Back on April 7, the IFBB pro was arrested for domestic violence charges pursuant to an argument with the same woman, with bail being $75,000. Before the most recent hearing, a friend of the victim allegedly informed the judge of the threat made by Samuel.

We will bring you more information as it becomes available.

Samuel was set to compete in the upcoming Pro Bodybuilding Weekly Tampa Pro and has yet to qualify for this year’s Mr. Olympia, a show that he makes an annual appearance at.

Known for competing in multiple contests per year, Samuel may have burnt himself out in doing so. In 2007, Samuel was on stage eight times and won the Europa Super Show. The following year, he cut it down to five and did the same in 2009. Samuel came out of the gate strong with an impressive win at the Iron Man Pro but finished out the calendar year by placing 11th at the O.

Perhaps all of the dieting, training and preparation needed at that level has taken its toll on Samuel. Putting your body through that once or twice a year is difficult enough, but more than doubling that can be downright hazardous. That appears to be the case here and Samuel is most likely done for the year and perhaps beyond that.

Prior to being felled by illness, Samuel did not have his contract renewed by either FLEX Magazine or MuscleTech. Perhaps they saw the handwriting on the wall and noticed that he was beginning to lose some of his qualities that have made him one of the regulars on the pro circuit, albeit one of the top second tier competitors. Samuel has been a highly regarded bodybuilder in the smaller shows, but has not had been able to break the top three in either the Arnold Classic or Mr. Olympia. With a mysterious malady, missing time and losing his sponsorships all in one fell swoop, that may be too much for even a warrior like Samuel to overcome.

It would surprise no one if Samuel decides to hang up the posing trunks. His health is paramount and once he recovers, he may not risk doing what he needs to do to become a top tier competitor. Samuel was a fringe player before this setback and what happens next remains to be seen.

Then there is that second tier, the type of bodybuilder who may sneak into the top six in Ohio or Las Vegas and fair better at the next level of shows, such as the New York Pro, Europa Super Show or Iron Man Pro. Silvio Samuel is a perfect example of this.

In 2009, he won the Iron Man in January then placed fifth at the Arnold. At the O, he fell all the way to 13th place. When the competitor list for the 2010 Arnold Classic was released recently, Samuel’s name appeared on it as usual. But in a report that was just posted on Flex Online, El Matador has pulled out.

“I will take a break to put on the size I need to put on,” Samuel said in the Flex article. “I wanted to do the Arnold Classic, but after more thought I do not believe that competing so soon after the Olympia  is in my best interest. In order to make the impact I want to make, I want to make some improvements this year.”

Silvio plans on waiting until July to compete in the Tampa Pro, a show that he will need to do well at just to qualify for the Olympia, which he intends to enter.

Realistically, it may be a good strategy because multiple shows every year is a difficult task for any bodybuilder. If Samuel can bulk up a little as he hopes to do, he can jump up multiple spots in the Olympia. With the line-up set for Ohio, Samuel was probably not going to do much damage there anyway.

At this point in his career, Samuel winning the Arnold or O would be considered a huge upset. Him bowing out will not change the serious competition that expects to take place in Columbus three months from now.

Now the questions must be asked – what does Wolf do to get his game back on track? According to the Muscular Development.com forums, member The Mayor of Bodybuilding has stated that Wolf is confirmed to compete in the 2010 New York Pro on May 8.

While that is a fairly prestigious show, it is quite a ways away from the Arnold or O. That may be just what Wolf needs in order to qualify for the Olympia a few months later. but he is not an automatic by any means to even win in Manhattan. Last year, Evan Centopani took first place against a pretty good line-up that featured Markus Ruhl, Dennis James, Silvio Samuel and Hidetada Yamagashi.

So does Wolf concentrate on preparing for the Big Apple or does he go ‘balls to the wall’ for the Arnold and quiet all the naysayers? Weighing the differences, unless he finishes high in Columbus (minimum in the top six), it would be viewed as a failure for him and it may be difficult to get back into contest shape two months later. If he then qualifies for the Olympia, he would have to get back on stage four months after that and peaking two or three times in a year is a tough task for anyone, especially someone who is coming off a huge disappointment and is probably in dire need of a mental boost.

If Wolf is committed to the New York pro, then he probably will not compete in Ohio. That will lead to some criticism but it could be the best decision for him at this time.

Here is the official press release:

Iron Man Magazine Publisher John Balik reported today that the Pro Fight Supplements Iron Man Pro bodybuilding contest, originally slated to take place on Saturday, January 23, 2010, is being rescheduled for an as of yet undetermined date. The contest, which celebrated its 20th Anniversary in 2009, is one of the longest running IFBB Pro shows in the world.

For the last six years, the Iron Man Pro has been held in conjunction with The Bodybuilding.com Los Angeles Fitness Expo, produced by National Fitness Productions. With over 20,000 attendees, 250 exhibitors, and an incredible line-up of fitness, physique, martial arts and strength contests, it is one of the country’s largest and fastest growing consumer fitness expos.

“The Expo has been a huge success and is growing every year” said Balik. “But when it was held in late February, two weeks before the Arnold Classic to accommodate the Iron Man Pro, some companies just couldn’t exhibit at it. Shipping their booths coast-to-coast and asking their staff to work back-to-back expos was just too much for some of them.”

So when National Fitness Productions elected to move the Expo to the third weekend in January last year, dozens more companies were able to come out from the Midwest and East Coast to exhibit. However, as Balik noted, “for the pro bodybuilders, it meant having to train and diet through the holiday season and then try to peak again six weeks later for the Arnold and other IFBB contests that follow it.”

