Mariusz Pudzianowski, set to face Eddie Hall in his MMA debut, has issued a stern warning to `The Beast`, suggesting Hall is heading for a harsh reality check in their upcoming fight.
Hall originally called out Pudzianowski after securing a peculiar 2-on-1 victory last June.
Now, the two former World`s Strongest Man champions are scheduled to collide in Gliwice, Poland, on Saturday night.
Pudzianowski`s last fight was a surprising knockout defeat against former heavyweight boxer Artur Szpilka in June 2023. However, with a career spanning 27 MMA fights, he feels confident, leveraging his significantly greater experience in the sport.
Mariusz Pudzianowski Delivers Final Pre-Fight Warning
Eddie Hall is expected to weigh around 350 lbs when he enters the cage for their modified rules MMA bout.
Despite the rounds being limited to just four minutes, the five-time World`s Strongest Man titleholder is convinced this duration will be more than sufficient for him to inflict considerable difficulty upon Hall.
“Eddie, you’re in for a lot of hard work. I’m not going to give up easily. You know it well that I fight until the very end. You`re about to see what lack of oxygen means. This is not boxing, this is MMA.”
Pudzianowski conveyed this message during a pre-fight Q&A session with KSW.
Eddie Hall Discusses Training with Tom Aspinall
For the past year, Hall has been training with the current interim UFC heavyweight champion, Tom Aspinall.
It`s clear that Aspinall, who was at one point considered Jon Jones` potential next opponent, has consistently held the advantage during their sparring sessions.
“Look, man, I`m not Jon Jones, but I can honestly, hand on heart say I`ve never had such a humbling experience as to getting in the ring with Tom Aspinall and sparring,” Hall told Bloody Elbow`s Donagh Corby.
He elaborated on the challenge, “Doing the grappling, because you just feel completely outmatched. Even a man my size, he just uses your strengths against you and his hands are so fast. His footwork is just incredible. It`s an incredibly tough experience to spar with Tom Aspinall.”
“And that`s me, that`s like a ‘World’s Strongest Man’ saying that,” he concluded. “It’s a very humbling experience going in the ring with Tom.”
