His name means ‘biggest’ and he can bench-press a fridge. But can the Wallabies keep this giant?
There is a fair degree of nominative determinism in the case of Massimo De Lutiis.
As a giant 126kg prop from Queensland who once benched a record 202.5kg, the Italian roots of his name ring true: biggest, biggest, most.
But Rugby Australia also faces a “massimo” dilemma when it comes to De Lutiis: How much should you pay for the prospect?
The conundrum came to the RA’s doorstep when the Irish province of Ulster, with the support of the Irish Rugby Football Union, made an offer for De Lutiis to move to Belfast. De Lutiis, who has an Irish grandfather on his mother Rilee’s side, will also have the potential to play for Ireland. (He also has Italian heritage through his father, Antonio).
Queensland and RA are desperate to keep De Luttis at Ballymore as the 22-year-old has been regarded as the best young and tenacious prospect in the country for years and is thought to be a Wallaby standby.
Although injury has limited him to nine Super Rugby matches over three seasons, De Lutiis has played for Australia A, been to two Wallabies camps and is clearly mentioned as “unavailable due to injury” on all Wallaby team lists in 2025.
But with Ulster offering more money than RA and the Reds (but not excessively much) and the deep fear that De Lutiis will one day terrorize the Wallabies in the Ireland No.3 jersey, the question is: can RA afford to lose him?
De Lutiis is mentioned as the next big thing – very big – for several years.
As a middling rugby player at Southport School, he was inspired to see his Reds teammate Zane Nonggorr lift the GPS trophy in 2019. He spent all his savings on some weights, and De Lutiis followed him over the summer as he entered the 11th grade. Rocky He films twice a day and is put away in his basement. “I barely saw the sun,” he later recalled.
He regained his strength and starred in his school’s first XV before heading south for two years at the Brumbies academy in 2022. Old dogs Allan Alaalatoa and James Slipper impressed him greatly.
“It was hard to miss him because he was breaking all the (gym) records that were coming,” Alaalatoa recalled. “There were people around Headquarters asking, ‘Who is this Mass kid coming in?’ you were talking.
“He’s got a great frame for a tighthead prop, obviously his power is through the roof and you think he’s going to be world class, you know?”
De Luttis played for the Junior Wallabies in 2023 and shone in his first game after being re-hired by the Reds. Breaking down the turmoil of visiting Japanese team Saitama Wild Knightin a friendly environment.
However, a quad injury sidelined him for the 2024 Super Rugby season, after which he was back in action. Rocky In the assemblies and gym, De Lutiis broke Taniela Tupou’s club record by pressing 202.5 kg. This is the same as a two-door refrigerator or the V8 engine in the BMW M3.
Now De Lutiis was on everyone’s radar, especially Joe Schmidt. The Wallabies coach named De Lutiis in his squad and selected him for the Australia A team against England at the end of 2024. In 2025, De Lutiis made nine Super Rugby appearances and was on track for the Wallabies to face the Lions but a broken ankle dashed his hopes. Plantar fasciitis then killed him the rest of the year.
In an unpublished interview with this imprint in February, De Lutiis talked about his 2025 goals.
“Playing some football is probably the main goal, but I really want to make the Wallabies this year,” he said.
De Lutiis injured his hamstring in training last month and was out of action again.
The Ulster offer has left the youngster facing a big decision: stay and potentially play for the Wallabies in the 2027 Rugby World Cup, or have the chance to move on for some more money and a future in Ireland. De Lutiis would only qualify for Ireland in November 2027, given that he is playing for the Australia A team in 2024.
Unlike the crazy money in Japan or France, the centrally run Irish rugby system does not hand out cash and the maximum salary in the province stands at 250,000 euros ($418,000). The IRFU does not increase salaries until a player earns 20 Test caps.
Given De Lutiis’ injury history, sources not authorized to comment publicly estimate the difference in the bid will be around $100,000. RA is confident De Lutiis will stay in Australia.
“He is clearly a player of national importance and comes through our system,” RA boss Phil Waugh said on Tuesday. “So we are working on his development through all our coaches and finally with the best scrum coach in the world, Mike Cron, to improve his game and grow him as a player.
“And with the platform we’ll have here in Australia over the next few years, we’re really excited to see him in that environment. Ideally he’ll put his hand up and challenge for that number three jersey.”
The appeal of a home World Cup is very strong. But so is the fear of a scenario that many observers could see emerging: De Lutiis leaves, flourishes in Ireland and becomes the Lions’ dominant man. An embarrassing “How did they let him go?” It’s a story in the mold of Lions winger Mack Hansen, but on steroids given the Queenslander is that rarest of Aussie unicorns: a monstrous, taut prop.
So should RA pay the full burden and continue investing in De Lutiis’ potential? Or to stand firm?
“We’re pretty disciplined about fiscal responsibility, but we also need to be conscious that you also have to compete with international markets for certain players in certain positions,” Waugh said. “We see Massimo as one of those players. Even though he hasn’t played a lot of rugby up to this point, we see the path forward for him and his development.”
“It would be a little bit devastating to lose him if he went overseas,” Alaalatoa said.
“He just needs to understand that he was called up to the Wallaby camp with no (Super) cap and he was in the Wallaby camp in January this year. There’s a reason for that. That should definitely tell him that he’s in the mix. He’s in there too.”
Iain Payten is senior sports reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect with: X or email.
