Xmas, Day 6: Steroid Bust

It looks like Hidetada Yamagishi won't be entering the 2008 Ironman Pro and Arnold Classic after all.

On December 8th, upon arriving at LAX (Los Angeles International Airport) from Tokyo's Narita Airport, Hide (34, 5'6", 200 or so lbs) was arrested for felony possession of a controlled substance. He is currently being held at the North County Correctional Facility in Saugus, CA on a $180,000 bond, with anupcoming court date of January 8, 2008 at the Los Angeles Municipal Court. Though it hasn't been disclosed exactly what he was in possession of, the boys on the boards are supposing it was steroids (huh? you think?).


Hide, the first pro Japanese bodybuilder to compete at the hallowed Mr. Olympia contest, was steadily rising in the pro ranks (including 3rd in Sacramento, 9th at the Atlantic City Pro and 7th at the Ironman) and had been gaining a lot of positive attention in 2007. How exactly his detention will effect (or is it affect) his bodybuilding career is yet to be seen, but much more importantly, what will become of his pending immigration status and will he ever even get a "get out of jail free" card?

UKBFF: "James L" Wins!

Sunday night's light-heavy (90 kilo) class at the UKBFF British Championships in Nottingham was apparently a very close competition with James "Flex" Lewis just narrowly beating out James Llewellin. Fan consensus seemed to be that while Llewellin did have more upper body thickness, Flex took it with tighter rear shots (particular his lower back and glutes), better conditioning, and generally a more aesthetic shape.

Flex also took on heavyweight monster Darren Ball to win the overall and in so doing earned himself a pro card (yeah). He can now go play with the real big boys!

And finally Flex really took the bull by the horns by proposing to girlfriend Shina (who Joe and I met along with Flex at the 2007 Fit Expo in Pasadena last February). She of course said yes! Congrats to both of them!

Writing on his thread earlier today Llewellin was the most gracious runner up:

"I had an absolute ball. I loved every single minute of it and when my name was read out in second place I knew the right decision had been made. For all the talk and hype, I knew it was Flex's time and he deserved it thoroughly."

Words of a true champion, a man with real class, and one who I'm sure will come back bigger 'n' badder than ever. Good on yer James!

The Other "James L"

There's another "James L" competing in the light heavy's at tomorrow's UKBFF championships.

On Wednesday I posted some video of James "Flex" Lewis taken last weekend. Pictured here is another Brit also competing in the under 90 kilos (198.4 lbs) class. This "James L" is James Llewellin, overall winner at the UKBFF Birmingham qualifier back in August, and quite a force to be reckoned with back in the UK.

I've been sporadically follwoing this James' progress by reading his contest prep thread over at the UK-Muscle forums. This thread is probably one of the most informative and frank discussions on bodybuilding (from diet, to training, to supplementation) and consequently certainly something no US competitor would ever write. The guy seems to have great heart, knows his stuff ,and a good and loyal fan base.

It looks like there might just be a real fight on between these two "James L's" for overall domination!

Sienna Buff aka "Flex" Lewis, Future Pro?

Almost certainly!!!

Flex, good luck on the 14th at the UKBFF British Championships in Nottingham!!!

Atlantic City Pro, Prejudging Pix

A selection of prejudging pictures from this weekend's Atlanctic City Pro, courtesy of the good camerafolk at Muscular Development.

Fouad Abiad: 5th Place's a Charm

Over the years, as I've perused the numerous bodybuilding forums (I'm thinking of Muscle Mayhem in particular here), Hoss aka Fouad Abiad seems to have been one of the constants on the boards with his training insights, supportive comments and progress pix.

In 2006 after rising up through the amateur ranks, Fouad won both his super-heavyweight class and the overall at the 2006 Canadian National championship in Saskatoon, SK, finally earning him his IFBB pro card. He quickly followed this up with a "test run" against the big boys at that years Atlantic City Pro just over a week later, but placed an unfortunate 15th.

