Hafþór Björnsson, better known as “The Mountain” from Game of Thrones fame, was victorious in his pro boxing debut by way of first-round technical knockout thrashing.
HBO series Game of Thrones was one of the most popular and successful television shows in recent memory. The actors and characters from the series — based on the legendary book series — became household names all over the globe during the eight years it aired. One of those memorable characters was Gregor Clegane, AKA “The Mountain.”
The older brother of Sandor Clegane was a personality few could forget for being a brutal killer of men, women, and children. Björnsson brought the mythic character to life by way of having the sort of size that was befitting of a character dubbed “The Mountain.” The 6-foot-9-inch, 344-pound behemoth first rose to fame as a championship competitor on the strength competition circuit. Winning the Arnold Swarzenegger Strongman classic and the World’s Strongest Man competition in 2018.
‘The Mountain’ from Game of Thrones wins boxing debut
With his run on the show ending two years ago, the native of Iceland has now taken his talents to the world of boxing, and he made his professional debut earlier this week. In total “The Mountain” fashion, the hulk of a man pummeled fellow boxing newbie Devon Laratt and won by first-round TKO.
The fight is what you would expect from a strongman competitor and arm wrestling champion competing in boxing for the first time. It was sloppy in moments and low on high-level technique, but the slimmed down Björnsson –he dropped 100 pounds during his year of training — showed off some solid pugilistic skills to smack around Laratt and force the referee to jump in with 22 seconds left in the opening round.
In a world with giants competing in the heavyweight division, fighters with mainstream appeal raking in big money, and celebrity boxing back en vogue, expect some promoter to climb this mountain and try and squeeze some sizable paydays out of his neophyte boxing skills.
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