Mako Matt Watson
The last time I chatted with legendary fishing photographer Dave Lewis, it was in regards to a meerkat photobomb he captured years ago – before photobombing was even a word!
But the video link that Dave emailed our offices this morning had nothing to do with a mongoose-like critter. Rather, it involved a large swordfish, a giant mako shark and an absolute wildman of an angler.
Meet Matt Watson, the shock-jock host of The Ultimate Fishing Show. You may know Kiwi Matt from his time on the David Letterman Show. Or perhaps you’ve seen some of his angling exploits, such as the time he jumped out of a helicopter on top of a sunning striped marlin and wrestled it underwater.
Not kidding – more on that below.
But first, the matter at hand: In this latest video, Matt is seen hand-lining – yes, hand-lining – a very large swordfish in the neighborhood of 600 pounds. After a remarkable jump, the fish suddenly pulls free from the line and begins slashing its 5-foot bill violently across the water’s surface.
Thinking the fish was simply stunned after it threw the hook, Watson races up and readies himself to place a tag in its side, when he suddenly sees that a huge mako shark is chomping on the swordie’s tail.
“Look at that!” screams Watson over and over, as the shark thrashes the trophy sword like a ragdoll next to the boat. “That’s the biggest mako I’ve ever seen!”
I’m still not sure which is more impressive – the fact that this guy was fighting a swordfish of that caliber on a hand-line or the sheer size of the mako. Of course, you could make the argument that had he been fighting the sword on conventional gear, he might have whipped it before the shark had time to home in.
Matt Watson’s in-your-face style may not be for everyone, but regardless, this video is pretty amazing:
Now watch Matt Watson leap from a helicopter onto the back of an unsuspecting striped marlin at the surface. Crazy stuff:
