American strongman Evan Singleton is one of the competitors preparing for the 2023 Shaw Classic, slated for Aug. 19-20, 2023 at the Budweiser Events Center in Loveland, CO, and based on the looks of his training, he’s prepared and confident in his chances.
On Aug. 11, 2023, Singleton posted a training video on his YouTube channel, which featured him performing a standing overhead press with 204 kilograms (450 pounds). You can see the entire video below, with the big lift coming at the 3:49 mark.
Singleton removed the barbell from the rack and took three small steps to prepare himself. He pushed the bar up, but it came back down quickly after rising only halfway. He immediately regrouped and pushed again, and the second time it went up all the way to lockout. He lowered the weight to shoulder level and re-racked the bar. He wore wrist wraps, elbow sleeves, and a weightlifting belt for the lift.
In the moments after, Singleton said that he may have rushed the first attempt because his entire body wasn’t tight. Once he regrouped and set himself, the bar went up, and he expressed confidence about his chances at the contest.
“Going into the Shaw Classic with a 450 (pounds) out of the rack, I’m happy, confident, and yeah, and ending out of the rack on a really good note.”
He then finished the workout with seated machine presses, reverse pec-deck flyes, single-arm cable lateral raises, and triceps pushdowns. Full sets and reps weren’t shown of those exercises.
Singleton goes into the 2023 Shaw Classic with a lot of momentum thanks to his victory at the 2023 Giants Live Strongman Classic on July 8. He advanced to the 2023 World’s Strongest Man final before that, finishing that contest in a career-best fifth place. He competed in the 2022 and 2021 editions of the Shaw Classic as well. He was eighth out of 15 men in the 2022 Shaw Classic and fifth out of 16 in 2021. Trey Mitchell won both contests.
The 2023 Shaw Classic has a lot of history riding on it. Aside from promoter Brian Shaw reporting it to be his final contest as an athlete, the contest winner will now earn the title of “Strongest Man on Earth” thanks to Shaw purchasing the rights from original owner and Fortissimus strongman contest promoter Paul Ohl.
Featured Image: Evan “T-Rex” Singleton / YouTube
