November 16, 2007.  The 25th Anniversary of the NPC National Bodbuilding Championships is now officially underway after tonight's ultra-competitive men's prejudging.  A record 180 men competed in this year's event where 7 pro cards will be given away by the end of tomorrow night's evening finals.  Let's run down the classes.

BANTAMWEIGHT:  

            Dave Candy, the 2007 NPC USA bantamweight runner up, clearly dominated this class with symmetry, balance, and great conditioning.   Fernando Abaco and John McKnight were a distant 2^nd and 3^rd in this lineup. 

LIGHTWEIGHT:

            Jeff Olcsvary, the 2007 NPC Jr Nationals lightweight champ, brought a combination of polish, movie-star good looks, and great muscle separation to the stage; however. unlike the bantamweights, this one was much closer.  Leonardo Pacheco, last week's NPC Eastern USA lightweight champ, challenged Olcsvary down to the very last pose.  We'll just have to wait to find out who takes home the first place trophy and coveted pro card.

WELTERWEIGHT:

            Stoil Stoilov emerged from prejudging as the slight favorite after narrowing out-sizing New Jersey's Carlo Filippone, the 2007 IFBB North American welterweight champ.  Stoilov's great back, shoulders, and quads had him looking more like a middleweight than a welterweight; however, his lack of biceps development (perhaps a bilateral biceps rupture) left the door open for the judges to choose the shredded Filippone.

MIDDLEWEIGHT:

            Jose Raymond, the 2007 NPC USA middleweight champ, dominated this class with size, shape, and conditioning.  After showing up in less-than-spectacular condition at the USA, Raymond redeemed himself and brought a professional-level presentation and physique to the stage.  If Raymond accepts his pro card this time around, he should be an immediate force to be reckoned with in the new under-202lb class.  The surprise of the class was 2007 NPC Jr USA middleweight champ Guy Cisternino who came out of nowhere with a shredded physique, complete with striated glutes, to challenge Alan Bailey, the 2007 NPC Team Universe middleweight champ, for 2^nd place. 

LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT:

            This class was a 3-man show between 2007 NPC USA champ Peter Putnam, 2005 & 2006 NPC light heavyweight runner-up Charles Dixon, and 2007 NPC USA light heavyweight runner-up Al Auguste.  While Dixon has the most muscle and the best shape, his conditioning was less than perfect on this particular night.  Likewise, Auguste left his A-game home as well.  It was this lack of attention to some very important details left the door wide open for the hard-working Putnam.  We'll have to wait for tomorrow night to find out who emerges victorious.

HEAVYWEIGHTS:

            The heavyweights boiled down to a two-man race between 2007 NPC USA heavyweight champ Brandon Curry and 2007 NPC Nationals heavyweight runner-up Adorthus Cherry.  Cherry was coming off less-than-spectacular placings at the USA and North America and he was hungry to prove that he still, indeed, was a threat to win his weight class and the IFBB Pro Card that come with that win.  Curry, a Bertil Fox look-a-like, played the cool cat onstage and, at some times, appeared to be a bit apathetic.  Curry's got potential coming out of every pore in his body and I have no doubt that one day he'll be a huge superstar.  However, on this night, Cherry showed a level of professionalism that made it evident that he's more than ready to enter the pro ranks of the IFBB.  The judges worked these guys for the better part of 15 minutes in an attempt to determine who will get the nod.  Who'll take home the win is still unknown, however, the fans got their money's worth while watching this epic battle.

SUPER HEAVYWEIGHTS:

            The only thing that most people remember after watching this weightclass was that Evan Centopani, the 2007 NPC Jr Nationals Champ and NPC Nationals super heavyweight runner-up, dominated from start to finish.  After a close loss to Desmond Miller at last year's nationals, Centopani worked hard and improved his upper thigh development so much so that most people in attendance felt his legs were now a dominant bodypart.  No one even came close to matching this guy's sheer muscle mass, peeled conditioning, and classic Steve Reeves good looks.  At only 25 years old, Centopani is destined to be a star of the future.  Following Centopani was Gregori Atoyan, the 2007 IFBB North American super heavyweight champ who actually showed up in his best conditioning to date and a local Texas competitor by the name of Real Johnson.  Look for this guy to turn some heads in the very near future

PREJUDGING POST SHOW VIDEO WRAPUP WITH FLEX WHEELER, SHAWN RAY, AND DAVE PALUMBO 

PHOTO CONTEST GALLERY