Powerlifter Jezza Uepa of Nauru is no stranger to putting up big weight, especially right before meets. Uepa competes raw in the 120kg+ weight class and is known for being one of the few lifters who have the ability to take on Ray Williams head-to-head in the squat. For example, recall the epic squat battle at the 2017 IPF Classic World Championships between Uepa and Williams.
Currently, Uepa is in prep for the Brisbane Open, which is taking place October 21st-22nd at the Fitness Show Brisbane. Yesterday, Brisbane North Barbell shared a video of Eupa hitting a 425kg pause squat with ease, aka “bebe w8”. Check it out below.
We mentioned it above, but if anyone has a chance of taking a run at Williams’ current 477.5kg IPF World Record squat, then it’s Uepa. (After all, he was the first to squat 1,000+ pounds raw in IPF international competition.) At the IPF Classic World Championships, Uepa was flagged twice on his opener and second squat attempt, and was forced to settle with a pretty easy 460kg final attempt.
Williams recently competed at the 2017 USAPL Raw Nationals and closely missed 490kg, which would have unofficially topped his previous record by 22.5kg. So now we have to wonder, will Uepa be the next one to unofficially strike at and chip the record? We think he may have the potential of doing so. Check out one of his easy 460kg squats below.
On top of Uepa’s impressive back squat strength, let’s not forget about his epic front squats. As of right now, we believe that Uepa’s 400kg (880 lb) front squat is the heaviest to date recorded on video.
Check out his insane 400kg front squat below, and he writes “bebe w8” in the description.
Yes, a 425kg pause squat is a decent amount away from Williams’ latest 490kg attempt, but Uepa has proven he can produce some pretty epic squats. Will he take a run at the current 477.5kg world record? We’ll have to wait and see.
Feature image screenshot from Brisbane North Barbell Facebook page.