“And in spite of the huge crowds that attend the Expo and the myriad of sponsors that support it, ticket sales to the Iron Man Pro continue to decline, making it a challenge to produce the contest profitably.”

Balik added, “The quality of the athletes is the cornerstone of any events success. The rich twenty year history of the Iron Man Pro is the direct result of the wonderful IFBB athletes who have supported it. From the first winner, Shawn Ray, to the 20th, Silvio Samuel, and the current Mr. Olympia, Jay Cutler, the list of champions is a who’s who of IFBB Pro Bodybuilding.”

Balik went on to say he is investigating alternative dates and venues at which to hold the Iron Man Pro, either in late February just prior to the Arnold Classic, or perhaps in May around the time of the New York Pro Show.

Moving the Contest to either of these time slots would mean the bodybuilders could gear their training and dieting for multiple shows on back-to-back weekends, giving them chances for multiple paydays and Mr. Olympia qualifying finishes. In turn, the deeper line-ups will hopefully draw more fans to the contests which would be good for the promoters, the sponsors and the sport.

Source: http://www.ironmanpro.com/index.php

Take your pick from defending champion Dexter Jackson, his predecessor Jay Cutler, Phil Heath, Victor Martinez, Kai Greene and Dennis Wolf. Just for shits and giggles, let’s add Branch Warren, Toney Freeman and Silvio Samuel. And let’s not forget the fact that Ronnie Coleman is still undecided if he is going to make a comeback or not.

From a strategic standpoint, the ‘bigger is better’ mantra looks to be en vogue with the recent guest posing appearances by Heath, Cutler, Jackson and Coleman. While Cutler and Coleman have always possessed the ‘freaky’ physique, Heath and Jackson’s look was of the more aesthetic kind. Both appear to have added a good amount of weight and depending on their diet, may come into the Orleans Arena looking much different than they have in the past.

Greene, who won the 2009 Arnold Classic, is not as big as some of his fellow competitors but is wide in the right places to give him the appearance of being much larger. Martinez may be the favorite going in if he has made the slight improvements needed since March, when he finished as the runner-up in Ohio. Recovering from his injury has taken him a little longer than expected.

Warren may be a huge fan favorite and deserved his third place award at the Arnold, but he may have to be content with a good placing in the two most prestigious contests in the world. Freeman is in the same boat, and Samuel may have competed too many times in the calendar year to stay in top condition in September.

That leaves Wolf, who was lucky to finish as high as he did last year. Fourth place is nothing to be ashamed of but he even admitted that his timing was way off and he made mistakes in his diet preparation at the end. He then had to sit out the Arnold due to hernia surgery and has stated that he is fully recovered and ready to go.

Because he has the size and height advantage of the majority of the line-up, Wolf needs to work with what he has and not try to bulk up too much. If he can get a little more symmetrical and get his arms to catch up to his massive delts, he has to be considered a top dog going in.

Taking nothing away from the three that finished ahead of him, Samuel had to look at them and feel as if he may have missed a golden opportunity to win his second show of the year. Evan Centopani won his first pro show right out of the gate, Dennis James was the runner-up in Manhattan and finished two places behind Samuel at the Arnold Classic in March and Markus Ruhl had not competed in two years. 

If Samuel came in shape, he very well could have won this show. As it was, he was lucky to finish ahead of Hidetada Yamagashi and may have only on reputation. 

It doesn’t get any easier come September with a stacked line-up at the Mr. Olympia. Samuel, 34, needs to do better than last year’s seventh place finish but will find it hard. Yes, he has had a good year with the early win, a fifth place at the Arnold and a runner-up position at the Australia Pro Grand Prix, but that’s what makes his New York Pro result even more frustrating. 

Samuel has shown that he can hang with the big boys and  a force to be reckoned with in the ‘second tier’ shows. His next few times on the stage will go a long way in determining his legacy.

Centopani, 27, accomplished the feat in his first try after earning his pro card and did so not far from his home in Trumbull, Connecticut.

In the 202 class, Long Island resident Kevin English made it two in a row, besting Mark Dugdale and David Henry.

A deep line-up made Centopani’s victory even more impressive, as Dennis James, Markus Ruhl, Silvio Samuel, Hidetada Yamagishi and Tarek Elsetouhi rounded out the top six. In the women’s part of the contest, Betty Pariso, Rosemary Jennings, Debbie Bramwell, Dena Westerfield and Tazzie Columb all placed.

Another given will be English having a say in the outcome of the 202 and overall titles. Last year at the New York Pro, English edged out David Henry to win the 202 but lost to Kai Greene for the overall, definitely nothing to be ashamed about. At the Mr. Olympia, Henry topped English for that 202 crown, so this contest will be the ‘rubber match,’ if you will.

The two warriors will go at it toe-to-toe with the victor having the opportunity to face off against the winner of the regular men’s division. With names such as Markus Ruhl, Evan Centopani, Silvio Samuel, Dennis James and Darrem Charles in the line-up, it will make for a highly contested show.

Other contestants who made the trek with Kai from Ohio to the ‘Land Down Under’ were Silvio Samuel and Toney Freeman, who finished in second and third place, respectively.

According to early reports out of Melbourne, the crowd in was fully behind Kai, especially when he performed his unique posing routine that he made an instant classic at the Arnold. He was called an “easy winner.”

A special part of the annual show in Australia is when the contestants walk into the crowd following the posedown, giving them a close-up view of the men they just cheered on. No doubt that Greene had more flashes going off in his face than anyone else present.

On a side note, Michael Kafalianos finished in fourth place in his professional debut and has qualified for the Mr. Olympia.