F5’s Citron, Lenovo’s McFarland Keeping Rivals At Bay: Madness Quarterfinals Update

Round 3 raises the pressure in CRN’s 2026 Channel Madness tournament, with the Enterprise 8 competing for spots in the Field of Four.

The quarterfinals of the CRN Channel Madness Tournament are in full swing, and voters are showing up in force. Here’s a look at how the Enterprise 8 are faring so far.

The tightest matchup of the round so far is shaping up in the Acceleration region, where F5’s Lisa Citron is out in front with 55 percent of the vote in her matchup with CrowdStrike’s Michael Rogers, who’s at 45 percent. Both are competing in the quarterfinal round for the first time.

After an exciting come-from-behind win in his Round 2 Innovation region contest, Lenovo’s Wade McFarland, a tournament first-timer, has come out strong with 59 percent of the vote against Nutanix’s Christian Goffi, who’s at 41 percent.

Two tournament veterans are squaring off in the Transformation region, where Arctic Wolf’s Bob Skelley is out to a commanding lead with 62 percent of the vote in his matchup with HP Inc.’s Scott Lannum, who’s at 38 percent. Lannum is known for finishing strong and is not expected to quietly, so Skelley will have to keep the pressure on.

Meanwhile, Sophos’ Scott Barlow has looked unstoppable so far in the Evolution region, where he’s facing off against Veeam Software’s Kevin Rooney, the 2020 Channel Madness Champion. Barlow is leading with 77 percent of the vote to Rooney’s 23 percent.

Voting in Round 3 is open until noon ET on Thursday, March 26, and the winners will move ahead into the semifinals as the Field of Four.

Visit crn.com/madness to cast your votes and choose your chief!