/ / Jeremy Buendia #WINNING 1/2

Jeremy Buendia #WINNING 1/2

Jeremy Buendia made history as the first repeat champion of the Mr. Olympia Men’s Physique contest.

There’s an old saying in the fight game that a fighter isn’t a champion just by winning the belt. It’s only when he defends his title that he becomes the true champion. Climbing the mountain is one thing. Proving you can hold that top spot is completely different. “That is exactly how I felt,” says two-time Mr. Olympia Men’s Physique champion Jeremy Buendia, who clinched his second consecutive Mr. O title in September. “I knew I was a champ when I won in 2014, but this validated my title. I won the first time, but I needed to prove to myself that I deserved it. It was a big relief to prove that I was worthy of the title again.” The IFBB has had dynasties across all of its divisions. Ronnie Coleman won eight Sandows in a row, Adela Garcia dominated Fitness for a decade, even Bikini’s Ashley Kaltwasser is on a nice run of three consecutive titles. A two-time winner in Men’s Physique is a game-changer, though. The young division has struggled with defining its standards and rewarding a consistent look. Buendia’s success now gives judges and other competitors a reference. His best-in-class conditioning, mature muscle mass, and broad shoulders tapering into a dramatically tight waist (“I barely fit in men’s boardshorts,” he says,) Buendia’s body has become the template for the modern Physique competitor.

JEREMY BUENDIA

Age: 25
Lives: Murrieta,California
Profession:Mr. Olympia Men’s Physique Champion
Favorite clean meal: Filet mignon and sweet potato
Favorite cheat meal: Cheeseburger and fries
Drives: 2015 BMW M4
Listens to: Hip-hop
Last book read: Heaven Is For Real
Favorite movie: Training Day
Sponsors:Evogen Nutrition, Live Fit Apparel
Instagram: @jeremy_buendia
Website: jeremybuendiafitness.com
Twitter: @MrJeremyBuendia
Mike Carlson: You looked supremely confident onstage at the Mr. Olympia this year. Did you feel as confident as you looked?
Jeremy Buendia: No, I knew it was going to be a dogfight. Jason Poston [third place] is a good friend of mine. We trained together two days out. I knew he was on the money. I saw some pictures of Steve Cook on Instagram and he looked good. I looked my best ever a couple days out, and I knew I was going to get better as we got closer to the show. Sadik [Hadzovic] kept his shirt on backstage, but when he took it off he looked a little watery in his lower back. When I saw that, I knew I had it.
MC: What did you do better this year than last year?
JB: I nailed my routine this year. I felt like the way I posed was flawless. I was three or four pounds heavier this year, and I was definitely tighter. From what I saw backstage, I was the most conditioned guy onstage. I was hard, and I kept getting harder as I was onstage. I was getting better the longer I was up there.
MC: You were only 23 when you won your first Mr. Olympia. How many years do you think you have in you?
JB: I don’t see myself getting beat for a while. These are the best physiques in the world. I beat these guys by a pretty significant number of points, and I don’t see many guys walking around looking better than Jason Poston or Ryan Terry. If I am better than those guys, I don’t think I am going to get touched for a while.
MC: What is it like to be the reigning Mr. Olympia Men’s Physique champion?
JB: Having a fanbase all over the world is awesome. No one knew me two years ago, and now when I walk into an international airport overseas someone will know who I am. It is pretty incredible to step foot into Kuwait and hear someone call your name. It’s a big responsibility too. It has forced me to grow up a lot. It feels like all eyes are on me, like everybody is watching my every move. I have to make sure my actions represent the sport well.
MC: Give me an example of how you have had to grow up?
JB: Before, I didn’t have 300,000 followers. You can see on Phil Heath’s Twitter, when you are the champion people will tear you apart on social media. Getting up every morning and seeing messages like that was kind of hard at first. But it comes with the territory. I had to grow up to handle those kinds of interactions and handle negative situations better.
MC: Tell me about your prep for the 2015 Mr. Olympia.
JB: Hany Rambod has been my coach for the past two years. He is in the Bay Area and I live in Murrieta [Southern California], so we do phone calls big time. I talk to Hany about three times a day. When I get up in the morning we’ll talk. We send pictures back and forth. We have a very close personal relationship. That helps out a lot.
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