Shawn Ray believes the IFBB should eliminate this round during finals.
Bodybuilding great Shawn Ray has kept up with the current happenings around the sport since his competitive days ended. Ray has shared many opinions on competitors and events, along with his thoughts about the IFBB about the whole. Recently, Ray called for confirmation rounds to be eliminated during finals.
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During an appearance on The Voice Of Bodybuilding, Ray shared his feelings on the confirmation round and why he believes that it belongs in prejudging — not the finals.
“Get rid of the confirmation round at the finals. It’s worthless, it’s time consuming, and it’s redundant. We’ve seen that movie before.”
Ray is known for an incredible career that spanned three decades. He won back-to-back Arnold Classic titles in 1990 and 1991. Ray competed in 13 Mr. Olympia’s between 1988 and 2001, placing as high as second in 1994 and 1996 but never capturing the coveted Sandow trophy. His tenacity and influence, however, secured his legacy as one of bodybuilding’s most iconic figures.
Shawn Ray: “Get Rid Of The Confirmation Round”
Bodybuilding shows begin with prejudging in the morning before going into the finals at night. For the bigger shows, Olympia and Arnold Classic, prejudging can take up hours of the morning and well into the afternoon due to the size of each division. This is where judges get the first look to see competitors next to one another for comparisons.
Because of this, Shawn Ray does not need to see it again come the finals at night.
“If I want something to change, I’m going to say it. I want to get rid of the confirmation round, I don’t like it. I think it’s a waste of time. It’s time consuming. Prejudging, you make the cut. That’s where all the comparison, all the work takes place. When I come back to the finals, I want to see the posing routine, the announcement of the top 15, the pose down, and then awards.”
Once the finals begin, it is a full slate of action. This includes announcements to routines and into the final pose down. For Ray, the confirmation round adds more and more time to the final for something that is not necessary.
“I don’t need to see confirmations again. If you missed prejudging, you shouldn’t get to get an opportunity to watch prejudging at the finals. That’s not what finals are for. Prejudging is for confirmation, prejudging is for judging. Finals are for entertainment and awards and presentation.”
The 2025 Olympia was extremely entertaining with Derek Lunsford winning his second title. Lunsford set a goal to complete bodybuilding’s trifecta after his victories at the Arnold Classic and Pittsburgh Pro. He accomplished this goal by winning his second Olympia title. Hadi Choopan finished as the runner-up once again. It was a big-time performance by Andrew Jacked, who was one of the most improved bodybuilders over the course of the year, finishing in third place.
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