Being one of those off season mass monsters who can really put on the pounds, Fouad regularly gets close to the 300 mark (which is a pretty fair amount for a 5'10" guy), before then dieting down to his contest weight of around 230 or so pounds, a feat requiring much determination to achieve such conditioning.

The results of his hard work could be seen this past weekend at Montmorency College's André Mathieu Auditorium where Fouad blew away some of his more experienced competion with a 5th place finish at the 2007 Montreal Pro Classic. Though narrowly placing out of a slot that would have qualified him for the Olympia (only the top three qualify), Fouad earned the respect of many, including MD's Dave Palumbo, for his "thick, dense, muscle and superb conditioning [which, Palumbo acknowledged] was enough for the judges to overlook his less than perfect symmetry." Huh? Looks pretty damn symmetrical to me!

Responding to his Mayhem fans Sunday Fouad posted the following:

"Thanks everyone for your support I could not have asked for a better outcome. Posing next to guys that I have looked up to for years was one of the most thrilling things I have done in my life and I will never forget it," while also acknowledging that "I know I still have a long way to go and I also imagine myself with more quad sweep, thicker hams and calves, fuller arms and shoulders and more thickness in the chest and back. Did I miss anything... lol." At 29 Fouad has a bright, bright future in the sport!

Up next the Atlantic City Pro at the Trump Taj Mahal.

Erik Fankhouser, North American Pro!

There's a new IFBB Pro in the house, specifically Erik "The House" Fankhouser, the 5'9" 215 or so pounder who passed on July's USA championships to concentrate on this past weekend's 2007 IFBB North American Bodybuilding contest held at the Renaissance Hotel in Cleveland, OH.

Erik brought his A-game, a fantastic taper, and those freaking fraking legs of his. Though a pre-contest favourite to win the whole shebang, he had a fight on his hand in a packed heavyweight class, though ultimately bested both Darrell Terrell and Michael Liberatore, the 2007 MD Cyber Classic champ and Dave Palumbo's actual pick for the top spot, a man who "brought a symmetrical, freaky-ripped, package to the stage and was rewarded with a deserving 3rd place."

Erik then rocked the house in his quest for overall domination taking down super-heavy Grigori Atoyan, middleweight Mexican Angel Rangel, and light-heavy Mark Perry (who's been competing at the national level since 1996).

With Erik's win I'm seriously tempted to support the guy and get one of his House Wear (as opposed to Thug Wear™ by Yanchulis) designed shirts (especially since Joe has one of Flex's tees).

Hold on a sec though... You may have noticed Erik's inability to crack a decent smile in the pix I've posted (or from clicking on through the links above), well that's another reason to go out and support this West Virginian native.












Yes, as you can see bad, bad teeth for this otherwise handsome man! Maybe he's got some British ancestry?

Mike Ergas: Prejudging Pix from Texas!

Here are some early prejudging shots from the lads over at Muscular Development.

According to big Dave Palumbo, who's reporting directly from the show and posting to the site's forum, Mike unfortunately "looks overdieted.......sacrificed muscle....... skin looks a little loose. Looks small.. Should have done under 210 class."

Mike was selected for the 3rd of the callouts, along with Derik Farnsworth, Mike Kindred, Aiman Faour and Marc Jacobs. So it sadly looks like he's behind Silvio Samuel, Bill Wilmore and Will Harris, Dave's pick for the top three.

The finals are later tonight!

Remember Mike?

No, not Bentley's Mike, who's new cell phone connected blog can be read here, but rather local bodybuilder "Mighty" Mike Ergas, a particular favourite of mine for pretty much ever (hell I've even given him his own blogger label), who finally earned his IFBB pro status at last year's NPC USA's (the somewhat lackluster 2007 edition of which took place just a couple of weekends ago).

Well, Mike is finally making his pro debut at the Europa Super Show this weekend in Dallas, TX. Up against such luminaries as Silvio Samuel and Quincy Taylor, Mike simply hopes to crack the top three (and therefore receive an invitation to this year's Mr. Olympia). Asked by Bodybuilding.com's Kris Gethin in a recent interview if he'll be "playing the size game" for his debut Mike's response was thus:

"My plan is to do what got me here in the first place and that is to come in as conditioned as I possibly can. Of course I want to be bigger than in the past but size without cuts will do nothing in regards of a decent placing anyway."

