By: Lonnie Teper
10/12/2005
There are several changes in store for the ’05 Mr. Olympia, but will any of them affect Ronnie Coleman’s quest for an eighth straight crown on October 15? A Coleman victory, as you should know by now, would place his name side by side with the illustrious Lee Haney as co-owner of a record eight Mr. O titles.
Well, moving the Las Vegas event from the Mandalay Bay to the Orleans Arena certainly won’t have any effect. Neither will the addition of one competitor from the newly installed Wildcard Showdown competition that will take place during the Figure and Fitness Olympia finals a night earlier.
However, some folks think the mandate Ben Weider announced a few months back could play a role in who cruises, who loses. In the memo Weider said, to abridge, that the “look” bodybuilders should present features a small waist, a tight, flat midsection and a V-taper. Bodies injected with products like synthol will be graded down.
The Big Nasty has good
symmetry, a fairly small waist for a man his size and a wonderful taper, even at the 295 pounds he carried last year on his 5’11” frame. But detractors quickly point to a (sometimes) distended midsection they say belies the Weider slant. Admirers of a more sleek, aesthetically pleasing bod say Ronnie has gotten, well, too big and too nasty.
So, if the Weider mandate really is adhered to on game day, could the likes of Chris Cormier, Melvin Anthony, Darrem Charles and Lee Priest be moving into the favorite’s role? Be sure to read the News & Views on page 206 to find out how the Swami sez it will all play out.
In the meantime, let’s take a closer look at the field.
The champ. Ronnie Coleman, holder of seven consecutively earned Sandow trophies. Does the new Ben Weider directive concern him? Well, he did tell me a while back that he was aiming to come in at around 280 or so but admitted later that he keeps putting on muscle—yes, even at 41—and that it’s feasible he could be even heavier this time around.
The top challengers. Jay Cutler, Chris Cormier. With Dexter Jackson sitting this one out (along with Ahmad Haidar), the two top challengers to unseat Coleman are still C & C Company, Cutler and Cormier.
Cutler, the three-time Arnold Classic champ, has been playing second fiddle to Ronnie at this event for some time now. Jay’s biggest problem of late has been finding that happy medium: He’s either been too heavy, which hurts him in the back-detail department, or too light, which flattens him out.
Cutler began his contest diet even further out than usual this year; if the 32-year-old can come in dry, at about 265 pounds, he might have a legit shot at uncrowning the king. Jay, however, was around 290 in early August, so showing up that light might be a stretch.
Cormier is an enigma, as usual. How many times have we said, “If Chris can come in at his best”—then he doesn’t. Now that he’s 38, there’s no more time to waste for the 5’11”, 255-poun*der with the tremendous symmetry. If he’s on the money, he’ll be in the mix for the big prize. If he’s off again, like last year, when he finished sev*enth, he’ll fade into the second five.
X factor. Gunter Schlierkamp. Why does Schlierkamp, after his sixth-place landing a year ago, not to mention the thumping he had to take in front of the whole place because of that damn challenge round, rate this high? Because he told me back in April that “Guntermania will be back.”
For those who weren’t close observers in ’02, Schlierkamp was the people’s champ en route to a fifth-place finish in the Olympia, then upset Coleman at the GNC Show of Strength shortly after, becoming the only person ever to defeat a reigning Mr. O.
Top-six contenders. Gustavo Badell, Lee Priest, Markus Ruhl, Alexander Federov. Badell was ’04’s biggest surprise, ending up third in the event last year. Then the Frican Rican started off ’05 with a bang, winning the IRON MAN Pro before taking third in the Arnold Classic.
But despite the impressive finishes, the 5’7” Badell has had as many detractors as supporters this season, as he was 16 pounds heavier than the 234 he sported in 2004. Again, a distended midsection was the main area of disapproval.
I’d like to see Gustavo display the look he had in ’04, when he was easily the most improved bodybuilder on the pro level; at 235 Badell, who will be competing in front of his hometown fans, since he moved from Puerto Rico to Vegas a while back, will fight for a top-three slot.
