A DAD was left stunned after he hooked a 560lb beast of a shark in a scene straight out of Jaws.
Gus Smith, from Blackpool, and three of his strongest pals fought for over an hour to reel in the colossal great white shark.
The dad from Lancashire had been holidaying in New Zealand, his native land, when he went out on a seven-day fishing trip.
The group of Brits had been aiming to capture Mako sharks, who are often found on the outskirts of Three King Islands – until the tides turned.
Shocking footage from the excursion captured Gus wrestling with a beast over twice his size.
A great white shark weighs 5,000 pounds on average and can grow up to 23feet long.
Gus said: “I’d been fighting with the shark for over an hour.
“You can see the lads are strapping me into a brace called the ‘black magic’.
“It is designed to take the pressure off my back, which at that point felt as though it was about to break – as the pressure on it was so much.”
The footage begins with Gus having the back brace put on him.
He then goes from leaning over the boat, changing positions tactically, and reeling like a madman, all to secure the best battle position.
This all comes after he and his friends had taken it in turns to tussle with the gigantic great white.
After Gus’ catch of the day, he went on to reveal how much the beast weighed.
He said: “The shark was 250kilos.
“That was the skipper’s estimate who had 30 years experience.
“We were fishing for Marko sharks when we hooked into this Great White Shark.
“We released it at the side of the boat safe and sound.”
And the great white was just one of their many impressive catches that day.
Gus and his pals also managed to hook a Mako shark, a Hapuka, Blue Nose, Bass, Snapper, Trivali, Yellow Tail King Fish, Bronze Whaler Shark, and Stripped Marlin.
The largest ever great white shark, dubbed “Deep Blue”, was spotted off the coast of Guadalupe Island in 2022.
Weighing a scale-busting 2.5 tons, the mighty beast measures up at an incredible eight feet high with huge fins and razor-sharp teeth.
The gigantic great white sent ripples across the world when she was first caught on camera in 2014 off the coast of Guadalupe Island in Mexico.
When researcher Mauricio Hoyos Padilla posted a clip of her in 2015, it quickly went viral.
It’s thought Deep Blue may have been pregnant when first discovered, as female great while tend to remain in solitude at high depths until they are ready to give birth, according to Surf Researcher.
Experts believe Deep Blue is the largest great white ever seen and has lived for more than five decades.
Meanwhile, two cage divers came face to face with a terrifying shark in Guadalupe, Mexico, with incredible pictures showing the giant apex predator swimming dangerously close to the brave pair.
And while it was not possible to take an exact measurement, the colossal beast looked like it could be larger than 20ft shark Deep Blue.
