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| If you want conditioning, Dexter is number one. If you want shape, Branch is your man. And for a combination of the two, Kai Greene is your clear winner. Here is my review of the 2008 Arnold Men's Prejudging... |
If you want conditioning, Dexter is number one. If you want shape, Branch is your man. And for a combination of the two, Kai Greene is your clear winner.
My Top 3
Kai Greene
Striated glutes with deep hamstring and quad separation. Excellent bicep peak. Really fulfilled his promise, and came in fuller and harder with somewhere around 10 pounds of added lean mass on his frame.
Really huge lats that seem to insert into his waist. Shredded abs and serratus, which is obviously a sign of good conditioning. Harder from the back than the front, but still has his signature poses that get the crowd riled up. If Kai could control his waist a little more, he could blow the other guys out of the water in the side shots.
What's holding him back is his symmetry; he has short clavicles, but he's made tremendous development to his shoulders to try and distract us from noticing. Posing just looks so easy, relaxing and effortless for him. Apparently, Kai Greene was sucking back the oxygen backstage. All the callouts took their toll on him.
Dexter Jackson
His girlfriend was yelling beside me. She's sure he's going to take the show. He looks extremely polished and refined. It appears he's put on about 3-5 lbs this year, and it's gone to his lats, which was a weakness of his (he's got high lat insertions, so it's hard to hold a lot of muscle there).
It looks as though his waist is tighter than it has been recently. I'm pretty sure at this point, his waist is smaller than mine. Lastly, Dexter, your wife says she's loves you. For a while, it looked like he was going to pass out a little as a few of his the last poses were called.
Branch Warren
He's on. His conditioning is spot on. If it's possible, it looks like his legs have gotten bigger, and his glutes are the most striated we've seen on him yet.
Side chest is a standout point because it accentuates the thickness and density of his pecs, and the sharpness and awesomeness of his hamstrings. His calves are also very deeply cut. He said he's been working on his back thickness, and its better, but it still needs some improvement.
He's got the best quads in the world right now. There was a huge cheer when Branch went on in the second call-out, but there was also a resounding "Branch should've been in the first callout" followed by a bunch of expletives I'm not allowed to write in my PG rated articles. He faded as the call-outs went on.
His legs are, once again, overpowering his arms. But if you like that kind of dense muscle, it's not a bad thing. We'll see tonight whether it worked to his advantage or not.
The Rest
Phil Heath
He's not as hard as he was at the Ironman 2 weeks ago. He said he wanted to come in fuller since the Ironman. He's certainly fuller, but he's also softer.
He's lost some conditioning, and there are noticeable patches of water spread around his body. His finger like obliques and serratus are gone. His glutes great. He also looks surprisingly big next to Dexter in the relaxed shots.
Silvio Samuel
They put Silvio ahead of Branch in the first call-out, despite the fact that he's noticeable softer than at the Ironman. He still has glutes, but he's still not quite what he was before. Even after 10 contests, his presentation on stage could still use some work.
In his transitions from one pose to the next, he relaxes. This is not good because he needs to remain hard and tight throughout the whole thing, even if it's difficult for him being dehydrated. That's what this sport is about.
Toney Freeman
I think his niece was sitting in front of me because she kept screaming, "Uncle T, Uncle T". Looks like his waist has gotten a bit thicker, which takes away from his once enviable X-frame and solid V-taper. But if he brings up his shoulders, it should help with create the illusion of wideness with a smaller waist.
He hit a lat spread when the head judge called a rear double bicep; poor guy on low carbs. He also looked as though he needed some oxygen on stage. He couldn't hold his poses as long, which was a shame because it seemed like he was getting tighter as the time went on.
Moe El Moussawi
Crazy, striated etched in abs. Definitely held his conditioning from the Ironman which is very impressive. He came in third 2 weeks ago, and may repeat or even improve that placing if he doesn't spill over tonight. He's in a harder lineup tonight with Dexter and Melvin being thrown into the mix.
Here's hoping he can bring it tonight like he brought it to the Ironman. I think he continued to diet after the Ironman, but he looks like he's lost muscle in the process. Unfortunately, the lights wash him out a little.
Gustavo Badell
Came out and immediately called for the crowd to screen louder. Grunted like he was squatting 850 pounds. Crowd favourite for sure. Hams that seemed to hang off his legs like someone just stuck them on. The upper body is looking tight and ripped. Looks extremely thick.
Glutes look tighter than before, but legs are still a bit watery. His quads keep holding water this year, which is something he should work on. Graininess in the arms
Johnnie Jackson
Very full and round, maybe a little tighter than he was at the Ironman, but not as tight as we've seen at the Ironman 2 weeks ago. His legs have improved from the front and side. They still need more mass. Huge applause after his 90 second posing. Looked like he was going to pass out on stage.
Desmond Miller
Great biceps and triceps. The only flaws in his physique are structural, i.e. His thick waist takes away from his awesome limbs. This guy has freaky limbs. In his abs and thigh pose, his waist looked smaller, but not waspish by any stretch of the imagination.
Extremely full from the side and the front, but he needs more development in his back to match his front. The cross striations in his quads are mind-blowing.
Ronny Rockel
Super wide lats and a great V-taper. His tanning is a little blotchy and uneven, which makes it hard to concentrate on any specific bodypart. He put on 5 lbs in the last year, but it looks like he's sacrificed some conditioning to do so.
Great biceps and triceps. The only flaws in his physique are structural, i.e. His thick waist takes away from his awesome limbs. This guy has freaky limbs. In his abs and thigh pose, his waist looked smaller, but not waspish by any stretch of the imagination.
His shredded glutes and X-mas tress back are gone, which is unfortunately, because he's one of the smaller competitors, so he needs to rely on his conditioning to hold on with the big boys. His goal is to make Top 6 this year. He pulled his shorts up to show off his glutes, but there's not a whole lot to show off.
Adorthus Cherry
This is his first pro show, and he's come in very flat. He's got a layer of water over him which is noticeable in his back especially. For someone his size, he needs to come in dry to the bone, and today, he hasn't done that. He's taking this show as a learning process, to learn what to do from the other competitors.
Melvin Anthony
Looks like he's added about 5 lbs to his frame, but it went to all the right places, and it evenly distributed. He doesn't look blocky or anything; his trademark symmetry is spot on. His conditioning could have used some work and more dryness. He wore cute little yellow posing trunks, just thought I'd add that.
Wasn't in the second call-out, and was visibly disappointed and probably angry. He stood off to the side, not next to and of the other competitors, and has his hands on his hips defiantly the whole time.
Dave Henry
I want Dave Henry to win this show. He won't, but I want him to. The Giant Slayer brings it every time, and dials it in without fail every time. He's sharp, he's hard, he's dry and he's conditioned. Poor guy was in the last two callouts.
Deshaun Grimez
Looks like he's holding some water in his legs. This is his second pro show.
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