At 5'6" and about 220lbs, he's already a pretty damn big boy anyway. Let's just hope mass, with class, ultimately rules the day!

Since I've Been Gone: Pure Beef!

Having spent almost the entire morning at a Toyota dealership in North Hollywood yesterday, come lunchtime I was starving, ready to eat my own hand off if need be. MacDonald's was the only recognizable eatery in the vicinity, so there we stopped, and there I inhaled an Angus Bacon & Cheese Third Pounder (one of those burgers the cute Boston boys rant about in the commercial - and it was in fact truly delicious).

Talking of pure beef, the 2007 IFBB New York pro bodybuilding show took place this past weekend at the Tribecca Performing Arts Center in the city, featuring such massive meatheads as King Kamali, Silvio Samuel and Dennis James.

Number one meathead of the night however was my man, Branch Warren! Pocketing the $15,000 paycheck, the NY Pro Ring and receiving the Best Legs award, Branch puts a disappointing 2006 season (and a poor 7th place finish at March's Arnold) behind him.

However even with his awesomely freaky mass and conditioning, Branch ended the night just four points ahead of runner-up Dennis James, and according to Flex Online, Branch only won the contest during the final posedown round (which is something that rarely happens, the winner is usually clear after pre-judging and the compulsories).

So lets hear from the big man himself talking to former pro, turned Muscular Development reporter, Flex Wheeler:

New York Pro: 6 Weeks Out

Guest posing at last weekend's 2007 NPC Northern Colorado show in Boulder, CO was Branch Warren, my fraking favourite bodybuilder and at only 5'7" and an off-season weight of around 270 lbs, one of the ultimate mass monsters in the sport.

Branch is currently prepping for the New York Pro championships on May 12th. At his last show, the Arnold Classic in March, he placed 7th, narrowly missing out on automatic qualification for this year's Olympia (only the top 6 qualified, the top five in New York will also qualify). Branch hasn't placed too highly in his last few competitions. Back in 2005 he took home back-to-back first place trophies (at the Charlotte and Europa Super Shows), but since then, although he's gained a good 20+ lbs of muscle, he hasn't been able to dial it in quite as well. This guy is all fraking muscle however, check out the following quick clip:

Later this summer Branch will turn promoter when he hosts The NPC Branch Warren Bodybuilding, Figure and Fitness Championships in Houston, TX. Until then however he's got the New York Pro to win, and if his current 6-week out conditioning is anything to go by, he's got grown men running scared!

Victor(y) at The Arnold

The Arnold Classic is arguably the first real big show of the bodybuilding season (i.e. the show where the big boys finally come out of hibernation and compete). Held this past weekend in Columbus, OH, even Governor Arnold graced the stage at the Veterans Memorial Auditorium (well he should, the show is after all named for him... Hell the whole weekend is held in his honor), presenting overall champion Victor Martinez with a check for $130,000.00, as well as the coveted Most Muscular trophy.

Highly placed competitors from the recent Ironman and Sacramento shows didn't fare so well up against these real big boys. Mark Dugdale, 2nd at the Ironman, placed 11th here. Hidetada Yamagishi, 3rd in Sacramento, only 13th (though his previous placing qualifies him as the first ever Japanese bodybuilder to compete at the Olympia). While Marcus Haley, 5th in both those shows, fell to 12th at the Arnold (though he was awarded Best Poser). Toney Freeman however, first place winner at both previous pro shows, continued to prove himself a force to be reckoned with coming in an impressive 3rd, besting Puerto Riccan Gustavo Badell and previous uber-newcomer Phil Gift" Heath.

That said my two "boys," Branch 'Quadrasaurus' Warren and Ronny 'the Rock' Rockel, didn't fair quite so well either, placing 7th and 8th respectively.

