“Greatest Rivalry of All Time”: Ronnie Coleman Reacts to Jay Cutler’s Heartfelt Tribute in Arnold Classic Throwback Video

Jay Cutler is a four-time Mr. Olympia and three-time Arnold Classic champion and the only bodybuilder to dethrone the eight-time Mr. Olympia, Ronnie Coleman. Their rivalry lasted for nearly a decade on the Olympia stage. Coleman dominated Cutler from 2001 to 2005. But who knew that 2006 was going to change everything? In 2006, the saga of the four-time Mr. Olympia began with the unmatched success he achieved.

Cutler credits the eight-time Sandow Trophy winner for all his success, and he never misses any opportunity to express that, even on the grand stage of the Arnold Classic in Columbus, Ohio, where he was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award on March 2nd, 2024. The official Arnold Classic Instagram posted the resurfaced video. The King of Bodybuilding himself commented on this post, reminiscing about their fierce rivalry. Let’s find out what Cutler said that prompted a response from Coleman.

The tale of Cutler and Coleman, from rivals to friends

The video was captioned, “Once rivals, now friends forever,” highlighting how the bodybuilders have grown closer and become friends. The rivalry between these two was the most iconic rivalry on the bodybuilding stage. This rivalry is the reason Cutler pushed himself beyond his limits to outperform the King and become one of the champions. 

He recalled the moments of his prime days when he used to compete with the King on the bodybuilding stage. Cutler found immense motivation from Coleman to push himself to do better. While recalling those days, he said, “You’re the reason; you are the reason for my abilities. My greatness. I owe everything to you because you pushed me to do everything on the Olympia stage and beyond. And you are a huge, huge inspiration.“

The eight-time Mr. Olympia stumbled upon the video and couldn’t hold himself back. While expressing his views on Jay Cutler praising him, Coleman commented, “Yeah Buddy, greatest rivalry of all time.” 

Despite being iconic rivals on stage, these two bodybuilders are good friends off-stage. They never miss a single chance to spend time together. The four-time Mr. Olympia even shed light on the time they spend together and enjoy doing so. Cutler shared that they both guest-pose every week and also find time to eat together. Jay Cutler and Ronnie Coleman frequently post images from their competitive days on social media, keeping their legendary rivalry alive for fans.

The King shares an iconic on-stage moment

The Quadstomp didn’t skip the opportunity to showcase his gratitude towards the King. In response to the caption, the four-time Mr. Olympia mentioned that Coleman was his idol who became his rival. The ever-evolving nature of Cutler helped him dethrone the King of Bodybuilding, breaking his streak of eight titles in a row and marking the end of his career.

Around the beginning of this year, the King shared an image of him and Cutler doing the most iconic pose on stage. They both did the most muscular pose, competing fiercely. The eight-time Mr. Olympia even captioned the image, “The Greatest Rivalry in Bodybuilding History,” highlighting their competitive nature despite his retirement.

These two bodybuilders shared many intense competitive battles for the crown back in their prime, giving the world the best that bodybuilding had to offer. If Ronnie Coleman hadn’t pushed Jay Cutler beyond, there might not have been a four-time Olympia champion. What are your views on these two bodybuilders’ rivalry? Let us know in the comments.