by Christian Duque
The Giant Killer Shaun Clarida has officially announced he’s linking up with new coach Stefan Kienzl (aka BossOfOutlaw on all socials) and also announced he’ll be competing at the EVLS Prague Pro. These two announcements sent shockwaves throughout the fitness world.
I think it’s great that Shaun is going to be doing a show right after the Olympia with his new coach in place. One can only imagine how much fun that’s going to be especially because the pressure is really off. And what I mean by that is not that the Prague show is not an important show. I hate to be so blunt, but I’m proving a point. It’s just that it is not the Olympia or the Arnold Classic. I think it is a good idea for Shaun to work with Stefan for this outing just to get an idea where Shaun’s physique is and what Stefan can do to help him come in perfect condition.
One of the things Shaun did by downsizing for the 2024 Olympia was to hopefully come in more ripped. I will say that in 2023 part of the reason that he was not able to hold on to the title was because of the fact he played the size game. Shaun is a phenomenal bodybuilder with tremendous amounts of muscle; however, he is vertically challenged. I hate to put it like that because as a tall person the last thing I ever want to do is poke fun at someone for being short but that is part of why we have a 212. It isn’t just a division for guys who weigh 212 or less, but it’s also a division for guys that are shorter. I mean there aren’t a lot of guys in that division that are 6 ft tall or taller. It just wouldn’t be bodybuilding at that point. It would be men’s physique.
That being said, Shaun is a guy that has competed at the open level and done very well. In fact he is beaten guys that are 100lb heavier than him and over a foot taller. Therefore he has every right to want to compete at the open level for prize money and accolades. He’s up against some real giants at the Prague. But it’s not just size. He’ll face off against Martin Fitzwater, who took fourth at this year’s Olympia. He’s also up against the greatest classic physique competitor of all time in Chris Bumstead, who will be making his open debut. It will be interesting to see what Shaun will look like so quickly after the Olympia.
With regards to age, Shaun is not a spring chicken but he’s also not super old. He’s in his early 40s and really needs to stay consistent. I don’t think that he needs to reinvent his physique. I think that he tried to come in smaller and that didn’t work out and I also think that he tried to come in bigger and that didn’t work out. He needs to find that middle where he fires on all cylinders. Now what I will say is that I don’t think that Stefan is going to be able to pick up from where Matt left off. At least not immediately. And the only reason that I say that is because he doesn’t know Shaun’s physique. He knows Shaun, yes. He knows Shaun’s track record, yes. But he doesn’t know how Shaun’s physique works. And I don’t think that Shaun had a carbon copy of everything Matt did for him. That’s where Stefan’s work will really be cut out for him. He will have to figure out how to work with Shaun in such a way that he is successful on stage and with minimal taxing on his body.
If Shaun were 32 or 22 it would be a different can of worms. But when you’re dealing with a top-tier bodybuilder, an accomplished bodybuilder that has already won major titles, who happens to be in his early 40s, it’s a different standard altogether.
At the Olympia, Shaun had some areas that I thought could have been better. His arms are not what they were just a year ago. His legs have also downsized a little bit. His chest, which has always been a bit of a struggle for him, did not look spectacular for him in Las Vegas. Again this could all be the product of coming down in size. Bodybuilders generally don’t do that. It is very uncommon for a top-tier bodybuilder to downsize because of the fact that muscle is so hard to attain. It is a widely known fact that it is easier to lose fat than it is to gain muscle. Therefore, Shaun losing muscle and coming in smaller was quite the experiment. I would say it didn’t work and maybe it’s Matt’s fault and maybe it’s not. At the end of the day even though Shaun took second place and continues to be a top contender in the 212, he is not the 212 Mr Olympia. And that is – I think – a big reason why Shaun decided to ditch Matt. The Prague show will be a perfect opportunity to see what Stefan can do and see how receptive Shaun is to Stefan’s suggestions. Because that’s another thing; if Shaun hires Stefan, but still operates along the Jansen game plan, then what’s the point?
What I want to know is whether or not Shaun will listen to Stefan unconditionally. If Shaun is going to put his full faith into Stefan and what Stefan dictates then we will have a clear idea what these guys will be able to do in the future. We have also seen coaching relationships that have never gotten off the ground. Sometimes what you have is a coach and a competitor that agreed to work together, even go public about it, and then for whatever reason they don’t make it through even a single prep, that’s chaotic.
I think these guys being proactive is a good thing just for that alone. They are not going to take the chance of never working together or saying they’re going to work together for some contest way out in the future and in the meantime do nothing. They have decided to hit the ground running and do a contest right after the Olympia. But it may not be a contest that Shaun will win. Again he’s up against some pretty stiff competition and he’s not competing in his home division. Therefore it really won’t be a question of whether he can win the show as much as it will be a question if Stefan can bring him in looking considerably better than Matt did just a few weeks ago at the Olympia. If that is the goal, it is a good goal. It’s all about realistic expectations.
The last thing I would want to see is Shaun going to this contest, not win, and then be sour at Stefan. I don’t think that’s going to be the case though. I think this is a test run and who knows maybe Shaun will try Romania and the last show as well. There are, after all, three pro contests left for 2024 and there’s no reason why Shaun shouldn’t do all of them. He’s automatically qualified for next year’s 212 Olympia by virtue of being a past champion and he did very well at the Olympia by placing second. If he wants to do three test shows or three test runs with his new coach then I think that is not only pragmatic but sensible.
I hope that Shaun is able to bring an impressive package and look phenomenal. I suspect it will take more than just one, two, or even three test shows to really have these two guys gel as a team, but it’ll all be worth it in the end. I’m still of the opinion that Matt isn’t totally out and that while the Prague show is a great warm-up show, I think that if these Jansen successors can’t produce fast, some of these guys may go back to Jansen. Also, just because guys like Martin have seen huge results with Stefan, that doesn’t mean Shaun will. Only time will tell.
Do you think Shaun can upset the apple cart in Prague? Can he beat Martin? Can he beat C-Bum? I think so, but I think the bigger question is how will he look. And how do YOU think he will look? As always, I appreciate you reading my article, here, at Iron Magazine. I look forward to reading your feedback in the comments.