‘Say yes or the fight is off’ – Eddie Hall furious at rule change for World’s Strongest heavyweight fight

EDDIE HALL threatened to pull the plug on his showdown with Mariusz Pudzianowski over a stipulation row.

‘The Beast’ is set to throw down with his fellow former World’s Strongest Man winner in a Polish punch-up on April 26.

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Eddie Hall throws down with fellow former World’s Strongest Man Mariusz Pudzianowski at KSW 105[/caption]

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Their mammoth melee almost didn’t get over the line due to a row over the stipulations[/caption]

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Hall almost pulled the plug on the bout due to a dispute over the duration of the rounds[/caption]

But an explosive row over the duration of the rounds almost scuppered the mammoth melee, which serves as the co-main event of KSW 105.

During an appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show, Hall, 37, revealed: “I wanted two-minute rounds.

“Mariusz wanted five-minute rounds, and somehow we’ve met in the middle, nowhere near the middle at four.

“I’m not too happy. I wanted the two-minute rounds because I’m so big. I’m 160 kg [352lbs].

“My fitness isn’t going to be anywhere near what Mariusz is, and I’ve never fought MMA before — and I know MMA is a lot more taxing on the body.

“Obviously, when you get that adrenaline dump, all that cardio goes out the window as well.

“So four-minute rounds is a big ask for me, but it was literally, ‘I say yes to that or the fight is off. I had no choice.

“This is one of Mariusz’s demands, and we all know why.

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Mariusz Pudzianowski has nearly 16 years of MMA experience under his belt[/caption]

“Obviously, he’s going to get the advantage in the cardio aspect.

“So I can’t really blame him for wanting that, but it’s definitely giving him a massive advantage going into this fight.”

Hall is a huge underdog going into his clash with five-time World’s Strongest Man winner Pudzianowski, who has nearly 16 years’ worth of MMA experience to his name.

And he admits he’s incredibly nervous to share the cage with the pride of Poland.

He said: “If you’re not scared, you’re not nervous then something’s not right.

“Let’s face it, I’m going up against Mariusz Pudzianowski; 26 professional fights, five times World’s Strongest Man.

“He’s a fierce, fierce man and to get in the cage and exchange leather with a man whose had 26 fights? I’ve had one!

“So I’ve got a lot to be scared of and the four-minute rounds has been a tough thing for me to accept as well.

“He’s got a lot of advantages, but I’ve said, ‘Sod it. Why not let him have four-minute rounds? Let’s just get this done.’”