Hafthor Björnsson’s return to the strongman competition was highly anticipated as he looked to add to his three Arnold Strongman Classic wins. However, it was Mitchell Hooper who emerged victorious in the competition for the second year in a row. This was after The Mountain had a record-breaking first day.

The final day of the Arnold Strongman Classic again established an erratically exciting shift of points for the participants. From Dinnie Stones Carry, and Apollon Wheels to Stone Medley, Mitchell Hooper was firm on keeping his place at the top, yet both Björnsson and Mateusz Kieliszkowsk were right next to him to overthrow.

The Canadian edged out his competitors in the penultimate event, the Apollon Wheels. Although Kieliszkowsk won the fifth event, Stone Medley with five reps, Hooper was right behind him and completed two reps as Tom Stoltman also did for the same event.

Hooper won with a massive point of 52. In comparison, Hafthor Björnsson, who slipped out of the top three ranking got only 38 points overall. His promises with a striking start of lifting 1006 lbs didn’t materialize into a win. On the other hand, Mitchell Hooper proved his caliber quite steadily and got ahead during the finale.

Day 1 of Arnold Strongman was favoring Hafthor Björnsson in terms of points. With his 1006 lbs lift at the ‘Max Elephant Bar Deadlift’, a record in the category, almost all of the fitness world started to believe that Björnsson’s comeback is going to earn him the Strongman title easily this year. But Mitchell Hooper, who lifted only 951 lbs for his first event, later surpassed Björnsson for ‘Timber Carry’ by a time difference of 1.30 seconds.

The event saw Polish strongman Mateusz Kieliszkowski and Scotsman Tom Stolton who finished in the top three.

Arnold Strongman Classic 2024 Leaderboard

After the neck-to-neck battle for the title of Arnold Strongman Classic, the results are shocking yet self-explanatory. The finest thing about Strongman shows is that fans can easily see the strength of each and every participant. And although fans of Bjornsson wished to see him at the top, that was not the case.

READ MORE: Months after Horrifying Pec Tear, Strongman Legend Goes for Astounding 340 Lbs Incline Bench Press

After Mitchell Hooper with 52 points, Mateusz Kieliszkowski secured 40.5 points and the second rank. On the other hand, Scottish strongman and former WSM winner Tom Stoltman surpassed Hafthor Bjornsson with a mere 0.5 difference and finished in the third spot. Hafthor Bjornsson, who won the competition three years in a row from 2018-2020, came fourth with 38 points. Bobby Thompson [32 points], Oleksii Novikov [25 points], Evan Singleton [24 points], and Martins Licis [23 points] followed him. Thomas Evans and Oskar Ziółkowski rounded off the top 10.

READ MORE: “Strongest Man in History”: Hafthor Bjornsson’s 1000lbs Deadlift at Arnold Classic Leaves Fitness World Flabbergasted

As the results are out how shocked or happy are you to see Mitchell Hooper at the top? Let us know in the comments below.