15 Years Ago - Phil Pfister ended the drought...'06 MET-Rx World's Strongest Man

[MCWAY]

Yes.

Pudz set the standards for strongman those years. He was ahead of the field because his tank didn't empty as quick. Basically he just about held his own strength wise, but was winning because he was fitter. By 2004 the strongest guys upped their fitness and eventually the strongest of the lot (Savickas) started to dominate the sport.

As I thought. Since Pudzianowski beat Savickas, Virastyuk, and Koklyaev, Pfister has more legitimacy of being deemed the World's Strongest Man by beating Pudz.

It sounds, on the surface at least, that the WSM contest (whether sponsored by MET-Rx or not) has more prestige than the IFSA World Championships or the Arnold Strongman show.

If that's incorrect, please clarify.

[Matt]

As I thought. Since Pudzianowski beat Savickas, Virastyuk, and Koklyaev, Pfister has more legitimacy of being deemed the World's Strongest Man by beating Pudz.

It sounds, on the surface at least, that the WSM contest (whether sponsored by MET-Rx or not) has more prestige than the IFSA World Championships or the Arnold Strongman show.

If that's incorrect, please clarify.

Feel Fist Her? 👊 ✊

PS - From Goo To You By Way Of The Zoo!

PPS - What Christian denomination do you follow, MCWAY? PM me if you don't want to answer here, or feel free not to answer. I myself think the too theory is limited.

[BIG AL MCKECHNIE]

The fact is, Dougie Edmunds fell out with the WSM TV show guys and decided to put on his IFSA world championships from 2005 to 2007. IFSA had been putting on the superseries all over the world for years and run the WSM with TWI for years.  The IFSA world championships were much heavier events while WSM became more like heavy crossfit for the 2005-2007 years.  There is not a single static event in 2006. Mark Felix won the deadlift with 16 reps!
It was all fingles fingers and light car walk and other aerobic stuff. In 2006 Marius would have won if he hadn't missed the hole on top of the last stones lift platform and Phil managed to place his before Marius could retrieve his. Marius was so pissed off he just left the 5th stone and ended up with just 4.

Neither Phil or Marius would have stood a chance against the top guys at IFSA 2005-2007. Indeed Phil actually competed in the 2005 IFSA and placed 6th.
Shame Marius never competed.

[Flexacon]

As I thought. Since Pudzianowski beat Savickas, Virastyuk, and Koklyaev, Pfister has more legitimacy of being deemed the World's Strongest Man by beating Pudz.

It sounds, on the surface at least, that the WSM contest (whether sponsored by MET-Rx or not) has more prestige than the IFSA World Championships or the Arnold Strongman show.

If that's incorrect, please clarify.

Did Phil deserve his 2006 win? YES

Was Phil the best Strong man competitor on the planet in 2006? Only Phils boyfriend believes that answer to be YES.

[MCWAY]

The fact is, Dougie Edmunds fell out with the WSM TV show guys and decided to put on his IFSA world championships from 2005 to 2007. IFSA had been putting on the superseries all over the world for years and run the WSM with TWI for years.  The IFSA world championships were much heavier events while WSM became more like heavy crossfit for the 2005-2007 years.  There is not a single static event in 2006. Mark Felix won the deadlift with 16 reps!
It was all fingles fingers and light car walk and other aerobic stuff. In 2006 Marius would have won if he hadn't missed the hole on top of the last stones lift platform and Phil managed to place his before Marius could retrieve his. Marius was so pissed off he just left the 5th stone and ended up with just 4.

Neither Phil or Marius would have stood a chance against the top guys at IFSA 2005-2007. Indeed Phil actually competed in the 2005 IFSA and placed 6th.
Shame Marius never competed.

If Pfister competed at the IFSA events, why didn't the other guys compete at the WSM show?

Flexacon indicated that Pudzianowski beat Savickas, Virastyuk, and Koklyaev during his 2002 and 2003 WSM wins. It sounds to me as if WSM is the more established and prestigious of the shows, based on seniority.

Per the video, Pudzianowski got to his 5th stone first. But, he had to squat down a second time to hold it, giving Pfister the split second he needed to catch him. Pfister got his stone up first and steadied it in the hole. Pudzianowski hoisted his stone up but it rolled out of the hole. This was a HUGE upset, considering the Atlas Stones event is said to be Pudz's specialty.

