John Brzenk is an arm wrestler. John Brzenk is also a former UAL Right-Handed Champion and former Arm Wars Light-Heavyweight Champion (left-right). He was also named the “Greatest Armwrestler of All Time” by the Guinness Book of World Records.
In addition, John has competed in several leagues across the United States.
During the Arm Wars and the Arm-wrestling league, he made some of his most renowned appearances.
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Early Life, Family, and Childhood
John Brzenk was born in the United States on July 15, 1964, in McHenry, Illinois.
His father, like John, was an arm wrestler.
The former athlete claims that his father, Brzenk Sr., gave him his forearm size through heredity.
As a result, it is reasonable to conclude that John became interested in sports as a result of his father’s influence.
Because of his lifestyle, little is known about his mother and other family members.
As a result, there isn’t enough information on his early years and education.
However, it is known that in grade 8, Brzenk began arm wrestling. He also spent more than five years arm-wrestling with his friends.
He sustained a broken arm as an eighth-grader when he arm-wrestled his father’s friend.
Despite this, he continued to compete, and at the age of 16, he competed in his first tournament.
He also got the moniker “Giant Crusher” for his remarkable ability to outmuscle opponents twice his size.
In addition, the arm wrestler has a younger brother, Bill Brzenk.
Body Stats
John Brzenk is a legend in the world of arm wrestling.
He currently stands at a stunning height of 6 feet and 2 inches. In addition, he weighs around 103 Kg.
Besides, despite his old age, John Maintains his physical fitness through an intense workout routine, exercises, and a strict diet.
Thus, he was feared by numerous competitors.
Also, it was one of the reasons behind his tremendous strength and durability.
Training and Strength Facts
In 2006, John stated that he could bench press 315 lb for five reps with a flat bench.
John advised that his secret to exceptional strength was pullups.
In his prime, John was close to closing the Captain of Crush Grippers #3 gripper. He currently trains with a gripper between 200 to 240 reps.
He trains his bicep with 50 lbs. of dumbbells and does wrist curls with the same dumbbells.
Facts of John Brzenk
Name | John Brzenk |
Nickname | Giant Crusher, The Perfect Storm |
Birthdate | July 15, 1964 |
Age | 57 years old |
Birthplace | McHenry, Illinois, United States |
Ethnicity | White |
Nationality | American |
Zodiac sign | Cancer |
Parents | Brzenk Sr (dad) |
Body type | Athletic |
Height | 1.85 m/6 feet |
Weight | 102 kg/225 lb |
Hand Size | 20 cm approximately |
Eye color | Light Grey |
Hair color | Light Brown |
Skin | Fair |
Profession | Arm wrestler |
Ranking | #2 (Heavyweight division) |
Career span | 35 years |
Undefeated Streak | 25 years |
First world title | ABC’s 1982 Wide World of Sports |
Streak break | Against Alexey Voyevoda (2004, Warsaw) |
Movie cameo | Over the Top |
Professional status | Retired |
Rivalries | Travis Bagent Denis Cyplenkov Devon Larratt Tartas Ivakin |
Technique | Top Roll Hook |
Bicep Size | 44 cm |
Forearm Size | 15.5 inches (39.5 cm) |
Relationship status | Married |
Wife | Renne Brzenk |
Children | Kelli and Megan |
Social Media | Instagram |
Net Worth | $5 million |
Merch | Pulling John |
Last Update | May 2022 |
Earnings and Net Worth
John Brzenk’s net worth is currently estimated at $5 million.
John also competed for the highest fee of $80,000 at times during his career.
Arm Wrestling Career
It was rare to watch a young boy beat up on someone much bigger than himself. The crowd, on the other hand, had no idea that John would go down in history.
John also won ABC’s Wide World of Sports in 1982, his first world title, after competing in smaller contests. Furthermore, he was only 18 years old at the time.
In arm wrestling, his 16-inch right forearm and 13.5-inch left forearm were renowned.
Furthermore, his heaviest opponent weighed roughly 660 pounds. He won this match as well because there were no opponents his arms couldn’t pin.
Furthermore, in his entire career, John has only lost one super-match. The behemoth has only been defeated by a few humans.
