Unequipped (without Bench Shirt)
For the bench press to be considered raw, no bench shirts are allowed; however, wrist wraps, singlets and belts are allowed. Elbow bandages had been allowed prior to the formation of the IPF, but were later outlawed.
| Year | Record | Gear |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | James Henderson presses 705 lb raw in a t-shirt without wrist wraps or a belt to become the first man to bench press over 700 lb raw in May 1996. | raw |
| 1997 | James Henderson first presses 699.97 lb and on a later attempt the same day 711 lb (322.5 kg) raw without wrist wraps or a belt on July 13, 1997 at the USPF Senior Nationals in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (full three-lift-meet). Today, it is still the highest bench press ever performed in a drug-tested competition as well as the highest ever done in an IPF-sanctioned three-lift-meet. | raw |
| 2003 | Scot Mendelson presses 713 lb (323.4 kg) on February 8, 2003. | raw |
| 2005 | Scot Mendelson presses 715 lb (324.3 kg) with only belt and wrist wraps on May 22, 2005 in Worcester, Massachusetts at the New England Bench Press Classic. | raw |
| 2013 | Eric Spoto first presses 716 lb (325 kg) and then 722 lb (327.5 kg) with only belt and wrist wraps on May 19, 2013 at the 2013 SPF California State Powerlifting Meet in Sacramento, California. Eric successfully benched 661 lb on his 1st, 716 lb on his 2nd and 722 lb on his 3rd attempt on the same day. | raw |
Read more about this topic: Progression Of The Bench Press World Record