I think that 6th spot is wide open. Big Ramy is my pick as there is so much size it dwarfs everyone and attracts the eye. I haven’t seen much of Justin but I think there is work to do for a 6th.
Another interesting one is Victor Martinez who has the talent to win, is looking great and could finish anywhere including second but too much of an unknown for me to place him.
Take away first and this year is pretty interesting IMO where for a while the only interest was Levrone.
Last year I would have disagreed with anyone throwing victors name out as a possible top finisher, but after his recent showing, I wouldn’t be surprised if he came out of left field and reminded people of how good he’s capable of being.
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Justin is big no doubt. Ive seen him guest posing and talked with him, very cool dude. However I dont think he comes out of left field.
when you think about how many titles the dude’s won over the years, you could easily argue he’s the most successful bodybuilder of all time
Dexter has posted a clip on his instagram. He will place second (changing my mind already lol) and it will be much closer to first than last year
My take
Phil Heath -
What makes him so difficult to beat is just how complete he tends to be. When you go bodypart by bodypart, pretty much everything on him is not just good but a standout. Still… small bones means others can outsize him.
Levrone -
Levrone’s upper body is already looking crazy. Stating the obvious, we don’t know how his legs will look. If he can come in close to his best - bringing the size but with 90’s conditioning - he will be a legitimate threat, even to Phil. Don’t doubt it. His big wide shoulders will be an advantage.
Ramy -
Will be interesting to see what Aceto can do with him. A shredded Ramy is seriously dangerous. Hips a little thick but humungous wide shoulders and a tight mid-section make up for it (as with Jay at his best).
That’s not necessarily my pick for top three, just the ones I’m most interested in.
Others: Dexter always a threat, if you give him the slightest opening he will own you. Martinez has great talent - Phil’s shape with a bigger bone structure, if he can come in at least as good as 2011 he will show up some people. Cedric I have no idea, needs obviously to be a lot better than at the Arnold, but will likely be top 5. Overall I think the field is going to be deep and it’s the least predictable it’s been for a while.
I still think Levrone will no longer be referred to as the uncrowned Mr. Olympia.
Have you had a chance to see the "3 weeks out " video? Don’t see him winning but it will be close. I think this year would have been a great comp if Kai had competed.
He could come in first. No one expected him to beat Jay in 2008
I always want Dex nabbing a top spot. Unlike most of today’s pros, he’s so damn consistent, year after year after year after year (lotta years!) and unlike Heath, his conditioning hasn’t slowly gotten worse with each showing.
The argument is usually that if so and so if off, another competitor can slip by them. So consider Heath being his expected blurry, narrow self, and Dex showing up, perfectly proportioned, dialed in, just crisp as ever… Dex could potentially be the guy to unseat two reigning Mr Olympias.
As far as Levrone,… even though he did throw up one zoomed in leg photo on social media this past weekend, when you consider his overall size - regardless of how impressive his conditioning does appear to be in recent pics - you’re going to need a handful of other very serious competitors to be off their game. Obviously Kev has his track record and name recognition going for him, because no unknown athlete would ever get a top 5 placing (or even consideration) based solely on conditioning when they’re severely undersized.
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I would really love to see Rhoden do better, I really like his structure. I think is a great combination of the “classic” style with a great v-taper, but the mass of a modern contender. His conditioning never seems to get there though and his stage presence always seem to be lacking. When Phil Heath will fight for his title until his last breath, unless Rhoden really comes in guns blazing I don’t see it happening, and he’s leaving the door open for other guys to pass him. Seems like most people are not considering him for a top 3 spot.
I don’t think Levrone is going to be ‘severely undersized’. He looks pretty damned big, and him being him he could even have more to grow before game day…
I don’t think anyone is counting Rhoden out… it’s just that there isn’t a lot of excitement about how he will or won’t look. He seems maxed out to where too much change might undermine what people like about his physique in the first place. Of course, that perception might be totally off. To me what he lacks is just that look of being powerful and the thickness that some of the other guys have - he might be a little too aesthetic.
This is a pretty good assessment. I was shouting about Rhoden for years, saying that he was one of the few top guys who still could make noticeable progress in terms of bringing up different areas. At this point though, I guess adding size just to add size would certainly be a step back at a time when fans are beginning to appreciate aesthetics again. In terms of the “entire package” I think him and Dex should be right up there slugging it out.
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I understand what you’re saying. IMO he does lack some of the thickness other top competitors bring to the stage, but if he added more he may start losing that aesthetic look that most other guys don’t have. Kai might be a good example, looking at his pics from around 2012 to now. He’s certainly improved and added quite a bit more thickness and mass, but personally I preferred his physique from a couple of years ago to now. More-so than Rhoden, I thought he had a great balance of size and aesthetics, where now, just my thoughts, I think he’s sacrificed some aesthetics to get bigger.
going to have to disagree with you there, mate. I think he’ll look awesome but he’ll definitely be outsized
This is Kevin today! Man, what a tiny waist and broad shoulders!
I wouldn’t be foolish enough to count him out!
By who? Heath? Rhoden? Jackson? I don’t see it, not if he comes in close to his best, though we won’t know until the day if that’s what will happen. Heath will be a bit rounder shape-wise and always looks best standing by himself, but standing side-by-side I think they will be comparable in size. Of course the bigger guys like Ramy and Wolf will out-size him, but they out-size Heath too.
Wolf? You DO know what happened to him, don’t you?
There’s a pretty interesting documentary being made about his road to recovery and comeback, the first part was recently released.