Priest has been a standout on the pro level for more than a decade and may have presented his best look ever this season. The 5’4 1/2”, 200-pound Priest took second to Badell at the IM, was a disputed fourth at the ASC and then bested Cormier at the Australian Pro event.
Always criticized for his lack of thigh separation and smooth glutes, Priest really dialed things in during the early shows and brought up those areas of weakness tremendously.
The big, bad Markus, all 285 pounds of him (at about 5’11”), is a huge favorite of the fans, and if he’s in shape, he’ll always be a con*tender, as he was last year, when he finished fifth.
Russia’s Federov, the latest “big thing” to make his Olympia debut, is about the same size as Ruhl, has gotten a lot of media exposure and will probably join Ruhl as one of the crowd favorites. If people are thinking Federov is a threat to Coleman’s title, Ronnie isn’t one of them. “His time isn’t now,” Coleman says with a sly smile.
X factor. Victor Martinez. Martinez has sort of become the latest version of Cormier. When he’s spot on, the balanced Martinez can be one of the best in the game, but he hasn’t been at his best since he won the Night of Champions in ’03. The New Yorker, ninth a year ago, still has to prove he’s among bodybuilding’s elite on a consistent basis.
Top-10 contenders. Darrem Charles, Melvin Anthony, Kris Dim. Charles bested Martinez at the ’05 New York Pro, so perhaps he should trade places with Victor in the rankings. The 36-year-old Charles has really come on of late and has recorded six victories on the pro level. Still, will the judges allow the always sliced Charles, at 5’9” and 220 pounds, to move ahead of some of the mass monsters and land in the top six?
Anthony, like Charles, presents one of the most pleasing physiques in the industry. But as with Darrem, is he big enough to be fairly compared to guys like Schlier*kamp and Ruhl? Marvel*ous Melvin goes about 5’8 1/2” and 230 pounds and is the best performer in the sport.
Dim was 12th last season and easily laid claim to the title of best Asian bodybuilder in the world. Now he wants to be ranked among the best, period. Kris will be one of the smaller competitors in the lineup, at 5’5” and around 200 pounds. But, remember, Priest is about that size as well and can hang with anyone.
Troy Alves, who would also fall into this category, was sidelined with a shoulder injury this summer and had to withdraw.
More X factors. Johnnie Jackson, Branch Warren. At press time, Jackson was in, and Warren was hoping to qualify at the Europa Supershow and Charlotte Pro in the fall.
The two Texans—and sometime training partners—both possess high-quality physiques and have the tools to crack the top 10. Jackson was 14th a year ago but looked vastly improved when he took second behind Charles at the Toronto Pro this year.
Warren, the most underrated physique athlete in the game, should have qualified for the Big Dance last year. Based on how terrific he looked when he peeled off his shirt at the Texas Championships on July 23, he’s a shoo-in to do just that this time around—and the man known for the best wheels since the late Paul “Quadzilla” DeMayo showed off only his untanned upper body.
There will also be a competitor added after the Wildcard Showdown is held on the night before the Mr. O. This new feature is basically an 11th-hour qualifying match, in which the winner not only gets 10 grand but also gets to stand next to Coleman and his posse the following day.
The event is open to IFBB pros who finished in the top 10 at IFBB contests from the ’04 Mr. Olympia through the ’05 season.
What’s more, despite any rumors you may have heard, the challenge round, inaugurated in 2004, will be back. This year, however, it won’t change the outcome of the contest. It will bring a nice piece of change to the top finishers. See the News & Views for the details.
Additionally, American Media Inc. and the IFBB, promoters of the ’05 Olympia Weekend, have raised the prize money for all events held during the weekend; the Mr. O pot goes from $399,000 to $500,000. The amount for the winner, $120,000 last year, is being boosted to $150,000.
This is a new contest venue, the lineup is deep, and the booty has been increased. Can’t wait to see if Coleman makes it eight. IM
