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After prejudging, three athletes had a legitimate claim to the 2007 Colorado Pro title June 2 in Denver. You had Darrem Charles, winner of seven pro shows since 2002 and supremely shredded; Ronny Rockel, the uber-symmetrical German; and Silvio Samuel, he of the impossibly tiny joints and impossibly full and round muscle bellies. Any one of them could have walked away with the trophy and $25,000 first-place check without much controversy.
So it was a shock, to say the least, when emcee Bob Cicherillo uttered the name of Kai Greene as the winner. Greene, a masterful poser who hadn’t done much on the on the pro circuit after earning pro status as the 2004 NPC Team Universe overall champ – his best showing before 2007 was 14th at the 2005 New York Pro and 2006 Colorado Pro – enjoyed a big breakthrough three weeks ago at the New York Pro. With a much improved physique and hype on his side after his impressive sixth-place finish there, he followed that up by taking third and qualifying for the Olympia at last week’s Keystone Pro in Pennsylvania. None of that, however, could have foreshadowed this victory, as Greene lacks the proportion, muscle maturity and polish of the three men he finished directly ahead of. Even David Henry in fifth perhaps brought a better overall package to this contest.
Perplexing as the result was, it should take nothing away from Greene, who has made a triumphant statement in ’07 as a pro to be reckoned with. And he does have fan support on his side, as he also won the Bodybuilding.com Fan’s Choice Award and the Best Presentation Award for his electric and showstopping posing routine – in the posing round, where athletes like Charles, King Kamali, Vince Taylor and Melvin Anthony have been upping the ante in competing for the unofficial title of best poser in the IFBB, Greene may arguably be the best of them all. He has a fluidity of motion and a command over every pop, lock and pose, talents that made him a one-man highlight reel of the night shows in New York, Pennsylvania and now Colorado over the past month.
Perhaps it was those mesmerizing moves that put him over the top. Or maybe the judges see more to his physique than this reporter. But mark down June 2 in the annals of IFBB history, as it will either Mark The coming of a bright new star on the circuit, or one of the most anomalous decisions ever rendered in a pro bodybuilding show.
Charles, in fact, should either be winning at the halfway point of the contest, or is being screwed on callouts, as he came out only twice, in the first and eighth callouts, both times with the same group mentioned above.
Here at the Colorado Convention Center in downtown Denver, it appears quality is winning the day over quantity, as the two behemoths of the show, Branch Warren and Dennis James, fresh off a one-two placing in New York three weeks ago, are both likely on the outside of the top three looking in. While Warren does have a fair level of conditioning, James is admittedly well off of his best, which is probably a factor in his fall.
By the bodybuilding standards of quality, conditioning and muscular shape, Charles, Rockel and Samuel are the top three on stage, and any one of them could make a defensible claim to the title. Meanwhile, Greene, while he has conditioning and the momentum of his sudden rise to prominence based on his strong showings in New York and at last week’s Keystone Pro (where he qualified for the Olympia with a third-place finish), doesn’t necessarily have the structure to match up with those three. However, that doesn’t mean the judges won’t give him a higher placing anyway.
Other notables who are vying for top eight spots are David Henry, much improved from his disastrous early season; George Farah, who is sliced but doesn’t have the muscle proportions he’d need to break into the top five; and Johnnie Jackson, solid but with smaller legs than his frame requires, a flaw that’s again holding him back.
To see who emerges victorious in Denver, tune in to bodybuilding.com and Flexonline’s free webcast tonight, live at 8 p.m. Eastern/5 p.m. Pacific time.
