiorentino champion
- Daniele Scatizzi – MMA fighter
- Emanuele Bruno – judo champion, leading the team that fought its way back through the redemption round
We’re not listing the full remaining field from episodes 6 and 7 until reliable recaps confirm it. We’ll fill that in with the final result.
The contenders worth watching
Paolo Masella, the butcher
Every edition of this show seems to find a working man who turns out to be as tough as the athletes. In Mexico it was Freddy Bautista, the Legendary Bricklayer. In Italy it’s Masella, a butcher from a family of butchers who runs Macelleria Fratelli Masella and is known on the show as Il Macellaio. He led a team to victory over CrossFit athlete Emanuele Biviano’s team, according to The Tab.
Andrea Minguzzi, the Olympic champion
Minguzzi won Olympic gold in Greco-Roman wrestling at Beijing 2008. Wrestling is a strong base for this format: it builds full-body strength, grip and the ability to keep fighting through fatigue, which is most of what Physical 100 tests.
The fighters: Rodwell and Scatizzi
Calcio Storico Fiorentino is a centuries-old Florentine game that’s closer to a street fight than to football, and Rodwell is a champion at it. Scatizzi comes from MMA. Both sports reward short, violent efforts repeated under fatigue.
The biggest moments so far
An hour and 27 minutes. The opening endurance test, held on a suspended grid above a pool, was won by CrossFit athlete Elisa Fuliano, who lasted more than one hour and 27 minutes. The bottom 20 went home. Holding on that long is mostly a test of grip, shoulders and stubbornness – and grip is worth having: it’s one of the best simple markers of how well you are ageing.
The Olympian who picked the wrong opponent. Jury Chechi, the 1996 Olympic rings champion, chose MMA fighter and personal trainer Ivano Salerno for his one-on-one duel. Salerno outlasted him in the three-minute possession battle and one of the show’s most decorated athletes was out in the first week.
The celebrity exits. Elisabetta Canalis lost her duel to Fuliano, and content creator Luis Sal lost his to powerlifter Filippo Pici. Actor and former rugby player Alvise Rigo saw his whole team eliminated, then brought them back by winning the Pillars of Hercules redemption challenge.
What Mexico tells us about who wins
If Physical 100: Mexico is any guide, don’t bet on the biggest body. Mexico’s winner, Ángel Quintero, was a 38-year-old obstacle racer who’d been knocked out once and came back. He won on laps and loaded carries, not on maximum lifts. Late-stage Physical 100 challenges tend to reward endurance, pacing and the ability to keep working when everyone else’s forearms have gone – the same qualities that decide hybrid races like HYROX and CrossFit.
That makes the wrestler and the combat athletes strong bets, and it makes the butcher an interesting outside chance. We’ll find out on 2 October.
Physical 100: Italy FAQ
When is the Physical 100: Italy final?
Episode 8, the final, is released on Netflix on Friday 2 October 2026.
How much does the Physical 100: Italy winner get?
The winner takes home €100,000.
How many episodes does Physical 100: Italy have?
Eight, released over four Fridays from 11 September to 2 October 2026.
Who won Physical 100: Mexico?
Ángel Quintero, a Spartan and HYROX racer from Naucalpan, won the first Mexican edition and 3 million pesos.