In 2005 Branch took first at the both the Europa Super Show and the Charlotte Pro. Last year he came second at the Arnold and took home the Most Muscular prize. Towards the end of 2006 however, he wasn't able to wow them at the Olympia (12th), although he seemed to have gained a whole lot of additional mass, but was unable to dial it in as well as he had earlier that year. This weekend he continues with the freaky mass monster look, but that doesn't equate with higher placings.

For some time fans considered Ronny an unfairly overlooked bodybuilder. He then won the 2006 Australian Grand Prix, but again fell from favour at that year's Olympia (he didn't even place), only to rebound again during a couple of the later international Grand Prix. This weekend he came in with the complete balanced package, but not as sharp (and as big) as he could have been to place higher.

Up next the New York Pro in May (Victor is sure to be the hometown fav if he competes here), then Shawn Ray's Colorado Pro in June. The Olympia Weekend this year starts on September 29th, once again in Las Vegas, NV.

2007 Ironman Pro Discord

As with any bodybuilding show there's always dissent amongst the fans with regards to the judging. So-and-so should have placed higher, whojamacallit was holding water, and whatsisname just couldn't control his stomach.

This years 2007 Vyotech Ironman Pro Invitational, held over the hill at the Pasadena Civic Center Auditorium, was no exception, except maybe with regards to winner, Toney Freeman, who's first place finish seemed to be met with unanimous approval (well pretty much unanimous, at least the viewers watching on bodybuilding.com gave him their vote).

Many thought Silvio Samual certainly deserved higher than 4th, having added a good 15lbs of muscle to his frame since last season (under the tutelage of Milos Sarcev), and a posing routine that earned him the Vince Gironda Award. "But heres the silver lining," thought Enter the Mind's BB is 4 life :) "with the position he got it shows he wasnt ignored, he grabbed their attention, now he is on the radar."

Second place finisher Mark Dugdale, one of the smaller IFBB pros, has one of the more symmetrical and proportional physiques, but not the mass that many like their pro bodybuilders to have. As Mike, the Admin Dude from Muscle Mayhem put it, Dugdale just "doesn't have that 'wow' factor [and basically] needs to get off that porch and put on some more mass."

39 year old Eddie Abbew, who's been around for a while now, placed 3rd, but how, asked Mayhem's dbcb314 when "his thighs are really narrow. His arms are nothing special. His conditioning was nothing special. He isn't a mass monster."

Then there's the case of unknown Russian Sergey Shelestov who was never even called out for a comparison against the top guys. "Yeah Shelestov got robbed BIG time. I think those mofos are racist," shouted Freak, a fellow Russian over at Muscle Mecca. His sentiments (well maybe not the racist parts) were echoed by many over all of the boards. Bodybuilding is a name game, and no one knew Sergey, hence his poor, poor placing.

Whether it's a guy's symmetry, aesthetics or proportions. Whether they have full round muscle bellies, lor ack the appropriate striations Maybe they look too chemically enhanced. Or maybe they just don't display and can't pose well. There's many a reason these boys place how they do... and only the judges really know the ins and outs of judging (deep I know).

2006 Excalibur Championships

The 2006 Excalibur Bodybuilding Championships, another local bodybuilding contest that Joe and I didn't go to, was held this past weekend at the Veteran's Memorial Auditorium just down the road in Culver City, CA.

The winner of both the superheavy weight class and the overall title was a "wee slip of a lad" by the name of Trey Brewer from Atlanta, GA.

Brewer, a former high school star fullback, relinquished the pigskin in favor of the fulltime pursuit of the iron game. Back in 2005 at the tender age of 19, the 6 ft tall, then only 225 pounder, earned an impressive third place finish in the heavyweight division at that year's NPC Teen & Collegiate National Championships behind the crazily coiffed Steve Kuclo.


Now at only 21 years old, not only has Brewer ballooned up into the super heavyweight class (weighing well over 225 lbs), but he's won a major Californian contest that now qualifies him for one of the big national competitions (like the NPC USA or NPC Nationals).

This is one “little one” who can now truly play with the “big boys.”