Ironically, Pudzianowski got another WSM title in similar fashion in 2008. Derek Poundstone was ahead of him and was about to place the last Atlas stone up for the win, when it slipped out his hands. That delay allowed Pudz to catch up, placed his final stone, and win the event and the title.

Edit - That would make Pudz a 5-time WSM winner.

Did Phil deserve his 2006 win? YES

Was Phil the best Strong man competitor on the planet in 2006? Only Phils boyfriend believes that answer to be YES.

Again, it begs the question: Which event is THE premiere one to determine the World's Strongest Man?

IFSA World Championship? MET-Rx World's Strongest Man? Arnold Classic Strongman Show? Or another competition?

[Fortress]

Some great commentary/information in this thread. Thank you.

I briefly hung with Pfister one year at the Arnold.

Big dude. But that’s pointless to mention: They’re all big dudes.

[Body-Buildah]

As I thought. Since Pudzianowski beat Savickas, Virastyuk, and Koklyaev, Pfister has more legitimacy of being deemed the World's Strongest Man by beating Pudz.

It sounds, on the surface at least, that the WSM contest (whether sponsored by MET-Rx or not) has more prestige than the IFSA World Championships or the Arnold Strongman show.

If that's incorrect, please clarify.

Pudz never came close to Big Z at the Arnold, where the crazy-heavy stuff was lifted.
Came in 4th, 5th, 6th during his time against him at Arnolds when Z got 3 of his 1st places...

[Fortress]

Pudz never came close to Big Z at the Arnold, where the crazy-heavy stuff was lifted.
Came in 4th, 5th, 6th during his time against him at Arnolds when Z got 3 of his 1st places...

Z has got to be in the conversation about who IS the all-time strongest.

He was otherworldly. Still is, even way past his biggest/best.

[MCWAY]

Pudz never came close to Big Z at the Arnold, where the crazy-heavy stuff was lifted.
Came in 4th, 5th, 6th during his time against him at Arnolds when Z got 3 of his 1st places...

But, Pudz did beat Big Z to claim at least two WSM titles.

And we're right back to square one. Which strongman title is THE title, the winner of which truly is the World's Strongest Man (at least for that year)?

Pudzianowski hasn't won an Arnold show, yet he has 5 WSM titles. But, he isn't on that top 10 all-time list I posted earlier.

Mark Henry is second all-time to Sackivas. He won the Arnold show once (the very first one). He has no WSM titles or IFSA world championships to my knowledge.

Virastyuk won WSM in 2004 and is on that all time list (5th, I think).

Z has got to be in the conversation about who IS the all-time strongest.

He was otherworldly. Still is, even way past his biggest/best.

Indeed, he is (4 WSM titles). See the like I posted earlier. He's #1, followed by Mark Henry, Bill Kazmaier, and Paul Anderson; Vasil Virastyuk is fifth.

[Dave D]

Yes.

Pudz set the standards for strongman those years. He was ahead of the field because his tank didn't empty as quick. Basically he just about held his own strength wise, but was winning because he was fitter. By 2004 the strongest guys upped their fitness and eventually the strongest of the lot (Savickas) started to dominate the sport.

So Marius was the best and then  the other competitors got better?

* I understand what you’re saying its just funny reading it from someone who wasn’t competing in the contest.

[Flexacon]

So Marius was the best and then  the other competitors got better?

* I understand what you’re saying its just funny reading it from someone who wasn’t competing in the contest.

You're confusing strongman with bodybuilding. Strongman isn't a subjective sport. You can apply metrics to performance.

It doesn't take a genius to work out if a decathlete is comparatively better or worse by looking at their PBs and how close they get to to them in competition. The same can be applied to strongman as they regularly do the same or similar events and their PBs/rankings in those events are usually well known.

For example in 2006 Pfister didn't just beat some of his PBs. He smashed them. Events he was expected to finish 6th or 7th he ended up winning or 2nd. He was never as good before or after.

[MCWAY]

You're confusing strongman with bodybuilding. Strongman isn't a subjective sport. You can apply metrics to performance.

It doesn't take a genius to work out if a decathlete is comparatively better or worse by looking at their PBs and how close they get to to them in competition. The same can be applied to strongman as they regularly do the same or similar events and their PBs/rankings in those events are usually well known.

