The bodybuilding calendar is heating up this year with the 2023 Mr. Olympia contest approaching. In a series of Instagram reels, IFBB Vice President Tyler Manion reacted to the 2023 Texas Pro and discussed judging criteria for the Open and Men’s 212 Bodybuilding classes.
Andrew Jacked quickly emerged as a Men’s Open threat in 2022. In just one year, he managed to earn his Pro card, win two Pro shows (2022 Texas Pro, 2022 Arnold Classic UK), and finish eighth in his debut on the Mr. Olympia stage. Before taking his talents to Texas again, Andrew took third place behind Nick Walker and Samson Dauda at the 2023 Arnold Classic.
Hunter Labrada, son of bodybuilding icon Lee Labrada, has already proven himself among the best in the world. Having finished as high as fourth place at 2021 Olympia, Labrada understands the feelings and intensity it takes to succeed at a high level. He dropped to seventh at 2022 Olympia but bounced back recently at the 2023 Tampa Pro.
Heading into the Texas Pro this season, all eyes were on two top-10 Olympians: Andrew Jacked and Hunter Labrada. In the end, the battle between Hunter and Andrew in Texas made for an unforgettable event. So much so, that even the IFBB Pro League Vice President felt the need to dissect the outcome.
“I Want To Give Props To Both Of These Guys” – Tyler Manion Breaks Down 2023 Texas Pro Showdown
Tyler Manion said Andrew Jacked made significant improvements from the 2023 Arnold Classic in March. As for Hunter Labrada, Manion also acknowledged that he made vast changes to his physique, highlighting that he looked like a “completely different bodybuilder.”
“We’re going to go over the Texas Pro, a recap for each division. First, we’re going to start off with the Open men. We’re basically going to go through the poses with Hunter and Andrew. This was an extremely, extremely close show. I want to give props to both of these guys. I think they have improved so much since last year.
Actually, not even last year for Andrew. Andrew from the Arnold until this show improved greatly. His fullness and the roundness that he brought to his physique and he also kept more size in his legs with arguably with the same condition if not a little better conditioning than he brought to the Arnold. And his back improved greatly. He added so much more density to his back. It was very impressive to see in such a short amount of time,” said Tyler Manion.
“Hunter improved his physique massively since last year. He looks like a completely different bodybuilder. He turned his back poses from a weakness into a huge strength.”
Even though Manion shared that Jacked has a strong ab and thigh, he believes the front variation of the side triceps pose he used in Texas will be marked down because he’s not properly displaying the side of his body.
“I think that’s going to be a big surprise for people at the Olympia. It’s a much stronger pose than what he showed off this weekend. But for these reasons again, this was a Hunter pose. Next up is the side tricep pose.
As you guys saw in the criteria video, we want to see these guys hit the side triceps pose from the side. So, the way Andrew is hitting a side tricep was basically a variation of the ab and thigh but instead of the arms being down, he’s showing off his tricep and has his arms down. Guys transition into this pose all the time and transitioning into is fine, however, it’s called side triceps for a reason and we want to see their bodies from the side.
We want to see the side leg again. The side of the leg gets judged in two poses: the side chest and the side triceps. So, as unbelievable, of course, because Andrew has an amazing ab and thigh, as unbelievable as his side tricep pose was hitting looks, it’s not what we want to see and not what we’re judging in side tricep. We need to see that side leg and that side tricep,” shared Manion.
Manion Discusses Judging Quarter-Turns in Men’s 212 Bodybuilding & Men’s Open
Manion explained that judging quarter-turns, combined with front double biceps and back double biceps poses are used to determine their callouts.
“Men, I’m going to give you a breakdown on how the Open Bodybuilding show was judged between two competitors so you guys can get a good idea of what we’re looking at. So first, we’ll talk about the quarter turns. I know a lot of people have questions on what the quarter turns are used for. So, basically, when we’re at shows we are bringing groups out for comparisons.
And it’s just in numerical order. We bring them out, we have them do front double biceps, quarter turns, and back double biceps. Now, what we’re doing here, we are using these quarter turns in the front and back double biceps to determine our callouts. These poses are still important,” Tyler Manion stressed.
There have been notable changes to the Men’s Physique division this year, which Manion revealed in June. Taking place after 2023 Olympia, athletes from the Men’s Physique category must adhere to a new height and weight restriction. According to Tyler Manion, this rule was imposed to prevent Men’s Physique competitors from rivaling the size of bodybuilders in the Classic Physique division.
This wasn’t the only rule-change announcement from the IFBB Pro League. Earlier this month, Manion unveiled new weight/height cap markers for the Classic Physique category in order to ‘level the playing field’ for shorter competitors. However, unlike the Men’s Physique statutes, these measures took effect immediately and have already directly impacted athletes’ respective careers.
With so many changes taking place, Tyler Manion hopes to keep athletes informed on the latest updates from the IFBB Pro League. In the meantime, he looks forward to witnessing history at the 2023 Mr. Olympia competition from Nov. 2-5, in Orlando, Florida.
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