All the pros have to start from somewhere.

When Phil Heath got his pro card, chances are you’ve never heard of the guy. Hell, there’s a chance you haven’t heard of him until he started raking in some wins at the smaller competition. Numerous bodybuilding title wins later and Phil has found himself at the top of the mountain. Most people don’t give a damn about the guys who just recently turn professional because there’s no guarantee that they’ll make waves on the pro scene. Recently the 2014 NPC Nationals took place and many competitors received their much sought after pro cards. We compiled a list of a few guys we think have potential to shake up the competition for years to come.
.

Dominick Cardone

Now I know what you’re thinking. Cardone is still so young, he doesn’t have the muscle maturity. Firstly, pipe down and relax for a minute. Second, Cardone has shown the potential to be a real world beater once he comes into his muscle maturity. He’s a talented kid with a lot of upside. It’s all about how serious he chooses to take things now that he’s got his pro card. I suspect that throughout the year we’ll see gradual improvements from Cardone. That’s not to say that he’ll be destroying the competition and claiming victories, but we’ll have an idea on just how far this kid can go – especially when we get out of the off season.
.

Alexis Rivera-Roton

Roton is massive, there’s no denying that. The man made Heavyweight NPC winner Dominick Cardone look pretty small in comparison to his massive size. But besides his size, Roton does have a particularly impressive stage presence that’s hard to be overlooked. His animated posing expressions reminds me a bit of Phil Heath. When your character shines through on stage it goes a long way to impressing the judges and that’s what I think Roton will lean on come competition time. Much like Cardone, he has a ton of potential. Let’s see what he does with it.
.

Michael Lockett

He may have came in second to Roton for the super heavyweight class, but Lockett does show some major potential. He maintains that he’s an all natural bodybuilder and if that’s true that’s pretty damn impressive in and of itself. He’s definitely got size which shows promise, but he also has some well defined muscles to boot. The roundness of which are pretty unique and different than what you usually see from most bodybuilders and if he keeps up his form he’s bound to turn some heads on the pro scene. Will he ever be able to compete with the elite 6 at Mr. Olympia as an all natural? The sad truth is probably not – but that won’t stop him from being an exciting addition to the pro scene.

Like I said from the beginning , you’ve gotta start somewhere and these competitors show the potential to take their natural talent and make something for themselves on the professional level. So which other recent athletes do you think will make some waves as pros? Let us know in the comments below and be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter.