Eddie Hall vs. Hafþór Björnsson, taglined 'The Heaviest Boxing Match in History' at its time,[5][6] and also known as "The Desolation of Eddie Hall"[7][8] was a boxing match between StrongmenHafþór Júlíus Björnsson and Eddie Hall who both won the World's Strongest Man, that took place on 19 March 2022.
Hall started the first round with continuous haymakers but Björnsson kept his composure and stuck to the basics, focusing on a solid jab and better footwork. Once Björnsson realized Hall's game plan, he took control of the fight by bludgeoning and knocking down Hall twice to the floor in rounds three and six. Hall sustained bleeding lacerations on top of both eyes and Björnsson won the fight via unanimous decision, having won all but the second round.[9][10][11][12]
Despite Hall having prior experience in boxing and fighting in general, Björnsson didn't. Both underwent significant bodyweight and bodyfat reductions, where Hall dropped from 163 kg (359 lb) to 142 kg (313 lb) and Björnsson dropped from 208 kg (459 lb) to 144 kg (317 lb). Hall incorporated a lot of explosive punches, punching boxing machines and many athletes including gymnast Nile Wilson, pop star Peter Andre and his training partners as hard as he can.[16][17] Björnsson learned the fundamentals of boxing and did two exhibition fights against ex-WBO European light-heavyweight champion Steven Ward in January 2021,[18] 2010 Commonwealth Games Heavyweight Gold Medalist Simon Vallily in May 2021,[19] and a third real fight versus Canadian professional arm-wrestler Devon Larratt in September 2021[20] and defeated him in the first round itself via technical knockout.
Aftermath
On 20 April 2022, Hall got a tattoo on his foot stating "World’s Strongest Man - Hafthor Julius Bjornsson" to commemorate the fight and his loss,[21] which eventually went on to be known as the 'Desolation of Eddie Hall'.[7][8]
