“They Had Been Screaming…”: Epic Showdown Between Bodybuilding Legends Unveils a Historic Moment From 1991

After Arnold Schwarzenegger won seven Mr. Olympias, the title changed many hands. It wasn’t until Lee Haney showed up and dominated the competition for eight consecutive years. In 1991, after equalling Schwarzenegger’s record, Haney went for his record-breaking 8th title. However, a young challenger from England would give him a run for his money. Bodybuilder and author Paul Baxendale recounted the epic showdown between the two bodybuilding titans on Instagram.

Earlier, Baxendale posted four images of Lee Haney and Dorian Yates going head-to-head for the first time on the Olympia stage. Despite being the newcomer, Dorian Yates put bodybuilding veterans to shame. He also described the historic moment when the two legends finally posed side-by-side.

The first and the last time Lee Haney and Dorian Yates faced each other

Baxendale uploaded four images of Lee Haney and Dorian Yates, comparing the two in various mandatory poses. However, he narrated everything that led to that moment. The 57-year-old wrote “the first call-out of the day,” involved Lee Labrada, Haney, and Yates. Labrada is a legend in his own right and significantly improved his arms and quads in 1991.

However, it wasn’t enough to topple the eight-time Mr. Olympia or The Shadow. The second call-out included the newcomer, Labrada, and 90s icon Shawn Ray. Despite having more experience, neither Ray nor Labrada matched the sheer muscularity of the Englishman. “The third call-out saw Haney with Vince Taylor and Labrada,” wrote Baxendale.

Call-outs four and five compared Dorian to other veterans, including Haney’s training partner and two-time runner-up Rich Gaspari. However, The Shadow was a step ahead of everyone. “At 2.35 pm the audience finally got what they had been screaming for,” wrote Baxendale, the posedown between TotaLee Awesome and The Shadow.

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While the Birmingham native had impressed everyone, he couldn’t match the combination of classic Golden era proportions combined with size. Despite having more muscular legs and calves, Yates couldn’t beat Haney in the relaxed and posing rounds. However, Yates won the muscularity round against Haney, which indicated where the future of bodybuilding was heading.

A glimpse of the mass monster era

While the eight-time Mr. Olympia edged out Yates, no one could match The Shadow’s muscle mass. The following year Yates won the Mr. Olympia title. Yet again, his muscularity stood out. Yates pushed the envelope of the sport, nudging it in a new direction. Yates ushered in the mass monster era.

However, muscularity wasn’t his only USP. In fact, the six-time Mr. Olmypia also took conditioning to never before seen levels. Yates dominated the competition with his size and conditioning, forcing others to follow suit. By the time the six-time Mr. Olympia retired, most elite bodybuilders weighed near or above 300 lbs during the offseason.

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The epic showdown during the 1991 Mr. Olympia was a passing of the torch moment. While Haney had achieved his goal, Yates represented the future of bodybuilding.