16lb reservoir zander on a lure

British zander don’t come much better-looking than this chunky 16lb 2oz specimen which was expertly taken by predator ace Thom Hunt.

Competing in the World Predator Classic at Cambridgeshire’s Grafham Reservoir, Thom and his boat partner Kevin Cox were flying high after day one of the tournament having banked a succession of 3lb-plus perch and zander to just under 9lb, but it was during the morning of day two when a bigger zander struck.

“I was half thinking it was a big pike but I also had a hunch due to the nature of the scrap it could be a big zed, and then it popped up in front of us…It was absolutely massive and the biggest zander I’ve ever seen,” said Thom.

Thom’s new personal best fell to a 6ins Zander Pro Shad. It also helped his team finish third in the competition overall.