Today’s Olympia Profile features Generation Iron alum Victor Martinez. While he has had a bit of a bumpy journey in recent years – there was a time when Martinez was a name that screamed “Mr. Olympia.” Check out his bio and stats below.
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Height: 5’9″
Weight: 240lbs
Birthdate: July 29th, 1973
2014 Competition History
IFBB Tampa Pro – 1st
IFBB Arnold Classic – 4th
2013 Competition History
IFBB Arnold Classic Europe – 5th
Mr. Olympia – 11th
IFBB Toronto Pro Supershow – 1st
IFBB New York Pro – 2nd
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Victor Martinez burst into the bodybuilding scene back in 1997 when he competed in the NPC New York Metro Championships where he placed first in the light heavyweight division. He continued to compete in the NPC until 2001 when he competed in his first IFBB Pro event, the Night of Champions, and placed 8th.
Ever since Martinez went pro it seemed he was destined to be the next Mr. Olympia. In 2004 he placed 9th at Olympia, then 5th in 2005, 3rd in 2006, and 2nd in 2007 – where he lost to Jay Cutler in a stand off that many believe Victor should have won.
Sadly, misfortune had fallen on Martinez in the following years. With an injury on his left patellar tendon which resulted in surgery in 2008, he was unable to compete in the Arnold Classic and Mr. Olympia competitions. And later in 2011, Martinez was arrested for an expired resident card and his past criminal record – preventing him from remaining in the US for most of 2011 and 2012 until the court released him and permitted him residency.
Despite these setbacks, Victor Martinez has always maintained his passion and physical prowess as he continues to compete at the pro level. Just this year he placed first in the Tampa Pro competition and has his eye on the Sandow trophy coming up this month. Ronnie Coleman once predicted that Martinez would be his successor as Mr. Olympia. While that might not have been true – perhaps Coleman was right. He just had the timing off.
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Will He Take the Sandow?
We here at Generation Iron wouldn’t be surprised if Victor Martinez came out as a wild card at this year’s Mr. Olympia. While only placing 11th last year, Martinez has been looking good and just placed 1st at the Tampa Pro. While it is easy to dismiss anyone who is not Kai or Phil – we can’t help but keep Martinez as one of our favorites this year.
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