Since a proposed fight with “The Iranian Hulk” was dropped, Martyn Ford has put on a lot of weight.
The scariest man alive was supposed to take on his nemesis – real name Sajad Gharibi – at London’s O2 Arena in April in a card that was also to feature Patrice Evra and Jamie O’Hara, as well as the host from James English podcast.
The fight, however, fell through, with a clash between the two – Ford pushing Gharibi to the ground – seeming to show it may not have been a fair fight.
After the incident, footage emerged of the Iranian Hulk breaking down as he appeared on a TV show before revealing he had been disowned by his parents and was suicidal.
Afterwards, Ford called the event organizers and told them that he would no longer pursue the fight, as he did not want to be responsible for Gharibi’s bullying and his own death.
So, instead, the Iranian Hulk moved on to another opponent in the form of the Kazakh Titan, whose real name is Djumanov Almat Bakhytovich.
The pair met in the ring in August and the Kazakh Titan was utterly dominant, landing body and head shots at will, to the point where the Iranian Hulk repeatedly turned away from his opponent and that the competition has been duly stopped.
Ford is still looking for the right opportunity to make his boxing debut, but is also interested in an MMA bout after signing with Polish promotion KSW a few years ago.
However, his combat sports training has been on hold for a few months as he is shooting a movie in Bulgaria and living in a hotel.
Despite this, he has managed to pack 25lbs since revealing he had slimmed down to 315lbs in March in order to be more agile in his boxing debut.
“54 KG / 340lb It’s amazing what a happy MIND can do, for the past few months my food has been cut (hardly living in a hotel room) training has been constant BUT it’s in a gym commercial sports without a sparring partner,” Ford wrote alongside a photo of him looking screwed up.
“The work has been amazing but extremely physically demanding and sleep deprived…. HOWEVER, I was so happy, so full [sic] and I’ve had absolutely no stress while I’m here…. And my god it shows in my results…..
“Get stronger. Weight up. Increased muscle mass Just to show you how IMPORTANT air is for managing your stress levels and for staying HAPPY and HEALTHY.
“Not only that, having a CLEAR focus and a solid goal to train. Bulgaria has been amazing for me, for so many reasons, appreciate each and every one of you who added to this amazing.
UFC legend Michael Bisping worked on the film with Ford and they even bonded for a few sparring sessions.
However, for the most part, it seems like he went without a gym buddy during his time in Sofia and the results are phenomenal.