For example in 2006 Pfister didn't just beat some of his PBs. He smashed them. Events he was expected to finish 6th or 7th he ended up winning or 2nd. He was never as good before or after.

And, if the MET-Rx WSM show is the title to have, Pfister can truly say that (for one year, at least) he was the World's Strongest Man.

The question remains, is that championship THE most coveted of the bunch?

[Dave D]

You're confusing strongman with bodybuilding. Strongman isn't a subjective sport. You can apply metrics to performance.

It doesn't take a genius to work out if a decathlete is comparatively better or worse by looking at their PBs and how close they get to to them in competition. The same can be applied to strongman as they regularly do the same or similar events and their PBs/rankings in those events are usually well known.

For example in 2006 Pfister didn't just beat some of his PBs. He smashed them. Events he was expected to finish 6th or 7th he ended up winning or 2nd. He was never as good before or after.

I’m not confusing the two at all.

I’ve lost to people that I was significantly stronger than, the other competitor being better conditioned is part of the game. The best team doesn’t always win, it’s the one The is one who plays the best the day of the contest who prevails, the same holds true here.

If strongman is strictly who is the strongest we should only have powerlifting events.  You know that a lot goes into a PB and a gym lift is not the same as a contest lift.

Thor did his record deadlift inside a gym focusing only on the one lift. It would be ridiculous to think he could pull that same lift in a strongman event UNLESS it was the first event but then every other lift would suffer.

[Flexacon]

I’m not confusing the two at all.

I’ve lost to people that I was significantly stronger than, the other competitor being better conditioned is part of the game. The best team doesn’t always win, it’s the one the plays the best the day of the contest who prevails, the same holds true here.

If strongman is strictly who is the strongest we should only have powerlifting events.  You know that a lot goes into a PB and a gym lift is not the same as a contest lift.

Thor did his record deadlift inside a gym focusing only on the one lift. It would be ridiculous to think he could pull that same lift in a strongman event UNLESS it was the first event but then every other lift would suffer.

I didn't mention gym lifts, I mentioned events. Also your just parroting my earlier point that the strongest guys don't always win, especially the case in that era when Pudz won. Similarly I pointed out Pfister deserved his win as he was the best that day.

"If strongman is strictly who is the strongest we should only have powerlifting events."

You're trying to create a fictitious argument for a point I never made just to show your strongman "credentials".

Keeping it moving buddy

[Fortress]

But, Pudz did beat Big Z to claim at least two WSM titles.

And we're right back to square one. Which strongman title is THE title, the winner of which truly is the World's Strongest Man (at least for that year)?

Pudzianowski hasn't won an Arnold show, yet he has 5 WSM titles. But, he isn't on that top 10 all-time list I posted earlier.

Mark Henry is second all-time to Sackivas. He won the Arnold show once (the very first one). He has no WSM titles or IFSA world championships to my knowledge.

Virastyuk won WSM in 2004 and is on that all time list (5th, I think).

Indeed, he is (4 WSM titles). See the like I posted earlier. He's #1, followed by Mark Henry, Bill Kazmaier, and Paul Anderson; Vasil Virastyuk is fifth.

Myself and Henry were weekend guests at the home of a mutual friend.

We got on well. This was the mid-nineties. Mark was like a mountain. I fondly recall him always flipping through the sleeve pages of his brought-with-him CD collection. His tastes were certainly not mine, but the audiophile in me appreciated his love of music.

One night our host had a buffet delivered in (he was, RIP, a millionaire). Mark consumed half of what was on the gigantic table.

Good times.

P.S. At the time, weightlifting and the WWE was most prominent in Henry’s life.

[Fortress]

P.S. We also went shooting at a range. It was awesome to watch Mark blasting semi-automatic rifles and high-powered handguns.

What a ball.

[Dave D]

I didn't mention gym lifts, I mentioned events. Also your just parroting my earlier point that the strongest guys don't always win, especially the case in that era when Pudz won. Similarly I pointed out Pfister deserved his win as he was the best that day.

"If strongman is strictly who is the strongest we should only have powerlifting events."

You're trying to create a fictitious argument for a point I never made just to show your strongman "credentials".

