‘Drag Race’ Fans Wonder — Why Hasn’t a Big Girl Won Yet?

A problem that some RuPaul’s Drag Race fans have that continues to seep into the conversations on many social media forums is their confusion over why a big girl hasn’t won the show yet. 

This was stirred up once again with many believing that Sherry Pie, the season 12 contestant who was disqualified after multiple allegations of her catfishing men surfaced, was going to take the crown given how well she’s done so far. She was in the top two during her debut episode, has won individually on two other maxi challenges and was safe for the other. This Friday’s show is centered on the Snatch Game, and seeing as Sherry has excelled in the comedy side of things, it shouldn’t be that much of a shock if she does well and possibly takes home her 3rd win. 

“Well, Sherry was def gonna be the big girl who won,” one fan said on Facebook. “But we see how that turned out.” Another dropped their own claim about season 12, saying, “I believe that the producers wanted her to be the first big girl winner but that’s not happening now.”

The New York City queen isn’t the only plus-size contestant to compete on season 12. Kansas City’s Widow Von’Du has also done a fantastic job so far on the Emmy-winning series. She scored a win during the season premiere with guest judge Nicki Minaj that some fans have said was the best opening episode this show has ever done. Widow is also almost neck and neck with Sherry when it comes to how well she’s performed thus far, so there’s hope for some that she could break the streak and become the first big girl winner.

RuPaul’s Drag Race, which first premiered back in 2009 and has since become a global phenomenon, has excelled at highlighting a variety of forms of drag that have been loved and appreciated by millions in the years since.

A lot of the big girls that have competed are some of its most beloved to ever appear even though they didn’t win that $100,000 grand prize in the end. Some of those include Latrice Royale, Nina West, Stacy Layne Matthews and Victoria “Porkchop” Parker just to name a few. 

Latrice and Nina did very well during their initial seasons but didn’t make it to that pivotal top 3 or 4 on finale night. There have been several plus-sized queens that did, like Ginger Minj, Eureka and Kim Chi, but didn’t win the crown. 

This is a topic that has long been discussed throughout the RPDR community, with some wondering if their size has anything to do with their winning abilities. “Yeah, I mean, I would rather a big girl win because she deserves it. Not just because she’s a big girl,” a fan wrote back in 2018. “Conversely big girls have done extremely well post #DragRace. I do see the point though,” another said.

Instinct Magazine readers: what are your thoughts on this topic? Does it matter that a big girl hasn’t won yet? Let us know in the comments.