Four-Time World’s Strongest Man Brian Shaw Is Training to Compete in MMA

[diamenz]

Four-time World’s Strongest Man (WSM) Brian Shaw recently retired from competitive strongman following his second victory at his namesake strongman contest, the 2023 Shaw Classic. Following his departure from the sport he was a dominant figure in for so many years, fans wondered what Shaw’s next athletic venture would be beyond advancing his goals as an event promoter.

On Oct. 13, 2023, Shaw shared the answer. He published a video on his YouTube channel reviewing a potential mixed martial arts (MMA) opportunity and what his goals for a career in combat sports entail. Watch his explanation below:

dude is a monster. 6'8" 400 lbs 4x world's strongest man. not very mobile of a guy though. should be interesting.

[Nanners]

this dude will get destroyed the moment he gets in the ring with a professional fighter. the only meaningful similarity between strongman and mma is that they both use muscles

[diamenz]

this dude will get destroyed the moment he gets in the ring with a professional fighter. the only meaningful similarity between strongman and mma is that they both use muscles

he's in training bro. i don't know much how mma works, but aren't you matched up with fighters of your own skill level?

[Nanners]

he's in training bro. i don't know much how mma works, but aren't you matched up with fighters of your own skill level?

I dont know much about MMA either, but I know enough to know that muscle clowns like this guy tend to get utterly obliterated by guys who weigh 50 lbs less but know a little ju jitsu

ultimately mma is a skill based game. Being the "strongest" dude doesnt mean shit when youre getting choked out by someone with technical skills.

I'm not saying he wont win a few matches... Brock Lesnar was considered a good MMA fighter for a year or two, and if this guy selects his fights like Brock did he might win a few in a row... but like Brock the moment he faces a legit MMA fighter he will get obliterated

[ArbitraryWater]

he's in training bro. i don't know much how mma works, but aren't you matched up with fighters of your own skill level?

weight class. cant measure skill level

[tpols]

he's in training bro. i don't know much how mma works, but aren't you matched up with fighters of your own skill level?

It all goes by weight class. Anything past 207 is heavy weight. So this guy weighs 400 lbs he's still just a heavyweight even fighting a guy 220.

But the problem is real MMA fighters have practiced leg kicks or wrestling their entire lives. A 150lb muy Thai fighter could kick this guys knee cap through the back of his leg because he's trained that technique and power his entire life.

This will definitely end up in an ultimate disaster. It's like thinking a 7'9 giant who never played basketball before and can barely run will dominate the NBA just because he's tall.

[John8204]

this dude will get destroyed the moment he gets in the ring with a professional fighter. the only meaningful similarity between strongman and mma is that they both use muscles

He's got the Gabi Garcia problem...he's 100+ lbs above the HW limit so he's only going to fight cans in specialty matches

[tpols]

I dont know much about MMA either, but I know enough to know that muscle clowns like this guy tend to get utterly obliterated by guys who weigh 50 lbs less but know a little ju jitsu

ultimately mma is a skill based game. Being the "strongest" dude doesnt mean shit when youre getting choked out by someone with technical skills.

I'm not saying he wont win a few matches... Brock Lesnar was considered a good MMA fighter for a year or two, and if this guy selects his fights like Brock did he might win a few in a row... but like Brock the moment he faces a legit MMA fighter he will get obliterated

Lesnar was an elite D1 college wrestler trying out for NFL teams. This guy has 0 fighting experience.

[Nanners]

Lesnar was an elite D1 college wrestler trying out for NFL teams. This guy has 0 fighting experience.

Exactly. It was insane when lesnar did it because he was just a "pro wrestler"... except he wasnt - he was an absolute freak 1 in a million athlete since childhood, and he had a ton of experience with fake fighting (which is not so different from real fighting).

Even if Brian Shaw was the biggest and strongest dude to enter pro mma (hes not), being an elite fighter on the pro level takes years (if not decades or an entire lifetime) of technical training. At its core, Jiu Jitsu is the foundation of modern MMA and the foundation of Jiu Jitsu is that skills and mechanics always defeat raw strength

[highwhey]

yeah i don't see how lifting boulders and squatting 900lbs will help you in a fight where a kick to the head or a strike to your chin can knock you the fvck out.

[SaltyMeatballs]

This won't translate well for him.

[tontoz]

Sounds like he wants to do something similar to Jake Paul, just in MMA. I seriously doubt he will be fighting in any MMA organization because i believe most of them have weight limits. In the UFC the heavyweight limit is 260 pounds.

[highwhey]

This won't translate well for him.

it wont