Keeping it moving buddy

This wasn't about me.

I commented on your post and said it was an interesting take from a non competitor in the event. That Pudz was the best because of his fitness level.

Yes.

Pudz set the standards for strongman those years. He was ahead of the field because his tank didn't empty as quick. Basically he just about held his own strength wise, but was winning because he was fitter. By 2004 the strongest guys upped their fitness and eventually the strongest of the lot (Savickas) started to dominate the sport.

You then attempted to insult my understanding of the events saying that I couldn't comprehend the difference between a subjective and objective contest, thus changing the conversation.

You're confusing strongman with bodybuilding. Strongman isn't a subjective sport. You can apply metrics to performance.

It doesn't take a genius to work out if a decathlete is comparatively better or worse by looking at their PBs and how close they get to to them in competition. The same can be applied to strongman as they regularly do the same or similar events and their PBs/rankings in those events are usually well known.

For example in 2006 Pfister didn't just beat some of his PBs. He smashed them. Events he was expected to finish 6th or 7th he ended up winning or 2nd. He was never as good before or after.

I parroted your point because it was the point, who strongest only counts one the day of the competition.

I did bring up gym lifts because Thor had his PB in deadlift televised. Thor is a strongman competitor. Despite his PB in the deadlift being outside of the events its still recognized.

You know what you're doing here.

[MCWAY]

Myself and Henry were weekend guests at the home of a mutual friend.

We got on well. This was the mid-nineties. Mark was like a mountain. I fondly recall him always flipping through the sleeve pages of his brought-with-him CD collection. His tastes were certainly not mine, but the audiophile in me appreciated his love of music.

One night our host had a buffet delivered in (he was, RIP, a millionaire). Mark consumed half of what was on the gigantic table.

Good times.

P.S. At the time, weightlifting and the WWE was most prominent in Henry’s life.

I believe that. I watched a documentary about Yokozuna and Henry talked about how he was Yoko's chicken gopher. When Yoko's weight got out of control, Henry said how could he tell Yoko he didn't need a bucket of chicken when Henry was downing half a bucket himself.

I always wondered how Henry would fare at a MET-Rx WSM competition.

[ThisisOverload]

Touchy subject.

I think Phil's win was a fluke and it certainly was.

I don't think winning the WSM title makes you the strongest man on the planet, but you do deserve the title of "World's Strongest Man". Which is just a title.

Just because Marius beat other competitors/winners in previous years doesn't mean a whole lot.

Strongman is very DYNAMIC, it's not like a BBing pageant.

Every competition is different, all lifters progress at different rates. Some guys miss their peak.

Also, most if not all of these guys compete with injuries, which can make a difference between 1st and 3rd easily, just by losing a single event. If you watch Strongman then you have seen some of the top 3 guys finish very low one year, just to come back and dominate the next year.

If all the competitors were at the 2006 WSM, there is no doubt in my mind Phil would have lost. But it's obviously all speculation.

He deserves the title of WSM for 2006.

Big Z is the strongest man in history. He is the only person with a resume to back it up.

[MCWAY]

Touchy subject.

I think Phil's win was a fluke and it certainly was.

I don't think winning the WSM title makes you the strongest man on the planet, but you do deserve the title of "World's Strongest Man". Which is just a title.

Just because Marius beat other competitors/winners in previous years doesn't mean a whole lot.

Strongman is very DYNAMIC, it's not like a BBing pageant.

Every competition is different, all lifters progress at different rates. Some guys miss their peak.

Also, most if not all of these guys compete with injuries, which can make a difference between 1st and 3rd easily, just by losing a single event. If you watch Strongman then you have seen some of the top 3 guys finish very low one year, just to come back and dominate the next year.

If all the competitors were at the 2006 WSM, there is no doubt in my mind Phil would have lost. But it's obviously all speculation.

He deserves the title of WSM for 2006.

Big Z is the strongest man in history. He is the only person with a resume to back it up.

Nobody is debating Savickas' status on that matter. I simply asked which title/championship is THE ONE to have to be legitimately called the World's Strongest Man.

Of course, I found this video while looking at something else totally unrelated (MET-Rx commercials with amateur/non-IFBB pros as endorsers). And it reminded me about what a big deal some folks made of Pfister's win, snapping a 24-year drought of American competitors not winning the WSM title.

