Bodybuilding icon and IFBB Hall of Famer inductee Shawn Ray earned the nickname Sugar. However, unlike his nickname, the bodybuilder rarely sugarcoated his opinions. In fact, Ray often got in trouble with people in bodybuilding because of his straightforward and outspoken nature. While modern bodybuilding fans might not be too familiar with the 90s legend, Ray made headlines in 2021 after his comments on then-recently deceased Mr. Olympia winner Shawn Rhoden.

Rhoden’s untimely and sudden passing on November 6, 2021, due to heart failure, left the bodybuilding community in shock, and Ray’s comments on November 9 stirred up quite a controversy. The bodybuilding veteran’s comments upset many fans of the sport who felt Ray was insensitive toward the late champion. A few days later, Ray addressed his statements and apologized for his statement. Yet one might wonder why Ray’s comments were so significant. Why did bodybuilding fans care about Shawn Ray’s words? For that, we have to take a closer look at what Ray said and his illustrious career.

Shawn Ray’s comments on the late Mr. Olympia

Three days after the 2018 Mr. Olympia’s death, Sugar Shawn Ray appeared on the Rx Muscle YouTube channel. Host Dave Palumbo asked the 1991 Arnold Classic winner about his opinion on Rhoden and the rising mortality rate among professional bodybuilders. Ray, a veteran bodybuilder who competed in the late 80s and throughout the 90s, expressed distress over the situation. While talking about Rhoden, the 58-year-old highlighted his offseason weight.

“In Shawn’s case, Shawn was not training for the Olympia, there was no pending competition around the corner, and there was actually no reason to be walking around at d**n near 300lb at this point in Shawn’s life,” said the bodybuilding icon. “I think it was a big mistake that he was trying to continue this whole bodybuilding look, this whole bodybuilding lifestyle, with all of the mitigating factors,” said Ray in the now unlisted interview.

Besides his weight, Sugar also referenced Rhoden’s steroid use. Another point that left a bitter taste was Ray’s mention of the legal trouble Rhoden faced prior to his passing. Rhoden faced multiple sexual assault charges shortly after winning his Mr. Olympia title in 2019. “Shawn could’ve been found guilty. We don’t know, and now we will never know. It’s not something that we can look back in hindsight and pass the buck,” Shawn Ray told Palumbo. However, the bodybuilding legend’s statements caused an uproar, and Ray later apologized to the community for his “tone-deaf” comments. Now, let’s take a look at why Ray’s comments mattered so much.

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Shawn-Mr. Consistent-Ray

While many elite bodybuilders in the history of Mr. Olympia might lay claim to the title of uncrowned Mr. Olympia, Shawn Ray is often mentioned in the same breath as Flex Wheeler as being among the greatest uncrowned Mr. Olympias. While Ray’s earned the nicknames Giant Killer and Sugar, he might as well have earned the name Mr. Consistent. Barring a handful of bodybuilders like Dexter Jackson, Ray is among the few bodybuilders who competed in three different decades.

The Ironman Pro winner placed among the top 5 at the Mr. Olympia contest for 12 consecutive years, from 1990 through 2001. While he never took home the Sandow trophy, it’s a record that remains unmatched. Ray also competed against three of the greatest champions of all time. Ray competed against eight-time winner Lee Haney. He then competed against and outlasted six-time champion Dorian Yates and finally retired after competing against another eight-time champion, Ronnie Coleman. However, this wasn’t the only impressive aspect of the 58-year-old’s career.

A career spanning two eras

Shawn Ray started working out in the gym during his high school football days. However, he discovered he had top-tier genetics when his physique outpaced those who played football with him on the field. So, the young athlete began competing in amateur shows as a teen and dominated junior bodybuilding contests. Following the footsteps of bodybuilding greats like Arnold Schwarzenegger, Ray caught Joe Weider’s attention even before turning 20. Like Schwarzenegger and other Golden Era legends, Shawn saw bodybuilding as an art form and focused on aesthetics and posing.

In 1990, he gave Lee Haney a run for his money and placed third. However, Haney’s Era of aesthetics and conditioned physiques came to an abrupt end with Dorian Yates. Yates became the original mass monster and ushered in an era of muscle mass and shredded conditioning. The 80s greats like Haney and Lee Labrada retired. However, despite his 5’7, 210 lbs frame, Sugar challenged The Shadow, who weighed 295 lbs during the off-season. Shawn Ray was among the few who adapted his physique to a new era of bodybuilding, earning the nickname Giant Killer in the process.

While Dorian Yates started the mass monster era, Ronnie Coleman took it to new heights. Coleman went nearly 300 lbs on-stage, and yet Shaw Ray still managed to hang to his top five spot until he retired at 36 in 2001. While the Giant Killer might have never won the Mr. Olympia, his record was proof of his consistency and versatility. Hence, it’s no wonder Ray’s statement on Rhoden carried a lot of of weight even two decades after retirement.

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