We’re used to watching Hafþór Björnsson fight.
On HBO’s Game of Thrones, the Icelander took part in the show’s most famous bout (“The Mountain and the Viper”) and its most anticipated (“Cleganebowl”). No spoilers here — pretty thoughtful of us, considering the show ended over two years ago — but suffice to say, he usually tore shit up.
Now, the 32-year-old is training for a different kind of fight: a boxing match with British-born Eddie Hall. Björnsson and Hall are both strongman legends — the former won World’s Strongest Man in 2018, the latter in 2017 — and for a few years now, the two have had a little tête-à-tête over the world deadlift record.
The groundwork for “The Heaviest Boxing Match in History” was officially laid after Björnsson, commonly known as “Thor,” lifted 501 kilograms (an absolutely absurd 1104.52 pounds) at his home gym in Reykjavik last year. It broke Hall’s record, and launched a testosterone-fueled war of words that was due to be settled in the ring.
One byproduct of two strongmen trying to get into boxing shape? The stunning body transformations. Björnsson has been posting his progress to Instagram and he looks like a completely different person. Still a huge person, mind you, but much leaner than we grew accustomed to seeing him on battlefields in Westeros.
The Mountain reports that he’s dropped 110 pounds since he started training, bringing him down to 340 pounds overall. Instagram intel reveals he’s doing way more cardio than usual — repeats around a local track, time on the rowing erg, jumping rope, and of course, sparring sessions — but his primary cutting weapon has likely been his new dietary gameplan.
Björnsson has gone from eating 10,000 calories a day (check out the menu here, he was eating every two hours), to bringing in just 4,000. That’s about in line with the average caloric intake of an Olympic athlete. Little wonder that he’s now rocking a six-pack.
As for the upcoming match: Hall is recovering from a torn bicep, so Björnsson will actually be boxing Devon Larratt instead. Larrat is a former member of the Canadian Special Forces and the number one ranked arm wrestler in the world. He even beat The Mountain in arm wrestling once — and there’s still beef, naturally — so expect both to come out swinging. If the fight proves less than entertaining, you can always watch this instead.
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