First and foremost: who are the sponsors that help make the Auckland Strongman Series possible?

We'd like to thank our principal naming rights sponsor Westie Pies for their on going support the last two years and again in 2018. Thanks to all of the great businesses that help us bring the Series to life including Raiselower, Just Protein, Yuasa Batteries, Physio Logic and Miada Gym.

You're back with another Auckland Strongman Series, what were some of the highlights from last year that ensured another series this year?

Building on the success of last year we continued with a similar format of 3 series events and one standalone Record Breakers event. The competitor base has grown with each competition particularly in our under 105kg men and open women categories.

Are there any changes to this year's series in terms of events/exercises, scheduling and organisation?

Every competition we run has different events which is the beauty of the sport. No two Auckland Strongman Series competitions have had identical events in the last eight competitions. As far as organisation goes we have good systems in place that allow us to keep administration costs low and the most money going back into the sport.

Were there any difficulties in setting up this year's series that weren't there last year?

So far everything has been fairly smooth in 2018 - however we are always on the lookout for financial sponsors so get in touch if you can see a fit between your business and the Auckland Strongman Series.

Which athletes should we be keeping a close eye on this year?

Athletes to keep an eye on in 2018 are Stanley Cocker who has gone from strength to strength in 2017 and won his first series event at Round 2 after five attempts. In the Under-105kg section our unbeaten man is still Jayson Woods who has been setting a consistently high standard in every event. For the ladies competition it has been very competitive and we are likely to have a third different champion in as many events!

Are you able to make public the most difficult event at this year's Series, or are there a few secret events that only become known when the Series begins?

The most difficult event in the Round 3 event at Big Boys Toys will probably be the atlas stone series. This will be a first for the Auckland Strongman Series and has always proven to be a popular event internationally. The athletes must load up to five concrete atlas stones of weights up to 180kg+ and heights of up to 1.4m.

💥💥@canbeelifting 164kg stone x 4 reps and a technical error on the 5th. He's looking to go back to back in just over 3 weeks.💥💥 @raiselower @justproteinnz #aucklandstrongmanseries #startingstrongman #arnoldaustralia

A post shared by Auckland Strongman Series (@aucklandstrongmanseries) on Oct 18, 2017 at 2:07am PDT

What's the most exciting aspect of the 2017 Auckland Strongman Series for you?

The most exciting aspect of 2017 has been the emergence of a new leader in both the Open Male and Open Female division - as well as seeing new faces in every competition as the popularity of the sport continues to grow. We are expecting this trend to continue into 2018 and are looking to potentially take some events on the road.

What advice do you have for people who are interested in strongman?

For aspiring strength athletes I would implore you to get involved in a competition in your area sooner rather than later. Strongman is a sport for everybody and I guarantee that you will be hooked after your first event.

Auckland Strongman Series Round 3 November 11th & 12th at Big Boys Toys, ASB Showgrounds. Record Breakers November 18th at Clevedon A&P Show