Winning a title like the World’s Strongest Man isn’t just about being considered the world champion of strongman; it also makes you a celebrity which can lead you to opportunities to promote your sport throughout various mainstream avenues. Past champions like Brian Shaw, Eddie Hall, and Hafthor Bjornsson have all experienced this themselves in a variety of roles.
2019 World’s Strongest Man Champion Martins Licis knows this first hand and recently had his strength tested in a different way than he is accustomed to. He faced off against celebrities in a pushing challenge as a part of the new CBS game show “Game On!”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXlqoszbKqo
On the episode that aired on May 27th, the “King Dragon” made his appearance in a Roman themed outfit and was the featured opponent in a game called “Pillar of Hercules.” Host Keegan Michael Key explains that the goal of Licis’ opponents was to push a pillar against Licis for as long as possible before falling into the foam pit behind them. The longer the two opponents last, the more time their teammate has to answer questions asked by the host.
The first celebrities Licis faced were former Cleveland Cavaliers NBA player JR Smith and comedian Ian Karmel. The two men lasted a little over one minute which allowed their teammate, tennis great Venus Williams, to answer five questions.
Next Licis was challenged by Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end/WWE 24/7 Champion Rob Gronkowski and another comedian, Bobby Lee. Gronkowski and Licis had collaborated together in training content in the past, so they knew each other already. While Gronk is known for his own strength and size, Licis defeated them in 56 seconds.
Team captain and star of the Netflix show “Mr. Iglesias” Gabriel Iglesias was only able to answer 4 questions correctly in that time.
Finally, after being suggested by the host, all of the celebrities, including Key, faced Licis in an impromptu matchup which all seven of them actually pushed him into his foam pit.
Licis shared moments from the show on his Instagram story throughout the day. It’s not known when this was filmed but Licis appeared to be in good health. He has been rehabbing from a variety of injuries recently so he can begin training for defense of his title this coming November.
“Game On” airs Wednesdays at 8:00 pm eastern time on CBS.
Featured Image: Instagram/martinslicis
Featured Video: YouTube/CBS
