Eddie Hall’s MMA debut was a smashing success, though it did come with a hint of controversy.
The former World’s Strongest Man donned the four-ounce gloves for a clash against another legendary strongman, Mariusz Pudzianowski, at KSW 105 in Gliwice, Poland.
Though there was a little confusion on Hall’s start at the beginning of the bout, it didn’t take long for him to find his footing and land a couple of big right hands that had his opponent reeling early.
Desperate to get out of danger, Pudzianowski shot in for a takedown, driving Hall all the way across the cage. Hall promptly threw Pudzianowski to the mat and proceeded to drop a series of hammer fists and head shots that eventually forced the referee to step in and call for the stoppage at the 30-second mark.
During the final exchange, Hall appeared to catch Pudzianowski with a few hammer fists directly to the back of the head, which garnered a warning from the referee. Hall adjusted and continued landing shots, leading to the finish.
In a post-fight interview, Hall acknowledged that he got caught up in the moment and apologized for the blows to the back of the head.
“I sort of threw that first jab, he bounced back, and I could see the fear in his eyes,” Hall said. “So I threw a one-two, it was that quick, he dropped his guard, and I caught him with that second one. That’s when his eyes rolled, and I just kept that pressure on, threw him around, and just kept plowing my fist into his head as hard as I could. …
“Obviously, when he was on the floor, I was just hammerfisting. You just lose—again, my apologies, [it was] my first fight. I think I hit him once or twice in the back of the head. Then I heard the ref shout at me, and it clicked, and then I went back to the face. So again, my apologies. My experience — I wouldn’t like to be hit in the back of the head, so I’m sorry, Mariusz. But these things happen. It was an accident.”
Pudzianowski responds to Eddie Hall’s public apology
After learning of Hall’s public apology, Pudzianowski responded on social media, shrugging all of it off and acknowledging that ‘The Beast’ was the better fighter that night.
“He was better; he won. This is not chess. It happens like that sometimes,” Pudzianowski posted on his Instagram story.
As for what comes next, Hall is open to a rematch with Pudzianowski, but he has no delusions about what he hopes to accomplish while competing for KSW.
“If a rematch is there, I’ll take it,” Hall said. “I’ve got no aspirations to be number one in KSW. That’s just not for me. I want to come and have fun. I want to fight my heroes. I want to fight the freaks of the world.”
