Adrian,
I wouldn't call the Monster Hunter 80H a popping rod, it's really a bit of an all-rounder. Mine handles stickbaits in your target range very, very well but only handles 160g poppers comfortably and will work 180/190g poppers from the bucket at a push. My understanding of the 79XH is that is fundamentally similar although the sweet spot is slightly heavier than on the MH 80H for both stickbaits and poppers.
From what I've seen fishing with other guys, big poppers require specialized gear so I'll leave that to the guys that fish big poppers. 180/190g is as much as I push that envelope.
Hope that helps.
Regards,
Trevor