Top Chef headed to Milan and took one step closer to crowning a new winner. However, the journey of another contestant came to an end. This elimination hurt since it was so close to the finish line.

The very last quickfire involved a Milan specialty and Top Chef kryptonite: risotto. Each competitor had 35 minutes to cook, but since the dish is time sensitive, their cooking times were staggered five minutes to guarantee an optimal dining experience. This time around their performance in this challenge would not influence who would be eliminated, and the winner would receive the highest quickfire payout of $15,000.

The elimination challenge was the ultimate culinary match up involving a three part head-to-head tournament featuring ingredients from Milan and Cortina, the host cities of the 2026 Winter Olympics, and in between. The first round featured polenta, the second round beets, and the last round Gorgonzola cheese. The winner of each round earned their spot in the finale and didn’t have to cook moving forward into the tournament. To play with the Olympic theme, one of four olympians and paralympians helped each chef shop for ingredients. As an added bonus, the winner of the first round received a $15,000 Delta gift card to help them continue their journey as a chef.

Here are our Top Chef Power Rankings heading into the finale.

New episodes of Top Chef air Thursdays on Bravo.