I wouldn't call it a fluke but an upset. He beat Pudzianowski by the skin of his teeth in 2006.

[ThisisOverload]

Nobody is debating Savickas' status on that matter. I simply asked which title/championship is THE ONE to have to be legitimately called the World's Strongest Man.

Of course, I found this video while looking at something else totally unrelated (MET-Rx commercials with amateur/non-IFBB pros as endorsers). And it reminded me about what a big deal some folks made of Pfister's win, snapping a 24-year drought of American competitors not winning the WSM title.

I wouldn't call it a fluke but an upset. He beat Pudzianowski by the skin of his teeth in 2006.

Winning the WSM event makes you the WSM. He was the Strongest Man in the World at that event.

I don't think you have a single "legitimate" WSM for the entire year. To do so you would have to win all contests IMO.

For years the WSM competition was the most coveted event to win. Now there are different events that many people claim are more difficult.

Phil's win was huge, but it was a single win. Then you have Brian Shaw.

[Flexacon]

I did bring up gym lifts because Thor had his PB in deadlift televised. Thor is a strongman competitor. Despite his PB in the deadlift being outside of the events its still recognized.

Good job proving my point anyway. Thor PBed and set a world record in the gym, thor done well in wsm events which involved deadlifting.

You then attempted to insult my understanding of the events saying that I couldn't comprehend the difference between a subjective and objective contest, thus changing the conversation.

There was no further conversation needed on the subject. There is a decade plus of event and competition history for Pudz, big Z and the others to back up what I said. You think that only those competing in one contest, the 2004 wsm know the true score and could somehow magically predict future achievements.

Like I said come up with a better argument or keep it moving.

[Dave D]

Good job proving my point anyway. Thor PBed and set a world record in the gym, thor done well in wsm events which involved deadlifting.


There was no further conversation needed on the subject. There is a decade plus of event and competition history for Pudz, big Z and the others to back up what I said. You think that only those competing in one contest, the 2004 wsm know the true score and could somehow magically predict future achievements.

Like I said come up with a better argument or keep it moving.

I never had an argument, I made a comment about your comment. I said you sounded like a disgruntled competitor.

Your perspective of strongman is like that as a fan cheering on his favorite competitor and why the others aren’t better.

You then went on a tangent about knowing more than me.

Whoever has the best PB is the strongest, contests are filler.

 You’re the best Flex, whatever the subject you’re the expert. I’ll remember this  moving forward.

[MCWAY]

Winning the WSM event makes you the WSM. He was the Strongest Man in the World at that event.

I don't think you have a single "legitimate" WSM for the entire year. To do so you would have to win all contests IMO.

For years the WSM competition was the most coveted event to win. Now there are different events that many people claim are more difficult.

Phil's win was huge, but it was a single win. Then you have Brian Shaw.

Shaw has won WSM four times, I believe. He rounds out the top 10 all-time strongest men list I posted earlier. We have more American competitors winning now. I think the current champion is an American, winning it in 2019. I don't think there was a 2020 WSM due to coronavirus.

[Flexacon]

I never had an argument, I made a comment about your comment. I said you sounded like a disgruntled competitor.

Your perspective of strongman is like that as a fan cheering on his favorite competitor and why the others aren’t better.

You then went on a tangent about knowing more than me.

Whoever has the best PB is the strongest, contests are filler.

 You’re the best Flex, whatever the subject you’re the expert. I’ll remember this  moving forward.

Like a fan? No, it's pretty boring. I have never posted on strongman thread or anything to do with wsm under this account or my previous account. That's close to 15 years of post history as I don't have much interest in it.

I did however work as a trader for a sportsbook and was part of the team that priced up WSM through that period. We looked at PBs, recent event history and also got information from people within the sport to price up a book. We'd then take bets and adjust the book as required. We were never that far off with our odds and placings. Only shock result in the years I did it was Pfisters win.

Pudz was an easy favourite in 2003, but 3rd in our book by 2004. Information we had been provided was that a lot of the guys had adjusted their training, with move focus on strength endurance. Some of the guys had shed some of their extra bulk too. Early results backed that up as those guys were doing better than expected in strength endurance events and slightly worse than expected in static ones.

On this particular era of strongman I'm pretty sure I know more than you.