Texas PRO 2023: The category up to 212 pounds was dominated by the fantastic Keone Pearson

Although at first glance it may seem that Mr. Olympia is still not yet in sight, competitors have until October 9 at the latest to qualify, giving them just over a month. This week, athletes in as many as eight categories were given the opportunity to fight for their qualifying ticket as the prestigious Texas PRO was on the schedule, which boasts a packed field of competitors and a great atmosphere every year. This time, the athletes gathered at the Arlington Expo Center Hall in Arlington, Texas, and you can find out how it went in our report from day one today, where a total of six of the eight divisions were represented.

Under 212 lbs.

The highlight of the first day of competition was the under 212lb category, as the otherwise more watchable bodybuilding open will not be featured until Saturday night. A number of well-prepared athletes showed off their skills in front of a sold-out arena, but it was the pair of athletes Keone Pearson and Noel Adam who stood out at first glance, as they were expected to duke it out for the win.

From the beginning, the first of the athletes was a little closer to the triumph, and he was in the form of his life. He offered incredible muscle separation, massive volumes and a truly enviable fullness of muscle, such as Phil Heath could boast in the past. The athlete, who calls himself The Prodigy ("The Miracle"), was expected to be one of the favourites as he finished 6th at last year's Olympia. However, if he had shown the form he did this time on the prestigious boards, one can assume that he could have easily improved a few places.

His triumph was not altered by the excellent preparation of the other favourite, Noel Adam, who last appeared at last year's New York PRO, which he dominated. He also showed good form and both athletes were a pleasure to compare, although Pearson clearly dominated, especially in the back poses, and rightly deserved the opportunity to compare his strength with Shaun Clarida at the Olympia in November.

Third place was taken by Francisco Barrios Vik, fourth place was taken by Jason Joseph and the top five in this category was rounded off by Justin Jacoby.

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Classic Physique

As we partially prefaced in the introduction, Texas PRO is by default a fairly prestigious competition that welcomes a number of top competitors each year. So let's face it, if an athlete wants to earn a qualifying ticket to the Olympia with the least amount of effort, Texas PRO isn't exactly for them. And the packed competition at this year's event was evidenced by the Classic Physique entry list alone, which featured the likes of the symmetrical Logan Franklin and the superbly prepared Robert Timms and Jae Hun Park.

And it was these three athletes who eventually squared off for the win. On paper, Robert Timms was probably the strongest, having competed in the Mr. Olympia competition last time in 2021 and taking a great 10th place. Since then, however, he has worked on his weaknesses and usually takes to the stage in TOP condition and with a very balanced physique where no game lags behind. And although he showed some of his undoubtedly best form at Arlington, Jae Hun Park was a level up this time. This athlete, who is only in his second season in the professional league, showed absolutely incredible form where there was perhaps nothing to fault him at all. Last year at Olympia he took a probably disappointing 15th place, but in just a few months he will get the chance to improve on that performance. And we dare say he will.

Third place was taken by Logan Franklin despite great symmetry and aesthetics, fourth place went to Benjamin Zimmerman and fifth place went to Dancovea Anderson.

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Wellness

Finally, the wellness category also deserved a lot of attention, where the contestants set the bar a little higher year after year. The initially favoured Mia Samuels-Menjivarova showed first-class form and especially in terms of leg development, perhaps none of the remaining competitors could catch her. In the end, however, the judges' vote (and by many accounts in the audience) went to Marissa Andrews, who delivered a hilarious routine that, combined with her energetic performance and good musculature, earned her a qualifying ticket for Mr. Olympia. These two great athletes were joined on the podium by Jenna de Manicor, Diana Verduzco Carreno and Devyn Cambre.

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Bikini

The bikini competition also brought an attractive spectacle to the audience, with a number of big names again this time. However, it was clear from the beginning that the starting field would be dominated by the duo of Elisa Pecini and Ashlyn Little, who showed great readiness, a narrow waist and an overall good-looking and aesthetic figure. Elisa had the slight edge on paper, she is the 2019 Mr. Olympia champion after all, but Ashlyn dominated the recent Tampa PRO events and could be expected to maintain her great form. And that's exactly what ended up happening. Although the competitors showed more or less very similar form, after several comparisons, the judges decided to favor Ashlyn Little, who qualified for November's Olympia. The aforementioned Elisa Pecini finished second, Tamekia Carter took third, Yurika Shigemoto fourth and Wu Bi rounded out the top five.

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And on Saturday evening we will have the men's open final and the women's physique final, which you can look forward to in a separate report.

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