by Christian Duque
I said in my article from last week, Samson is taking a tremendous chance by competing in Prague. First of all he’s a former Arnold Classic champion and a recently defeated Mr Olympia. There is absolutely no reason why he should be competing at any show outside of the big three. For those of you not aware of which shows fall into this category, let me clue you in. The New York Pro, the Arnold Classic, and the Mr Olympia.
That is the big three. Now that Pittsburgh offers open bodybuilding a case can be made that that might be the fourth biggest show, but then you also have the Dubai Pro and a couple of other shows that have big purses but are definitely not in the pecking order of the top three. Why is that important? It’s important because the big three generally bring out very, very good competition and they also have a long history in the sport. Look at who promotes the New York Pro, look at who promotes the Arnold Classic, and look at the O. The Olympia is the Super Bowl of bodybuilding. It is the highest honor that any physique-based athlete can achieve. It’s been that way for over 60 years. So when Samson loses his first Olympia defense, why on Earth would he go to an event outside of the top three?
The way it looks like Samson’s going to lose to Martin Fitzwater. So many people believe Martin should have placed ahead of him at the Olympia, but now if Martin beats him in Prague, that’s the last time Samson will probably place ahead of him. Because Martin is on the way up and Samson is very much on the way down. Still, why would a defending Olympia champion that lost his title defense ever want to compete in a smaller show like that?
I’m sure that Samson is a very intelligent man when it comes to whatever his career outside of bodybuilding is. I’m sure that he has a good intellect, I’m sure that he has good street smarts. But only an idiot would go to a smaller show and risk defeat after losing at the biggest show in the world. That doesn’t make any sense. Now I know that a lot of people are saying he looks better in Prague than he did at the Olympia, well whoop-dee-doo. But who gives a shit? He looks better at a smaller show, a contest that is not even in the zip code of one of the big three. And that’s not intended to throw shade at the Prague Pro, but how can you compare the Prague Pro to the New York Pro, the Arnold Classic, or the Mr Olympia? The answer is you can’t. You just can’t. Those three shows are in a league of their own. And what’s worse is like what I said in my article, Samson’s going to go to the smaller stage and lose. So what then? When Ramy and Hadi lost they went to the ASC. Ramy placed 5th again and basically retired. Hadi won and came back strong, only to lose at the Olympia to Derek.
As I write this article the finals at Prague were in Martin’s favor. I don’t really care who won the Prague Pro because Martin is in everyone’s heart and mind. Even the most popular Youtuber, Nick’s Strength and Power, has reported that he has never seen Martin look better and even though Samson looks far improved from the Olympia, Nick Miller is of the opinion that Martin deserves a win. And it’s not just Miller, it’s so many other media commentaries that believe that Martin successfully won.
Martin crushed Samson and Dauda has a lot of the blame. That is the 10,000 lb elephant in the room. Why can’t somebody sit Samson down and tell him that he needs to stop competing for the foreseeable future. He needs to hunker down and work on his physique. This is an individual that has the structure and the muscle to win any show; he could even potentially win back the Olympia, but he just does not come in the condition that he needs. And even though he’s aesthetically more pleasing than Nick Walker, he really has his work cut out for him when standing next to the likes of Andrew Jacked. When it comes to Derek and Hadi, they are a couple of ankle biters and they can fight it out till kingdom come. But if we’re talking about being the best bodybuilder, the best Samson possible, he needs to really focus on the condition and he needs to get with a full-time coach.
And again this takes us back to the whole argument of whether or not his wife should be prepping him in the first place. I don’t want to say anything bad about his wife and I know his wife is the one who got him involved in bodybuilding, and that’s all fine and dandy. But when you are the number one bodybuilder in the world, the stakes are far higher than for any other individual. You need to be equipped with the best coaches possible. The best trainers, the best nutritionists, the best posing coaches, it’s like you have to pull out all the stops. You have the money, you have a tremendous sponsor that believes in you and is probably actively investing in you, but you’re going to work just with your wife? That seems incredibly irresponsible and I think we are seeing the results of that short-sighted way of thinking as we speak. Martin defeated Samson and now Samson is a complete non-factor. He can’t say that what happened in Las Vegas was a fluke or that it was the product of some wrong decision because then he went to a much smaller show and got his ass handed to him. It’s a horrible look and he has only himself to blame.
I don’t think that competitors should work with significant others, parents, family members, maybe not even friends. It needs to be cut and dry. It needs to be all about the business of bodybuilding and bringing that athlete in the best condition possible. Once you start mixing love, caring, and other types of relationships into the mix, I feel like you’re watering down the coach l-client relationship.
I feel that Samson needs a coach in his corner that will give it to him straight and I don’t know if he has that right now. He also needs a coach to offer him some invaluable life advice. like if you are a defeated Mr Olympia you don’t go and sign up to do the very next show just because you think that you’re going to win it easily. At the end of the day, a defeated Mr Olympia competing at a show like the Prague almost seems like bullying. Why does a former Mr Olympia mix it up with guys that would normally not even be in the second or third callouts at the Olympia? And I think having Martin there should have been enough of a red flag for him to have kept away. But it wasn’t just Martin, Keone is there as well.
From the way that he lost the Olympia to the way he competed against Martin in Prague. It’s not a good look. But only time will tell how much further more Samson drops down the ladder before he realizes that he needs to change coaches, change direction, and get back to working on being the best version of himself possible. And that version only goes on a big 3 stage.
Samson, for crying out loud, know your place. You’re a former Mr Olympia, one of the best bodybuilders in the world. You should not be competing in small shows. You should be saving your best for the biggest stages on the planet. I, for one, believe you can win back your title, but not at the rate you’re going – at the rate you’re going your, legacy isn’t going to be worth dirt within another two or three shows. You need to stop, press the pause button, regroup, come back when you’re ready. Stop running your name through the mud just because you want an easy win. And hopefully you will get a real coach in your corner at some point.
What do you guys think? Do you think Samson should keep competing? Or do you think he needs to hunker down and come up with a better game plan? As always, thank you for reading my article here at IronMag. I leave the final word to you. Also please be sure to copy and paste a link of this article on all your social media feeds. It is bound to generate lively conversation.
