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The Mr. Olympia 2007 took place in Las Vegas over the week-end from 27th to 30th September. There was much discussion on the internet as usual about who would be in the top six. Generally, it was everyone’s belief that Jay Cutler would make it two in a row. Well, he did but many who were there felt that the judges had been generous. Jay had all his usual size but he was not as ripped as he can be and he was lacking detail in many areas. His legs seemed below par and retaining fluid. Victor Martinez in 2nd place was overall a better package but even he did not have the ripped condition of Dexter Jackson. At 5ft 7in and 230 lbs, Dexter is not small but compared with the first and second place men he looks small. Nevertheless he deserved his 3rd place. Ronnie Coleman was 4th. After the show, Ronnie announced his retirement and received a standing ovation. He has been a great Mr Olympia and set standards of development that few can hope to attain now or in the future. It was well-known that Ronnie has been coping with some bad injuries in the last couple of years and now it is showing on his body with visible damage to his legs and back. This was a shadow of the Ronnie Coleman of 3 years ago and it is a pity that he did not announce his retirement last year when he was first beaten by Jay Cutler. No, it appeared that he was retiring because he had to. In 5th place was the upcoming German Dennis Wolf. He looked great with enormous shoulder width and tiny waist. He was a favourite with the crowd and his placing was booed. He should have place higher. The 6th place went to Melvin Anthony. I know that “Marvelous” Melvin Anthony has a great physique but somehow he doesn’t do much for me. I do not want to denegrate his achievements but there are others I would have placed higher. He could have been sharper but he does display himself well and that counts for a lot when you are competing at this level. Silvio Samuel in 7th has quality and at the moment carries with him a bit of flavour of the month. He has been highly rated in mags recently — particularly after his wins at the Europa Super Show in Atlanta. He competes at about 215 lbs and is more in-line with current alleged preferences for more classically pleasing physiques. On the other hand, in 8th place was the massive Gustavo Badell. He looks pretty good; possibly lighter than previous years in an attempt to trim his waist.but still carrying plenty of muscle. Johnnie Jackson was 9th and David Henry 10th. I like David Henry’s great size and shape. He is again a classic shape with small joints, lots of muscle and lots of detail. It is difficult to find any faults.
Of the others, I would have placed Ronnie Rockel in the top ten and in spite of the terrible aesthetics i would not have had Paco Bautista out of the top fifteen. Doesn’t a Mr. Olympia winner have to be freaky? Certainly, Paco is that. Marcus Hayley has awesome legs — not quite Paco standard — but who has? Marcus Ruhl was huge, slightly harder than in Spain but not ripped. At 5ft 10in he weighed 278lbs, which was less than I expected. The only British contender was Eddie Abbew. At 6ft and 270lbs he was big enough but still needed to be sharper.to be a serious threat to the top men.
If you want more pictures go to the Ironman or Muscular Development web sites. They have hundreds of pictures.
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