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The bench press records of 49 elite rugby players
‘How much do you bench bro?’ It’s a sports’ cliché, but the bench press continues to occupy a uniquely macho seat in the pantheon of weight training disciplines, and professional rugby players are by no means immune.
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Some variation of the bench press remains a staple in rugby clubs across the globe. Upper body strength remains a valuable asset in the game, once it doesn’t come at the cost of compromising a player’s speed or endurance.
One rep max bench presses are also a potentially dangerous exercise for contact sports athletes to attempt. Many avoid PBs on the bench as they pose a significant risk of pectoral tears or upper limber injury. For most rugby players, having a big number on the bench isn’t worth the risk of a potentially season-ending injury.
It goes without saying that rugby players are neither powerlifters, professional strongmen nor bodybuilders. In a rugby context, an enormous bench press is not necessarily indicative of anything other than a strong upper body. It doesn’t always translate into a good rugby player on the field of play. Rugby is not a weight-lifting competition; it’s a contact sport that requires speed, endurance, and explosive strength of its athletes. Many of the world’s best rugby players have modest PBs on the bench press.
The relative bodyweight of players and what they’re throwing up on the bar must be taken into account. The Springboks, for example, expect Test players to bench press between 1.3 to 1.5 times their bodyweight, position-dependent. A 120kg prop, therefore, would be expected to bench 180kg as a ‘minimum’ requirement, while a 100kg centre would be expected to bench 130kg.
Generally speaking, S&C coaches have moved the sport towards core and explosive strength training in the last decade – away from a ‘bulk at all costs’ mindset. One PRO14 head coach RugbyPass spoke to said that he was interested in creating powerful, fast athletes, regardless of their size. He likened it the Irish MMA fight Conor McGregor: an example of explosive athlete generating KO forces on a lithe 70kg frame.
Nevertheless, be it a spotty teenager aiming to make the school’s first XV or a veteran tighthead who wants the club bragging rights, the bench press remains an entrenched part of rugby’s cultural psyche.
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The following list comes with a health warning. While most of the numbers represent personal bests for many of these players, inevitably some will have either bested these records or, inversely, are no longer capable of lifting that amount. For example, Wallaby backrow David Pocock benched 185kg at his peak, but admitted in a 2019 post on Instagram that “I’d be pushing it doing 155/160kg at the moment”.
The vast majority of figures come from comments made by teammates, coaches or the player themselves in the media. Despite that, inevitably, some question marks remain over one or two of below numbers, especially in a discipline so given to hyperbole.
The list is also not an exhaustive list of the top bench press records in the sport; rather it’s the bench press PBs of some notable professional rugby players.
An honorable mention must also go to former Wallaby wing Murdoch Alistair, who benched 227.5kg (raw) at the World Drug Free Powerlifting Federation (WDFPF) in 2014 in the under 110kg bodyweight category. He did, however, manage this feat long after his retirement from rugby, and at the age of 46.
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Gheorghe Gajion (Ospreys) 230kg
WillGriff John (Sale Sharks) 230kg
Aled de Malmanche (Stade Francis, retired) 220kg
Biyi Alo (Wasps) 220kg
Leo Halavatau (Soyaux Angoulême XV) 217.5kg
Andrew Sheridan (Sale Shark, retired) 215kg
Alfie To’oala Vaeluaga (Samoa) 210kg
Max Lahiff (Bristol Bears) 210kg
Nicky Smith (Ospreys) 200kg
Rory Sutherland (Edinburgh) 200kg
Jon Welsh (Newcastle Falcons) 200kg
Tom Court (Ulster, retired) 200kg
Jack Whetton (Highlanders) 200kg
Asafo Aumua (Hurricanes) 195kg
Ben Tameifuna (Racing 92) 190kg
Manu Tuilagi (Leicester Tigers) 190kg
Siate Tokolahi (Highlanders) 190kg
Cian Healy (Leinster) 190kg
David Kilcoyne (Munster) 187.5kg
Jackson Wray (Saracens) 187.5kg
Maro Itoje (Saracens) 187.5kg
David Pocock (Panasonic Wildknights) 185kg
Ugo Monye (Harlequins, retired) 185kg
Joe Moody (Crusaders) 180kg
Pouri Rakete-Stones (Hawk’s Bay) 180kg
Will Genia (Rebels) 180kg
Digby Ioane (Glendale Raptors) 180kg
Mike McCarthy (Leinster, retired) 180kg
Tendai Mtawarira (Old Glory) 180kg
Gareth Denman (Coventry) 180kg
Tom James (Scarlets) 180kg
Paul O’Connell (Munster, retired) 179kg
Nemani Nadolo (Montpellier) 175kg
Eben Etzebeth (Toulon) 175kg
Jaycob Matiu (Northland) 170kg
Ben Funnell (Crusaders) 165kg
Pierre Spies (Montpellier, retired) 165kg
Matt Vaai (Counties Manukau) 162.5kg
Pete Samu (Brumbies) 160kg
Sam Whitelock (Panasonic Wildknights) 160kg
Matt Todd (Crusaders) 150kg
Caleb Timu (Montpellier) 150kg
Andy Goode (Newcastle Falcons) 150kg
Dan Carter (free agent) 145kg
Courtney Lawes (Northampton Saints) 140kg
Jim Hamilton (Saracens, retired) 140kg
Sonny Bill Williams (ex-Blues) 140kg
Jimmy Gopperth (Provence Rugby) 140kg
Richie Mo’unga (Crusaders) 137kg
Is your name on the list and have we got your figure wrong? DM us on Twitter, or email us at ian@rugbypass.com
Comments on RugbyPass
Hats off to Fabian for a very impressive journey to date. Is it as ‘uniquely unlikely’ as Rugby Pass suggests, given Anton Segner’s journey at the Blues?
