Psycho Fitness evaluates the rivalry of Kai Greene vs Phil Heath. Who was the better competitor in the end?
The Kai Greene vs Phil Heath rivalry is one of the most famous feuds in bodybuilding history. But ultimately, every single bout on the Olympia stage ended with Phil winning over Kai. That hasn’t stopped fans from dubbing Kai “The People’s Champ.” Many feel that despite the lack of Olympia trophies, Kai was a superior athlete over Phil. In our latest GI Exclusive interview, bodybuilding trainer Psycho Fitness shares his thoughts on Kai Greene vs Phil Heath.
Psycho Fitness has quite the pedigree and is often credited as a key component of Shawn Rhoden’s victory over Phil Heath at the Olympia 2018. So during our video call interview, we wanted to pick Psycho’s brain about Phil Heath’s past as a reigning Olympia champ. More specifically, we wanted to know if Psycho believed Phil deserved to win over his rival Kai Greene all of those years.
Kai Greene was seen as the only competitor who could take Phil Heath down in the earlier years of both their primes. It sparked the thrilling beating heart of the original Generation Iron film and was often seen as the most exciting element to the Olympia when they both competed. Ultimately, after landing second place behind Phil for multiple years, Kai Greene stepped away from competing. Phil Heath continued to dominate up to seven Olympia victories.
While rumors still fly that both Kai Greene and Phil Heath will return to the Olympia again this year, for now we can only look back at the past. Is there merit to the fans’ decree that Kai Greene was “The People’s Champ?” Or is Phil Heath the obviously dominant one with the trophies to prove it?
Psycho Fitness, surprisingly, is at a loss on how to compare these two athletes. The reason? Kai Greene’s physique is so unique looking that it defies comparison. This was the challenge Kai faced year after year. Surely, Kai’s physique was one of the best – but it’s aesthetic was so unique that it was hard to compare him to any other athlete in the lineup.
“I don’t see how you can compare Kai to anyone else on that stage. His body is so different than anyone on that stage. It’s really hard to compare him like that,” Psycho Fitness states in our interview.
“I mean he moves like no one, he looks like no one, everything is different so it’s really hard to compare him. I would not want to judge Kai against anybody. Because he either wins or he’s last. I don’t see where you can place him because his body is just so different.”
Perhaps this was the issue the judges had every year that Kai Greene faced off against Phil Heath. It would certainly explain why so many fans are in disagreement with the judges decision year after year.
This is where the subjective nature of the sport really takes its toll. Two athletes can be near-perfect but in totally different ways. At that point, how do you decide who gets the edge over the other? It’s all opinion. A deeply informed opinion to be clear, but still a challenging final decision for the judges.
In the end, that’s what makes the Kai Greene vs Phil Heath rivalry so great. It’s eternal. There’s no right answer. It leads to a thrilling back and forth both on the stage and in arguments between fans. It’s a combination that will likely not be seen again for some time to come.
If you want to watch Psycho Fitness’ full comments on Kai vs Phil, watch our GI Exclusive interview segment above.
