Shawn Ray sat down with Dave Palumbo of RXMuscle where they discussed the controversial topic of Shawn Rhoden’s unappealing Pittsburgh Pro guest posing appearance.
Now, usually after the Olympia, a bodybuilder will take some time off to recover from the intense training and diet regimens required to be an elite athlete. This is for health and sanity reasons but Rhoden looked completely out of shape and it has been the big talk right now, especially since he the reigning Mr. Olympia champion.
And as an ambassador and face of the Olympia, many expect him to show up looking as such…
But, in the interview, Shawn Ray explained that he himself came into a competition a little out of shape a time or two but never as bad as what Shawn Rhoden showed at the Pittsburgh Pro. In fact, he explained that he has never seen anyone look quite that bad before…
Here’s the full interview…
“Can Shawn bounce back, he could but I didn’t look like that at that stage. Like I didn’t know anybody that looked like that at that stage”. Like I don’t know anybody that looked like that at that stage”.
Shawn Ray then said “Absolutely that was a total embarrassment listen there’s no excuse for that you didn’t come out of the hospital. Just being off, and ‘hey I don’t start until May,’ then you know what take responsibility and keep your clothes on. At some point, you got to keep your clothes on and say no to some things. If I was a kid in the audience and I’m going to see Mr. Olympia and I’m jacked up and this guy walks out…
But, Shawn Ray explains that this wasn’t the first time something like this happened and even Ray himself was offended by this being an athlete and having taken his clothes off to pose in front of his fans.
The next question was whether or not Shawn Rhoden can get back to last year’s shape or even better and..
“He sounds like he doesn’t care about his image anyways. He’s really crystal clear that look ‘I’m Jamaican, I come from a skinny fat family, it is what it is,’…
Ray said regarding the champion’s attitude after the event… he then said that Rhoden had no remorse for what happened.
Shawn Ray strongly believes Rhoden should have stepped aside and let the in shape bodybuilders pose.
And a humorous part of the interview came when Ray said how Rhoden looked like he was high since there was no effort in his posing and how he barely hit one pose…
“I could have sworn I was watching Homer Simpson high”.
But, Shawn Ray went on to explain how hard it is to keep the title and how Shawn Rhoden should be doing all he can to be the best as he’s earned it. However, his “unprofessionalism” is not a good look if he wants to continue to be the face of the Mr. Olympia competition.
We’ll just have to wait and see what this year’s contest brings but Shawn Rhoden will have to work extra hard to bring a champion-caliber physique.
