Erik Axner was on a fishing trip off the coast of Norway with of few of his best friends when he caught this savage of a fish—a 7-foot, 222-pound halibut. The fisherman’s strength was put to the test as he battled the beast, reeling it in for over an hour after the fish caught onto his 40-pound coalfish bait. Axner states,

“Being in the water with a fish that size is a powerful experience – it gives you a whole new level of respect for the fish.”

A fish this size couldn’t be hoisted onto his small boat, so Axner jumped into the water to take photos with his proud catch of the day. At 222 pounds (16 stone), the halibut could have provided the world with 250 fillet-o-fish or been sold for £6,000 (almost $10,000).

Although the catch seemed to be impossible to beat, the G.O.A.T. was a 513 pound halibut hauled by a small Norwegian boat in 2013 which smashed the previous world record holder by almost 100 pounds.

Axner describes his encounter with the fish as an “unbelievable experience.” And after watching the footage for ourselves, we’d have to agree.

[via The Daily Mail]

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