Compared to Phil Heath, the “Predator” Kai Greene looked insignificant at the 2006 Colorado Pro Show.
We’d never think of Kai Greene as a small competitor, however, he appeared this way in 2006 (At least when you look at Phil Heath). Sure Heath is a “Gift” to bodybuilding but he easily appeared to dwarf who we now know as the “Predator” (Kai Greene).
Now, Phil Heath’s first pro win came in 2006, which was at the Colorado Pro Show competition. His victory came just a year after he earned his pro card but he looked so much more ahead of the game at this point.
Below is a video of the two where you can see the size difference…
Kai Greene is obviously an absolute monster and one of the greatest competitors in the sport of bodybuilding ever. He placed second three times at the Mr. Olympia contest and really made a name for himself. The only thing standing between him and the Sandow trophy was a rare talent (Phil Heath) and seven-time Mr. Olympia champion.
Although Phil Heath won every Mr. Olympia match-up between the two, it doesn’t mean they didn’t have one of the greatest rivalries in bodybuilding history. Many people argued Kai Greene deserved some of those titles but the general consensus was Heath simply had the better conditioning each time.
Could it be his genetics? Or hard work?… well, it was a lot of both. See, Phil Heath naturally has long and full muscle bellies which allow him to dwarf even the biggest of bodybuilders. So is it a surprise that Kai Greene appeared really small? Probably not at this point in his career.
When an athlete is “Gifted” like Heath, there requires a lot of catching up to do if you’re not as “genetically blessed.”
Fast forward years later and the size difference we noticed in 2006 is not so noticeable when looking at the two athletes side by side. Kai Greene was not given the nickname of “Predator” for no reason; he really lived up to it at the peak of his on-stage battles with Phil Heath.
In the latter days of Kai Greene’s career, he blew up to a massive 270+ pounds for competition several times. Only then could he rival Phil Heath when it came to pure size but there are just parts of Heath which are hard to compete with (Namely arms and back).
Could Kai Greene Return to Competition?
Now, Greene himself does have an extremely impressive and unique looking physique which has/had the potential to win him an Olympia title but as of currently it doesn’t seem likely. His days have come and gone and his accomplishments are something a tiny percentage of bodybuilders will ever achieve.
So regardless of how small Kai Greene looked back in 2006, his ability to come so far and exceed expectations is more than enough to be proud of.
Kai Greene has not competed in the Mr. Olympia contest for years. This is most likely due to the fact that he was frustrated with the way the judging was done (No secret here). He believed it was unfair and whether it was or wasn’t, there have been many instances of obvious unfair judging.
He did, however, compete in and win the Arnold Classic in 2016, which is a big show as well (Just not as big as the Mr. Olympia contest).
Greene could make a return but unfortunately, his chances of winning could be long gone. Just because the competition is so fierce as of currently, and nowadays coming back after years of absence seems even more impossible.
However, if he did return, the sport would go absolutely crazy but even if he didn’t, we’d still all appreciate what Kai Greene brought to the Olympia stage for many years to come.
This content was originally published here.
