Of all the rivalries in the history of bodybuilding, Phil Heath and Kai Greene’s complex relationship enamored fitness enthusiasts. The duo locked horns at several events, including Mr. Olympia championships and Arnold Classic events.
What weeded them out amongst other popular rivals was how their bitterness trailed off-stage. However, in recent years, they’ve often joked around about it. Phil Heath addressed their camaraderie in Bradley Martyn’s podcast.
Talking about his competitors from the past, Heath addressed where he stood on his views about Greene. Amongst other frequently asked questions, one of the burning controversies was if their onstage tiff was real.
Speaking to Martyn about it, Heath recalled how fans would freak out seeing him and Greene workout together. That’s when people began realizing that their beef might be limited to the stage. However, due to their public confrontations, Martyn pressed for details on the complexity of it all.
Heath admitted that while they didn’t have any bad blood, fans from both sides pitted against each other, boosting the rivalry to the real world. Comparing their tiff to the likes of high school teens, he revealed how there were hints of misunderstanding through the public word. Yet, in the case of Greene’s angst against him, Heath confessed that he empathized with him.
“I also knew that I was standing in his way…and I have to acknowledge someone’s angst, someone’s, you know, anger toward someone.”
Heath had won the Olympia seven times in a row, where he competed against Greene in 2012, 2013, and 2014. Throughout these years, the latter came close to winning the Sandow. Many rooted for him due to his humongous build and ripped muscles. Yet, Heath had a differing opinion.
“He could’ve beat me in 2014 if he didn’t start that fight. I think he would have gotten some points on Friday, where it would’ve been even going into Saturday.”
The infamous spat between the two icons in 2014 caused a lot of drama in the bodybuilding world. Ever since then, Greene gradually backed away from the championship even though he never announced a formal retirement. Yet, today, both stay on cordial terms, and he even made an appearance on Heath’s upcoming documentary.
Phil Heath announces documentary on chasing the Mr. Olympia title
Amidst several bodybuilding events and shows, Heath gave the fitness world one more reason to celebrate with his documentary – Breaking Olympia: The Phil Heath Story. He recently held a premiere with several stars in attendance.
Of all the bodybuilding celebrities to grace the occasion, yesteryear icon Jay Cutler was present to support his colleague. Coach Hany Rambod accompanied Mr. Olympia icon Hadi Choopan for the movie.
Arnold Schwarzenegger’s bodybuilder son Joseph Baena was also present and put up an Instagram story congratulating Heath on the significant milestone. The documentary is charted for global release on March 25th in collaboration with Universal Documentaries.
