It’s an easy argument to make. At last year’s Mr. Olympia competition, David Henry was the most overlooked man in the lineup. Resembling a motile block of flint more than actual flesh and blood, he may have been the shortest man onstage, but no less polished as the top three of Jay Cutler, Ronnie Coleman and Victor Martinez.

Dumped into the “outside the top 15” barrel in Las Vegas last September, Henry deserved better. This past December, he got it. “It’s a milestone and a half. When I think about what I’ve got . . . I came up from nothing, and to step back and look at where I am now, I feel blessed,” Henry commented, days after joining the ranks of bodybuilding’s elite as a Weider athlete. “I’ve wanted to be a Weider athlete for a very long time, so I’m extremely happy,” By signing on the dotted line, Henry’s name is added to the list of former and current Weider athletes whose names read like a roll call of bodybuilding hall of famers: Leroy Colbert, Larry Scott, Dave Draper, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Franco Columbu, Lou Ferrigno, Frank Zane, Lee Haney, Dorian Yates, Coleman, Cutler, G¸nter Schlierkamp, Phil Heath, and on and on.

With renewed hope for the future, Henry, who is also a MuscleTech athlete, is set to make 2007 his most successful year as a pro. With a dance card that begins with the Ironman Pro and ends with, he hopes, another chance at Olympia honors, he plans to keep his usual breakneck pace of competing, competing and more competing. Moreover, he assures that the ’07 version of David Henry will be the best one yet.

“The game plan is to get better than I’ve ever been,” 5’5″ Henry says. “I’m bigger than ever right now. In fact, I plan on competing at two to three pounds heavier than last year, which on my frame is a lot, while keeping the same conditioning. So I think it should be a good year for me.” From all of us here at FLEX, we’re happy to have you on the team, Dave.