Elssbiay vowed to bring the kitchen sink in his bid for a 3rd straight Olympia title.
Mamdouh “Big Ramy” Elssbiay is on a quick track toward all-time legendary status. Should the Egyptian athlete capture his third consecutive Mr. Olympia title on Dec. 16-18, 2022, he’ll turn out to be the eighth bodybuilder to win the competition on at the least three occasions.
Amongst other icons, one in every of the athletes who has completed that feat after which some is seven-time Mr. Olympia Phil Heath, who won consecutive Mr. Olympia titles from 2011 to 2017. There may not be a greater person to choose the brain of the present face of bodybuilding.
On Dec. 5, 2022, in collaboration with the Mr. Olympia organizing body, Heath shared an Instagram Live where he discussed the upcoming Olympia in Las Vegas, NV, with Elssbiay. Heath is an element of the lead 2022 Olympia commentary team.
In a frank conversation, Elssbiay and Heath touch on the pressures of acting on stage. The reigning two-time champion Elssbiay discussed a few of his personal expectations as he enters one other title defense.
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To attain consistent excellence on the Olympia stage, successful winners must bring their A-game yearly, especially as talented up-and-comers come into the image. Elssbiay and his coach Dennis James apparently acknowledged that as a challenge he’s hurdled up to now and can attempt to leap once again in 2022.
“Me and Dennis [James], we spoke last week that it’s too hard for individuals who win the Olympia many, a few years like Phil Heath, like Ronnie Coleman,” Elssbiay expressed. “It’s too hard when you consider the subsequent one because it’s good to bring something larger and all the things to not let the fans [down]. Which means you could have to work harder than anybody, and that’s challenging for anyone. That’s the principal thing for a champ.”
As for his “three-peat” plan, Elssbiay and his team are keeping it easy in the ultimate countdown to the 2022 iteration of the Olympia with an emphasis on further refining his conditioning.
” … It’s not only me, it’s me and my team working very hard to return early,” Elssbiay said. Now we have all the things [we need] for [conditioning] … We’re working very hard right away but in addition we’re nice. I feel good.”
Elssbiay weighed over 300 kilos on the day of the interview with Heath. He’ll strive to make one last marked cut down before he steps on the 2022 Olympia stage.
“Today, within the morning, [I weighed] 306 [pounds],” Elssbiay said. “… But I believe the last week we’re going to drop more weight, and it’ll be, I believe, 295 [pounds] on the stage.”
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In his conversation with Heath, Elssbiay is aware of how difficult an Olympia title defense may be. Elssbiay thinks Andrew Jacked and Derek Lunsford will boost the competition — the reigning champ thinks Lunsford has a “great probability.”
Ultimately, the talented field of challengers aside, Elssbiay seems to imagine he’s in a greater position due to some adversity he overcame to win the 2021 Olympia title.
“Last yr, I had the [worst] yr of my life,” Elssbiay explained. “I can’t speak about that because that just gives them a reason to [have me] lose. But after they ask about my fire, about my dream to be Mr. Olympia again, I said to myself, ‘you might be strong, you could have an incredible mentality,’ and I believe in my heart I can’t lose again.”
Featured image: @big_ramy on Instagram