The Race 2022: What men are qualified & who are fighting for Master Final spot

With only three tournaments to go in the regular season, The Race 2022 is coming to a close.

The top 16 players in The Race qualify for the Estrella Damm Master Final, the most prestigious padel event in the world and the climax of every season.

This season's Master Final will return to the Palau Sant Jordi in Barcelona, a venue that broke the all-time attendance record the last time it hosted in 2019. 2022 is set to smash this record of 9.585 people, with over 10.000 people expected.

Find out what players are qualified and who are still fighting to be at the Estrella Damm Master Final 2022!

Also read: Overview: The best international players of the 2022 season

Who is qualified

Men's number ones Juan Lebrón and Alejandro Galán are qualified already for the Master Final, and all but guaranteed to be the one-seed for the event.

Currently on 12.720 points each, they are 3.330 clear of two-seed Sanyo Gutiérrez and Agustín Tapia, with 3.600 points up for grabs.

If Lebrón and Galán were to lose their first match in Malmö, Buenos Aires and Mexico, they would still earn 210 points. Gutiérrez and Tapia will have to win all remaining tournaments while the Spaniards lose all three of their matches to lose their spot at the top.

Gutiérrez and Tapia are also qualified for the Master Final, as are Arturo Coello and Fernando Belasteguín. Martín Di Nenno, Paquito Navarro, Pablo Lima and Franco Stupaczuk are also locked in. Six spots are still up for grabs.

 

The fight to the Sant Jordi

As 16th-placed Luciano Capra is currently on 3.650 points, and there are still 3.600 points available, everybody in the top 150 could theoretically still qualify.

Barring any shocks, it is best to look at the players within a thousand points of the 16th and final place of the Master Final.

Two players qualify for this: Lucas Campagnolo, who is on 3.030 points (620 points behind), and Javi Garrido, who is on 2.650 points (exactly 1.000 points behind).

19th-placed Coki Nieto is almost 1.500 points behind Capra, meaning he and new partner Di Nenno will need to go on a massive run for the Madrilean to get among the top 16.

Above Capra, but not yet mathematically qualified, are Alex Ruiz, Fede Chingotto, Juan Tello, Momo González and Capra's partner Maxi Sánchez.