The boxing match between Thor Bjornsson and Eddie Hall taking place tonight will be no ordinary pugilistic contest.
For starters, the fighters have weighed in at a monstrous collective weight of 648lb, making it one of the heaviest boxing matches in history. But what makes it particularly noteworthy is that those weights come after a monstrous collective cut that amounts to almost 233lb from their career-high weights in strongman.
And there are another few rules that will differentiate the massive fight from your standard professional boxing event. The pair will step into the ring at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium at 1am for a one-fight card, with the arena having earlier in the day played host to Sunny Edwards world title defence against Muhammad Waseem.
Here's all you need to know about the rules for Saturday's fight....
Gloves and headguards
The pair will not wear headgear, and will don 12oz gloves for the contest, which will be sanctioned under professional rules, with a couple of minor adjustments. Generally heavyweight fights in the paid ranks would have fighters wear 10oz gloves, but the pair have opted instead to take the extra padding of a 12oz given it is Hall's debut.
Bjornsson previously faced Devon Larratt in his first competitive outing last September, as well as taking on Steven Ward and Simon Vallily, two legitimate professionals, in exhibitions with no winner. For his fight with Larratt he wore 12oz gloves, but the exhibition bouts were bigger.
Rounds
The pair will contest their boxing clash over six two-minute rounds in Dubai on March 19. This is the other big deviation from the professional rules, where contests are held over three minute rounds.
However, in Hall and Bjornsson's defence, debuting novices would generally only compete over four rounds, which would be the same length at 12 minutes as this weekend's contest will be.
They will be given a minute's rest between rounds, and if the contest goes the distance, it will be judged and a winner determined.
Judges and scoring
The fight will be officiated by three licensed judges who will determine a winner on their scorecards in the unlikely case this goes the distance.
Who are you backing in this fight; Thor Bjornsson or Eddie Hall? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below!
The judges will be decided by a commission in Dubai, and will officiate using the standard ten-point must system. The referee has no say on the judging, aside from his ability to deduct points based on infractions in the ring.
Knockdowns and KOs
Both Bjornsson and Hall have promised brutal knockouts early in the fight, and under the professional ruleset they will be permitted to do just that. A knockdown will be ruled when a boxer is punched and drops to the canvas, with the referee then giving them a ten count.
If they can't make it to their feet in that time, or the damage being taken on the feet by one fighter is deemed too brutal by the referee, the fight will be stopped and a knockout awarded to the winner.
Bjornsson believes he will have Hall out of there within two rounds, and the Brit appears to want the same given the size he has retained for the fight.
