It appears as though John Haack is a man on a mission. Since his all-time world record performance at the 2021 World Raw Powerlifting Federation (WRPF) The Bucked Up Showdown in late September 2021, where he hit the heaviest total ever in the 90-kilogram class of 1,005.5 kilograms (2,216.7 pounds), Haack has posted a plethora of personal records in the gym with a barbell in his hands. His last session on the bench was no different.
On Dec. 7, 2021, Haack screwed in his feet and bench pressed 272.5 kilograms (600.8 pounds) raw. Not only is the “600-pound club,” as he put it in the caption of his Instagram post that featured a video of the lift, but it is 12.5 kilograms (27.6 pounds) heavier than the current world record he holds of 263 kilograms (579.8 pounds). Check out the full lift below — Haack wears wrist wraps and no lifting belt:
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One way to know if a particular bench press is impressive is if the all-time raw bench press world record holder Julius Maddox deems it so. Maddox is likely to attempt an 800-pound raw bench press in 2022. If successful, he would be the first human to bench press that much weight raw. Here was his reaction to Haack’s rep:
This is crazy.
Haack’s spotter in the video is powerlifter Andy Huang, who ranked first overall at the 2021 Kern US Open in the 125-kilogram weight class (raw with wraps). He nearly toppled over the barbell trying to pat Haack in celebration. In Huang’s words, “I was willing to lose it all on that slap; this called for it.”
One of the most decorated powerlifters of all time with six International Powerlifting Federation (IPF) World Titles, Ed Coan, hopped into Haack’s comments to praise his lift as “Awesome!!”
Haack did not disclose his bodyweight at the time of his 600.8-pound bench press. However, on Nov. 29, 2021, when Haack deadlifted 405 kilograms (892.9 pounds) in the gym, his body weight was 96.8 kilograms. His 600-pound bench press is just shy of three times his body weight, assuming his body weight remained the same for a week. It is over three times his competition body weight.
Haack’s progression to entering the 600-pound bench press club involved matching his world record lift only four days prior in the gym. Check it out below:
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Haack will perform a lift in the Gymshark and Brawn live stream on Twitch on Friday, Dec. 10, 2021. Other lifters in that event include Jessica Buettner, Karenjeet Kaur Bains, Inderraj Singh, and Amy Viner. We’ll see what Haack calls for on the barbell and if it will be yet another PR this holiday season.
Featured image @bilbo_swaggins181 on Instagram
