Austin Perkins (born April 25, 1999) is an American powerlifter who competes in the unequipped (classic) 74 kg class of the International Powerlifting Federation (IPF). He is a three-time IPF World Classic Open champion (2024–2026) and holds the IPF world records in the squat, deadlift, and total in his weight class. His total of 891.5 kg (1,965.4 lb), set at the 2026 World Championships, exceeds the world record total of the 83 kg class. As of June 2026, Perkins held the highest IPF GL score of any lifter in the OpenIPF rankings, a formula used to compare performances across bodyweights; on this basis he has been described in strength-sports media as among the greatest pound-for-pound powerlifters competing.
Early life and career Perkins is from Clinton, Mississippi, where he attended Clinton High School. As a high-school senior he won his weight class at the 2017 USA Powerlifting High School National Championship, held on April 1, 2017, in Scranton, Pennsylvania, with a 551 lb (250 kg) squat, a 325 lb (147 kg) bench press, and a 584 lb (265 kg) deadlift; he was the lightest competitor in his class at the time.
Perkins went on to compete for the powerlifting program at Midland University in Fremont, Nebraska, under coach Tim Anderson. At the 2019 University World Cup in Tartu, Estonia, he won the tournament's overall Best Lifter award and set junior world records in the squat (275 kg) and deadlift (307.5 kg) in the 75 kg class, as Midland's men's team won the team title.
Career Perkins won the Open 74 kg class and the overall Best Lifter award at the IPF World Classic Open Championships in three consecutive years, raising his winning total from 836 kg in 2024 to 891.5 kg in 2026. In January 2026 he also won the invitational SBD Sheffield Championships, setting IPF world records in the squat and total.
World Championship results + IPF World Classic Open Championships — 74 kg Year Location Bodyweight (kg) Squat (kg) Bench (kg) Deadlift (kg) Total (kg) IPF GL Place 2024 Druskininkai, Lithuania 72.75 311.0 200.0 325.0 836.0 123.83 1st 2025 Chemnitz, Germany 73.81 323.5 205.0 335.0 842.5 123.85 1st 2026 Druskininkai, Lithuania 73.30 340.0 207.5 344.0 891.5 131.53 1st
Records Perkins holds the current IPF unequipped 74 kg world records in the squat (341 kg, set at the 2026 SBD Sheffield Championships) and the deadlift (344 kg, set at the 2026 World Championships), as well as the total. His 891.5 kg total at the 2026 World Championships exceeded the standing world-record total in the 83 kg class.
Personal life
References