Five-time ‘World Strongest Man’ MMA star suffers shock KO loss against boxer beaten by Deontay Wilder and Derek Chisora
Artur Szpilka is a genuine heavyweight contender in MMA thanks to his massive upset win over five-time ‘World’s Strongest Man’ Mariusz Pudzianowski.
The former boxer secured an impressive come-from-behind win against Pudzianowski whom he stopped in the second round at KSW 83: Colosseum 2 on Saturday at PGE Narodowy in Warsaw.
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Szpilka had picked up two low-level wins since transitioning to MMA and was taking a serious step up in opposition to challenge a 17-8 veteran, known for knocking people out, in his third fight.
The 34-year-old seemed to have bitten off more than he could chew in the first round when he was taken to the floor and controlled by Pudzianowski.
Things changed in round two when the former strongman failed with a takedown attempt and reacted by throwing a flurry of wild punches at his opponent.
Szpilka, as expected, easily evaded his attack and countered with two punches that sent Pudzianowski crashing face-first to the canvas before referee Marc Goddard waved off the bout.
READ MORE ON Mariusz Pudzianowski
The Polish fighter’s boxing career got off to a similarly impressive start to the one he’s currently enjoying in MMA as he amassed a 16-0 record before first tasting defeat in the squared circle.
In 2014, Szpilka suffered a tenth-round TKO defeat when he travelled to New York to take on Bryant Jennings, who was also undefeated, at Madison Square Garden.
'The Pin' soon bounced back with a win over former two-weight world champion Tomasz Adamek and picked up three more victories to earn a shot at the WBC heavyweight title.
Szpilka impressively stretched American power puncher Deontay Wilder nine rounds but ultimately suffered a brutal KO loss at Barclays Center in New York.
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Szpilka won four of his next six fights but suffered quick knockout losses against Derek Chisora at heavyweight and Łukasz Różański at bridgerweight before seemingly walking away from the sport in May 2021.
His first mixed martial arts fight took place a year later at KSW 71 where beat Serhiy Radchenko before following up with a win over Denis Zalecki in September. This win over Pudzianowski brought his MMA record to 3-0.
Former WBO cruiserweight champion Krzysztof Glowacki scored a viral knockout win in his MMA debut on the same card and could well be Szpilka's next opponent.