Pizza makers from around the world competed for coveted title
Domino’s Pizza Inc., the largest pizza company in the world, awarded the 2022 World’s Fastest Pizza Maker title to Zagros Jaff among nearly 8,000 cheering spectators at The Venetian Resort in Las Vegas on May 10. Jaff, a regional manager in Hampshire, England, made three large pizzas in an impressive 70 seconds – that’s equal to making each pizza in roughly 23 seconds! Jaff won $3,000 in prize money, a trophy, a championship belt and the coveted title of World’s Fastest Pizza Maker, presented by Domino’s Chief Executive Officer Russell Weiner.
“I am so excited to have won the World’s Fastest Pizza Maker Competition,” said Jaff. “I have been training for this for 12 years. This competition means everything to me. Making pizzas fast and efficiently is the heart of Domino’s business – it’s what I do every single day. I want to be the best and I love the rivalry. It makes me work harder.”
World’s Fastest Pizza Maker finalists came from Domino’s stores all around the world to compete. They had to hand-stretch fresh dough, as well as sauce and place toppings on three large pizzas – one pepperoni, one mushroom and one cheese – as quickly as possible. While speed was important, it was not the only part of the equation in determining the World’s Fastest Pizza Maker. This year, participants were graded on three criteria: dough/sauce, portioning of toppings and placement. Quality was scrutinized as two judges, who are highly qualified in Domino’s standard pizza-making practices, inspected the stretching of the dough, application of the sauce and portioning of toppings during the competition. If the pizza was not perfect, the judges added time penalties to the competitor’s time or the pizza was disqualified.
Domino’s began the World’s Fastest Pizza Maker competition in 1982 to honor pizza makers who best exemplify the company’s philosophy of keeping efficiency in the store to allow sufficient time for safe, timely pizza delivery.
“We couldn’t be happier to crown Jaff as Domino’s 2022 World’s Fastest Pizza Maker,” said Weiner. “Domino’s and its franchise owners employ some of the greatest pizza makers in the world. Our emphasis is on the quality of the pizza, while also using our expertise to get them made quickly. We are known as the ‘delivery experts’ and our goal for everyone in a Domino’s store is to get hot, great-tasting pizzas to customers’ doors safely and efficiently. The World’s Fastest Pizza Maker Competition recognizes the champions who take pizza-making to an entirely different level. This level of speed is absolutely unbelievable!”
Jaff started working for Domino’s as a pizza maker in 2007. He currently works for franchise owner Wayne Benson.
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