Bodybuilder William Bonac is determined to redeem himself after turning in a ninth-place finish at the 2022 Mr. Olympia contest. Talking with Giles Thomas, Bonac discussed his 2023 Arnold Classic prep and revealed that he’s having kidney issues.
Bonac is a proven talent in the IFBB Pro League Men’s Open division. He’s finished in the top six at the Mr. Olympia competition several times. While Bonac has yet to claim the sport’s most prestigious title, he’s found success twice in Columbus, Ohio, on the Arnold Classic stage (2018, 2020).
Last year, Bonac was unable to procure a third Arnold title after Brandon Curry’s shape and upper body carried him to victory. A week later, Bonac entered and won the 2022 Boston Pro. Given the conditioning he displayed at these two shows, fans expected Bonac to be in title contention at his next Olympia.
Despite his monstrous off-season meal plans and tough training sessions, Bonac came up short in Las Vegas. He dropped to ninth place, which was the lowest Olympia finish of his career. Without an invitation for the next Olympia in November, Bonac must qualify for the show.
In a recent interview, Bonac revealed kidney issues almost held him back from competing at the 2023 Arnold Classic. In addition, he discussed his decision to stop using oral steroids during prep.
William Bonac Discusses Inflamed Kidneys and Stopping Oral Steroids: It’s ‘Just to Save Myself’ and ‘Not Make It Worse’
Bonac shared that he was worried about a blood test post-Olympia because his kidneys were inflamed.
“To be honest with you, I didn’t even plan to do the Arnold Classic. I was so in belief of myself that I would do well at the Olympia, that I’d at least be in the top five and that I could sit a year out and prepare myself for the 2023 Mr. Olympia, but it didn’t work out that way. And I still didn’t want to do it because I had my blood check done.”
According to Bonac, his inflamed kidneys require medicine, but he’s not able to take the drug because it would interact negatively with his current cycle.
I was worried you know. I didn’t feel good. I thought maybe that something was wrong. I did my blood work. I told them [Arnold organizers], because they were asking me and I told them, ‘listen, if my blood work is okay, I’ll compete. If not, don’t bother me.’ Yeah, so I did that. To my surprise, everything was okay. A little bit of inflammation in my kidneys. I have to take measurements for that. I have some medicine to take but I can’t take it right now because I’m in prep because it goes against each other,” says William Bonac.
Another measure Bonac took during this prep was stopping all oral steroids.
“So right now, like my whole prep that I’m doing, I’m not even taking orals. Yes, no orals. Just to save myself and not to make it worse,” added Bonac.
Looking back on his recent Olympia finish, Bonac reiterated that he and his team made miscalculations. In spite of dropping to ninth, Bonac plans to win a third AC title.
“Like I said, [2022 Olympia] was a miscalculation. Unfortunately, my body is so sensitive. Sometimes you just have to wait a little bit more, understand, and see how things react… yeah, we just made some miscalculations. I think this mistake, I did the same thing in 2020, 2021 as well.”
“Placing ninth at Olympia when most of the time you’re in the top six,” Bonac said. “It’s a hard pill to swallow. You understand. It kind of demotivates you but you have to get over it and keep going on. And that’s what I’m doing right now. I don’t stress myself anymore. Of course, I’m going there to win it,” Bonac shared.
“The Conqueror” will have his hands full at the upcoming Arnold. As soon as the Arnold promoters upped the prize money by $100,000, Nick Walker, Andrew Jacked, Patrick Moore, and Mamdouh ‘Big Ramy’ Elssbiay entered the contest. In addition, Samson Dauda, Justin Rodriguez, Akim Williams, and 212 Olympias Shaun Clarida and Kamal Elgargni will be at the event.
RELATED: Flex Wheeler Warns William Bonac Not To Play Size Game With Big Ramy: ‘Bigger Isn’t Always Better’
With Bonac and Ramy out for redemption, fans expect an exciting show in Ohio at the Arnold Classic. The winner will receive a huge boost in momentum months before November’s 2023 Olympia competition.
Check out the full video below:
Catch full coverage of the 2023 Arnold Classic, including pre-judging, event recaps, analysis, and final and full results at our Arnold Classic coverage hub: FitnessVolt.com/arnold-classic
Published: 1 February, 2023 | 12:04 PM EDT
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