Furthermore, some of the most glaring defeats came against Alexey Voyevoda and Devon Larratt.
In addition to arm wrestling, John now works for Delta Air Lines as a technician. According to John, the job does not necessitate sheer strength, therefore he gets plenty of rest.
The Fist of Iron
After his tremendous victories over formidable opponents, Brzenk earned the nickname “The Iron Fist.” He continued to improve after winning the Middleweight World Championship in 1995.
Furthermore, John earned a cameo in Sylvester Stallone’s film Over the Top as a result of his legendary status.
He was not, however, given credit for his role in the picture.
Furthermore, by the early 2000s, John had become a household name. However, due to his advanced age, the colossal athlete was also considering retirement.
With each passing year, his arm endurance and strength deteriorated. As a result, a slew of competitors from around the world began to close in on him.
The character “Pulling John”
A documentary about John’s life and accomplishments was released in 2009.
“Pulling John” is a documentary directed by Sevan Matossian and Vassiliki Khonsar.
In addition, the respective documentary focused on the 2009 Zloty Tur Cup, which took place in Warsaw.
Furthermore, the documentary was about mental battles as well as physical strength.
Furthermore, it provided viewers with insight into what goes on in Brzenk’s mind and perfectly portrayed John’s personality and characteristics.
Despite dominating arm-wrestling sports for 25 years, John was a humble person. It was common for arm wrestlers to be arrogant and cocky as they had pride over their brute strength.
However, John did not resonate with any of it. He was a mild-mannered athlete with a humble personality. Additionally, it was one of many reasons why fans across the world loved and adored him.
Legacy
John’s legacy was written in history books despite his loss against Alexey Voyevoda. The World champion lost to the Russian arm wrestlers in the 2004 event in Warsaw.
Furthermore, Brzenk’s first loss was against Alexey, which ended his 25-year winning streak. But John avenged his defeat in a rematch the following year.
Some of his prominent career losses were against Alexey Voyevoda and Devon Larratt. On the contrary, some of his best matches were against Larratt, Voyevoda, Michael Todd, etc.
Nonetheless, the legendary Brzenk continued arm wrestling even at the age of 55. Additionally, John won the middleweight titles in 2017, 2016, and 2015 as per sportsindiashow.com.
Moreover, he became Wal’s 196-225lb Champion (Right Hand) in 2015. However, John was unable to defend the respective title in 2016 because of his injuries.
Not to mention, Brzenk’s career record shows that he had won over 500 titles by the time he retired.
Retirement and other works
John is currently unofficially retired because of his old age and the injury he suffered.
Furthermore, he was announced as one of the co-hosts for the “Pound for Pound Arm wrestling” YouTube podcast. He was also joined by the founder Ryan Bowen himself.
Moreover, John was involved in predictions and reviews during the podcast.
In addition, he gave general information about the sports and himself to his audience and the fans.
Recently in February 2022, the athlete made a comeback where he beat Khadizmura Zoloev and reclaimed the world’s top ranking in the 225-pound division.
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Marriage, Children, and Grandchildren
John Brzenk is known to love his private lifestyle. Thus, he has kept his personal and family life away from the spotlight.
Nonetheless, it is known that the fantastic athlete is married to Renne Brzenk.
Added to that, the couple parent two daughters named Kelli and Megan.
Further, he is already a proud grandfather to a granddaughter and a grandson.
John’s eldest daughter Megan shared wedding vows with Stephen and gave birth to her son Lincon.
Moreover, his younger daughter Kelli also got married to Jade Gray. The couple now has a daughter.
Becoming Superstar
John was a global superstar when he was in his prime. At the time, arm wrestling sports did not have any audience in the U.S.A.
However, after the movie “Over the Top,” starring Sylvester Stallone, the sport gained worldwide recognition.
Also, it attracted support from the governments of India and Russia.
Besides, most of John’s competitions took place in different parts of the Soviet countries.
Further, he became a significant icon in Russia and even had actions figured dedicated to him.
Presence on Social Media
On social media networks like Instagram, the arm-wrestling legend has a sizable fan base.
He has over 23k followers on the platform under the moniker @Jrbrenk.
However, unlike his Instagram account, John does not have a large Twitter following.
It could be because he likes other social media platforms like Instagram.