MEN ’ S PHYSIQUE OLYMPIA
BUENDIA TIMES FOUR
JEREMY BUENDIA OWNS THE MEN ’ S PHYSIQUE O FOR THE FOURTH YEAR IN A ROW .
■ Comparing the 2017 Men ’ s Physique Olympia results with the top six the previous year , one might conclude that with Jeremy Buendia ’ s continued reign , not a lot has changed . That ’ s not to say there hasn ’ t been churn in the ranks beneath the winner ’ s dais since Buendia reached the top in 2014 . Of those who finished in the top five at the debut of men ’ s physique in 2013 — the only Men ’ s Physique O Buendia hasn ’ t won ( he finished runner-up behind Mark Anthony Wingson )— only the superbly conditioned V-taper king Buendia remains . New competitors have risen to fill the slots beneath him , a group some would argue better reflect the direction that men ’ s physique division should be taking .
There was subtle movement in the top five this year . Brandon Hendrickson continued his slow climb up the rungs — fifth in 2015 , fourth in 2016 , and third in 2017 . Andre Ferguson grabbed the runner-up slot , a nice jump from his finish in fifth last year . Moving in the opposite direction were Ryan Terry , who fell from second last year to sixth this year , and Jeremy Potvin , downgraded from third to fifth .
Buendia has vanquished the first wave of top talent in men ’ s physique and is in the process of wading through the second . In the ranks beneath first place , the cast of new challengers is changing again , seen in the rise of promising new pros making their rookie O appearances — Logan Franklin ( seventh ), Ondrej Kmostak ( eighth ), and fourth-place finisher Raymont Edmonds . These will be the next wave Buendia will have to fend off in future O ’ s if he is to continue his reign . He ’ s well positioned for the future .
86 FLEX | JANUARY 2018