1 Go to commentsSad that this was not confirmed. When administrators talk about expanding the game they evidently don’t include pathways to the top tier of rugby for teams outside of the old boys club. Rugby deserves better, and certainly Georgia does.
1 Go to commentsLions might take him on if they move on Van Rooyen but I doubt he will want to go back, might consider it a step backwards for himself. Sharks would take him on but if Plumtree goes on to win the challenge cup they will keep him on. Also sharks showing some promising signs recently. Stormers and Bulls are stable and Springboks are already filled up. Quality coach though, interesting to see where he ends up
1 Go to commentsAnd the person responsible for creating a culture of accountability is?
2 Go to commentsMore useless words from Ben Smith -Please get another team to write about. SA really dont need your input, it suck anyway.
264 Go to commentsThis disgraceful episode must result in management and coach team sackings. A new manager with worse results than previous and the coaching staff need to coached. Awful massacre led by donkeys.
1 Go to commentsInteresting article with one glaring mistake. This sentence: “And between the top four nations right now, Ireland, France, South Africa, and New Zealand…” should read: And between the top four nations right now, South Africa, Ireland, New Zealand and France…”. Get it right wistful thinkers, its not that hard.
23 Go to commentsHow did Penny get the gig anyway?
2 Go to commentsNice write up Nick and I would have agreed a week ago. However as you would know Cale & co got absolutely monstered by the Blues back row of Sotutu, Ioane and Papaliti and not all of these 3 are guaranteed a start in the Black jumper. He may need to put some kgs before stepping up, Spring tour? After the week end Joe will be a bit more restless. Will need to pick a mobile tough pack for Wales and hope England does the right thing and bashes the ABs. I like your last paragraph but I would bring Swinton, Hannigan into the 6 role and Bobby V to 8
21 Go to commentsThe Crusaders can still get in to the Play Off’s. The imminent return of outstanding captain Scott Barrett and his All Black team mate Codie Taylor will be a big boost.There are others like Tamaiti Williams too. Two home games coming up. Fellow Crusader fans get there and support these guys. I will be.
1 Go to commentsCant get more Wellington than Proctor.
2 Go to commentsWhy not let the media decide. Like how they choose the head coach. Like most of us we entrust the rugby system to choose. A rugby team includes the coaches. It's collective.
13 Go to commentsHi NIck, I have been very impressed with him and he seems a smart player who can see opportunities which Bobby V _(who must be an international 6_) doesn’t see or have the speed to take advantage of. If he continues to improve and puts on 5kgs then he could be a great 8. He is a bit taller than Keiran Reid at 1.93m and 111 kgs, so his skill set fits his body size and who knows where it will lead. I hope the spate of Achilles tendon issues have been dealt with by the S&C people. It’s been a very long time since Mark Loane and Kefu stood out at 8. The question is will we be able to hold onto him, if he does make it he will be pretty hot property. I disagree with the idea of letting them go to the Northern Hemisphere and then bring them back.
21 Go to commentsBilly Fulton 🤣🤣🤣🤣 garrrmon not even close
13 Go to commentsDoes the AI take into account refs? hahaha Seriously why not have two on field refs to avoid bias?
23 Go to commentsVern challenging this Blues side might be the edge they need to fulfill their potential. Convincing results from strong D and strong carries are hard to argue against.
1 Go to commentsLove seems to add a strong back field defense with speed to close the gap and tackle to his ability to attack, kick and pass (an accurate long pass). This sets him an edge over some of the other names - JRK in particular. Has to be said that Jordan and Stevenson have also been exposed defensively while Love has yet to face test match intensity. Spoilt for choice.
1 Go to commentsHe’s strung together a few strong seasons, I’d like to see him in the ABs and build some depth along with Reiko and ALB. Levi Aumua hasn’t taken the step we hoped to see but time yet.
2 Go to commentsWhere has our good friend Pecos gone!? Similar place to the Crusaders D, the abyss.
4 Go to commentsNice piece Nick. I haven’t seen much of the brumbies this year so will keep my powder dry on charlie, but clearly has the speed and footwork to be damaging in space. Similar to Samu, I’d worry about the size of our pack if the likes of Mcreight and Cale were in the b/row together. Maybe Cale could play a similar finisher role like Samu did for Rennie’s wallabies. Has Cale leapfrogged wilson in your eyes? He obviously has the lineout, but harry probably better (although not great) in the physical stuff and also has great hands in the loose. You’d have to say mcreight and valetini are shoe-ins at 7/8, so the question becomes who matches best with them at 6 and on the bench. I don’t know if he has a high enough ceiling, but id love to see wright given a shot based on how much bad luck he has had with injuries. He may also fit that no-nonsense graft/work rate irish approach…? If schmidt wants size and a 4/6 tweener then I’d probably pick Uru. On the bench I’d have no idea, Wilson if you want to give valetini a rest, and maybe hanigan/wright/uru as 6 replacements.
21 Go to comments