Eddie Hall is getting advice from a UFC champion as he prepares for his first professional mixed martial arts fight.
The strong Brit is going to face Mariusz Pudzianowski, another former World`s Strongest Man, in the co-main event of KSW 105 in Poland next Saturday.
Hall, who is 37, is seen as a big underdog because Pudzianowski has over 16 years of experience in mixed martial arts.
But `The Beast` is getting help from interim UFC heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall and his father, Andy, to create a plan for the fight in Katowice.
He said, “I`m regularly visiting Tom Aspinall`s training camp.
“We talk about what I should and shouldn’t do.”
“I also have a great coach, Gee Oakes, whose son is a European K1 kickboxing champion.
“So, I have good coaches at home who give me great advice, and we have some good strategies.
“It would be silly to share my exact plan, but I am definitely working with the Aspinall camp.”
Hall`s ability to keep going in a fight will be really tested when he enters the cage next week.
He admits he is worried about his stamina, saying on The Ariel Helwani Show, “I wanted two-minute rounds.
“Mariusz wanted five-minute rounds, and we ended up with four minutes, which isn`t really in the middle.
“I`m not very happy about it. I wanted two-minute rounds because I`m so big. I weigh 160 kg [352lbs].
“My fitness won`t be as good as Mariusz`s, and I`ve never done MMA before — and I know MMA is much harder on your body.
“And when you get that rush of adrenaline, all your cardio goes out the window. So, four-minute rounds are a lot for me, but it was either I agree to that or the fight is off. I didn`t have a choice.”
Hall`s fighting experience so far is just a boxing match with another strongman, Hafthor Bjornsson, and a strange 2-on-1 MMA fight against smaller opponents.
So, he is understandably nervous before fighting the experienced Pudzidanowski.
“I think it`s natural to be scared,” he said. “Even when I did strongman competitions, I was scared and nervous.
“If you`re not scared or nervous, something is wrong.
“I have a lot to be scared about. I`m fighting Mariusz Pudzianowski, who has had 26 professional fights and is a five-time World’s Strongest Man.
“He`s a very tough man, and I`m getting into the cage to fight someone who`s had 26 fights? I`ve only had one!”
“So, I have a lot to be scared about, and the four-minute rounds have been hard for me to accept.
“He has many advantages, but I thought, `why not let him have four-minute rounds? Let`s just do this.`”
Elton Marrow