Eddie Hall has lost over a stone in weight due to an illness he suffered in the lead-up to his fight with Thor Bjornsson.
The British former World's Strongest Man winner had mocked his rival for losing huge amounts of weight ahead of the clash, and insisted that he would stay at a heavier weight in an effort to retain his power. But after battling an illness towards the end of his training camp, he dropped a considerable 17lb.
And he claims that the massive quickfire loss may have been a blessing in disguise as he looks to be more nimble heading into the ring with the considerably taller Bjornsson. He told fans in a video blog : "Because of my illness I've actually lost eight kilos which might have done me a favour.
"I'm actually the lightest, best I've probably been since I was 22 years of age, I'm 34 now, 147-148kg [around 325lb] and I'm feeling good. I feel fit, and as I say I'm calling this journey the desolation of Thor, look that word up because that's what's going to happen to that lanky streak of p***."
Hall previously joked that Bjornsson was looking like a "skinny dog in heat" after a 60kg weight loss during his boxing journey. The Icelandic fighter is almost unrecognisable from his World's Strongest Man win in 2018, which Hall believes is an indicator that he was concerned about his conditioning.
He told Muscle And Health that he wasn't impressed with Bjornsson's new shredded look, saying: "It’s supposed to be the heaviest boxing match in history, and he just looks ill. It’s not just me saying that, I see comments all over the place from people asking if he’s sick.
"That’s not me saying that, but the general public. I think he has genuinely got a problem with cardio. I don’t think he can sustain the full six rounds. I believe that’s why he’s lost so much weight. because his fitness levels are terrible.”
Who wins on Saturday night; Thor Bjornsson or Eddie Hall? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below!
The pair will finally settle their years-long rivalry in the boxing ring on Saturday night at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis stadium, with Bjornsson starting as a favourite given his more public boxing experience.
However, Hall has a number of fans backing him for the fight, with some even switching from being fans of his rival to supporting the Brit: "I’ll admit, I've always preferred Thor," one said in the comments section, having previously watched their face-to-face interview.
"But after that interview and seeing Eddie’s side of the story I've come to respect Eddie more now that I did before. From the other side it always seemed like Eddie was the bad guy but at the end of the day everyone’s has their story and I’m more excited to see how this fight will turn out."
