Instagram posts from Nauru’s strongest powerlifter Jezza Uepa come far and in-between on his social media page, yet when he does post, it’s often a lift that stops everyone in their tracks. If you felt the earth shift yesterday, don’t be alarmed — it was just Uepa moving big weight once again.
Uepa, widely known as an elite super heavyweight powerlifter and Ray Williams’ main IPF squat competition. On the quiet island of Nauru, Uepa has been quietly working outside of the public’s attention to bring up his already unworldly squat numbers. In his latest video, Uepa hit 450kg (992 lbs) for a double in knee wraps, which is his heaviest wrapped double to date.
On Uepa’s Instagram video’s description he writes, “My heaviest squat in knee sleeves 450kg double, and my aim is to raw this 450 without knee sleeves coming soon, thank God for his blessing, and also thanks to @darronhaworth and the team #houseofpower for having me in there gym, and to all my sponsorship out there thanks. Bebe w8”
For those new and old to Uepa’s lifting, you’ll notice how he consistently writes “bebe w8” in every video’s description no matter the weight. If this 450kg (992 lb) double is truly “bebe w8”, where is Uepa’s limit and how big is this baby? When does the weight grow up to be toddler weight?
Okay, cringy jokes aside, this 450kg (992 lb) double is more than impressive, but Uepa has hit much heavier squats raw in competition. In October 2017, Uepa hit a massive 470kg (1,036 lb) squat at the Brisbane Open, and finished with a 1,070kg (2,357 lb) total, aka only 12.5kg shy from William’s current IPF +120kg Open Total world record.
Preceding this October feat, Uepa went head-to-head with Williams in June 2017 at the 2017 IPF Classic World Powerlifting Championships. At this Championship, he finished with a 460kg (1,014 lb) third attempt squat after being flagged twice for soft knees with 425kg on the bar.
What you’ll notice in most of Uepa’s lifting videos shown and linked above is his consistent speed with weight on his back. He’s continually quick with massive weight, and it’s going to be interesting to see what he puts up at his next major platform debut.
Feature image from @jezzauepa Instagram page.
