by Christian Duque
The news that Nathan won the Mr Big Evolution contest sent shockwaves throughout the fitness industry because now The Prophecy is now qualified for the Mr Olympia. After the very questionable judging at the Flex Pro Classic just a week or two ago in Italy, many bodybuilding fans were starting to believe that Nathan was simply going to get overlooked no matter what contest he entered. I will be honest with you. I was of that opinion. And the reason for that is because Nathan is someone that has always had a very strong opinion on matters from A to Z in the sport.
He isn’t someone that I would call disloyal by any stretch of the imagination. He shows respect to the federation and he has helped grow the sport throughout the span of his career. He is not someone that I would call a bad sport either, but for some reason he is just not considered to be a yes man. He’s not going to candy-coat things and he is certainly not going to whore himself out just to be politically correct. And there are a lot of guys that will do that. There are guys that will tell you that it is a sunny day without a cloud in the sky, meanwhile they’re getting soaked by torrential rain. And unfortunately those guys seem to really get a lot farther in the sport. The other guys that seem to do very well with the media are guys that tear other competitors down.
Nathan doesn’t fit in either category. He is opinionated, yes, but he is not a sellout. He speaks his mind, but he is also a team player. Listen folks the Flex Pro could have gone either way, just like I said in my article here at Iron Magazine. However after watching Nathan on Muscle Discord I started to have second thoughts. I started to wonder whether or not he lost because Behrooz was better or maybe it was because a message was being sent. If it was the former then hey it was a close call and somebody had to win. However, if it was the latter, that would spell all sorts of problems for the sport because I don’t think the judges should be meting out justice by who wins shows and who does not.
I think that that would leave much to be desired in terms of the transparency that Pittsburgh is aspiring to. I also think that it would serve to further question placings at other shows. Do politics have a place in bodybuilding? I believe they do, but are politics so important and so prevalent that a competitor can actually win a show or lose a show simply based on his commentaries on YouTube videos or Instagram posts? I’m going to say no. I’m going to say no reluctantly but I’m going to say no. I think the Flex Pro was a close call and I think that the Mr Big Evolution was not quite as much of a toss-up. What is interesting though is who Nathan was up against.
William looked absolutely phenomenal. He was ripped to shreds and brought in tremendous condition. Thank God he’s already qualified for the Mr Olympia otherwise I would be in a very tough spot having to talk about why Nathan should have won and why William should not. it would put me in a very awkward position because I consider myself to be a fan of both of these guys to the most extreme level possible. It’s also a throwback to when I had to write about the rivalry between Brandon and William. Now this was not a rivalry in the sense of pettiness or disrespect, because those guys are both the epitome of good sportsmanship. There was a rivalry though in the sense that they were both so good and both so on that it really made the judges’ work cut out for them. And so at that point in time I found myself torn a lot of the times because I didn’t want to be critical of a bodybuilder that I looked up to so much.
That being said, I wouldn’t be any kind of a journalist if I couldn’t speak my mind and speak the truth as it was. And that’s regardless of whether or not the bodybuilder is someone I look up to or not. Fortunately for me, William has always been on point and that is certainly the case for his outing for Mr Big Evolution. He looked very, very good and I want to applaud him for the work he put into the preparations for this contest. I want to stress that point because as I previously stated he is already Olympia qualified as a result of having won the Empro Classic in Spain. He could have taken it easy and not come in as bone dry as he did for this particular show. but then that wouldn’t be the William Bonac that we all know. This guy is a world-class competitor who only competes to win. And having William at 100% is a tribute to Nathan and to every other competitor on that stage. They didn’t get a watered down William, they got a William that was very good, and they were able to battle with a guy who placed second at the Olympia and won two Arnold Classics. That being said, I do believe Nathan edged him out and deserved the win.
When you look at all the competitors, Nathan just seems to stand out. He brought tremendous condition like William but he out-massed pretty much everyone. He had huge size that was literally unparalleled with that degree of condition. He also has the heart of a tiger. or the heart of a lion, or just whatever animal is the most savage and relentless. That would be the heart of Nathan. He’s just not going to give up. And whereas William was already qualified, Nathan had a fire lit under him. I was personally of the opinion that maybe he should sit out future shows because I thought maybe the writing was on the wall that he was not going to be allowed to qualify. Maybe this is because last year he qualified and wasn’t able to enter the country or maybe it’s because he happens to be very vocal on many bodybuilding podcasts and is considered to be his own man. For whatever the reason, I just didn’t think he was going to be allowed to win.
In fact I was watching a live cast on a very popular YouTube channel and I said just that, I didn’t think they were going to allow him to win, but I’m very happy that he was. Needless to say, the YouTuber did not read my comment out loud and simply skipped over it. Again, people like myself are not supposed to have a voice, but as I always like to say I am the one voice that will never be silenced. I have the luxury of being able to write 10 articles a month, 120 articles a year, for Iron Magazine and I have StrengthAddicts which IronMag Labs happens to exclusively title sponsor. I also have a number of Facebook groups, a number of Instagram pages, I’m on TikTok, I’m on X – I’m everywhere. I will not be denied the opportunity to speak out, but established YouTube channels and established bodybuilding media websites will do everything possible to ignore someone like me. And dare I say, someone like Nathan. That is all the more reason I am so happy that he was able to win. He didn’t have to sell out, he didn’t have to bow down, he was able to win because he was the best bodybuilder on that stage. And that is truly a breath of fresh air considering how politically correct everyone in this sport seems to be. Nobody speaks out of turn and those that do seem to get screwed over and over and over again.
Now the big question will be if Nathan does more shows. I’m of the opinion that he should not. The prize money for the Mr Big Evolution was laughable. The idea that someone winning a pro bodybuilding show gets $15k is an insult. I don’t think that would even begin to cover the gear cycle, the food, let alone the travel and the lodging. I would hope the travel and lodging would be covered, but come on, this is not the Mr Olympia or the Arnold Classic. I highly doubt that these athletes got money for a hotel, money for food, and their transportation covered, but hey if they did I will immediately post a retraction at Iron Magazine and all social media platforms. Even if it was provided, $15,000 is a joke. Aside from the shitty prize money I don’t think Nathan should compete anymore for the simple fact that if he is going to do the Mr Olympia he should reserve all the gas in his tank so that he can bring his absolute best to Las Vegas. The Olympia is going to be absolutely insane this year because you are going to have showdowns everywhere you look.
There is going to be a showdown between Martin and Nick, there is going to be a showdown between Nick and Samson, there is going to be a showdown between Derek and Hadi, and I really would like to see a showdown between Nathan and Behrooz. That’s nothing against Behrooz because he’s a phenomenal bodybuilder and has done absolutely nothing wrong, but I do not believe he beat Nathan in Italy and I do not believe he would be able to beat Nathan in Nevada. Whatever the outcome, however, it would be fun for the fans to watch and it would be a lot of fun for us in the media to cover.
In the end I could talk to you about Nathan’s delts or Nathan’s legs or Nathan’s abs but this is not that kind of an article. And I am not that kind of a writer. I speak from the heart and I have very little if any censorship at all. Nathan has won a ton of shows and battled some of the biggest names in the sport. I am happy that he was able to battle The Conqueror in top form and was able to win this time. But William could just as easily win next time. And for all those people out there saying that William and Nathan and guys on this level have seen their best days, I say sit your ass down, buckle up, and get excited for the future because you haven’t seen anything yet!
I want to send huge kudos and congratulations to my bro Nathan DeAsha and wish him the absolute best as he prepares for the 2024 Mr Olympia! As always I appreciate everyone reading my article here at Iron Magazine and look forward to reading your feedback in the comments.