Breaking down the Top 2 callout at the 2022 Indy Pro, featuring: 1. Blessing Awodibu 2. Charles Griffen Don't forget to follow me on Instagram: / tomn8er1
Tomn8er, I think you forget about the mandatory, or compulsory, or relaxed, or symmetry round or whatever they call it these days. The guy with the better overall shape wins front relaxed and rear relaxed hands down, maybe even the quarter turn poses. It's not just the flexed poses! And when it's close, the bigger guy wins. Lastly, and I forgot to mention this in my last post about the AC, the judges have traditionally penalized too many tattoos like it or not. No Olympian besides Yates ever had a tatt. Bonac and Griffin have way too much body art.
Blessing REALLY improved since I last saw him compete. His legs actually look bigger (but could still use some more size and development), his waist is not terrible, and I actually like his back development. It’s not so much the overall size of it-Charles has a much bigger back but it’s the development and the way Blessing’s muscles pop out. They look more carved out than Charles’ back muscles. I think he deserved the win.
Blessing needs to fix his hips and feet placement in his poses. It's awkward and has too much space in between his legs. Needs to hit poses similar to Shawn rhoden. Once that's fixed he'll destroy lineups with his symmetry.
Great to see your videos pop up again. I had Charles by a fair margin. Pose for pose it seems close, but Blessing is just missing too much. His hamstrings are small and have almost no detail. His quads, though drastically improved, are still very undersized and (even though I haven't seen any one else mention this, but it seems very obvious to me) they are suuuper un-symmetrical (his left quad seems half the size of his right.) He has non existent triceps. His lats, though decent, are undersized compared to his upper back. Great structure, great midsection in the front double and front lat, great biceps/chest/delts/upper back, but too many massive flaws imo.
I think u were off on this one. It‘s always personal taste with bodybuilding. But Charles just doesn‘t have a pleasant structure to me. He is densely muscled, yes. He is in condition too. But, he has no shoulder with, his legs are too small from the back, his abs are bad and I think his arm are also too shout for that massive core. The vacuum is commendable though. Blessing though has fantastic structure and he improved a lot. Very small waist, good conditioning, good shoulder with, good legs from the front, good arms, good abs and good back. He just needs to fill out his frame a bit more, but them he will be dangerous. If he grows more, without blowing out the midsection, then he will be quite dangerous.
Your commentary and descriptions are so great that I feel I could visualise the whole shot without even seeing the guys. That’s why I appreciate your channel so much Tom, always a banger!
Glad to see ur videos. You're the best bodybuilding channel on youtube. I feel you with bodybuilding's waning interest with all that's going on in the world!
I was just watching about the indy pro on nicks channel and was thinking , man I wish Tom did a video about it and lo behold you actually did. Great to see you still posting
Damn YT, I wasn't even notified you had another zinger for us! And I double-checked the bell and it's ON. Anyway, they can't deny me some Tomn8er stuff :D Liked your video as usual, good stuff! I also had Griffen winning, even by a hair. Well, maybe him being slightly faded and Blessing maintaining or even improving for finals have sealed the deal (despite scorecards showing an unanimous win for Blessing).
I think based on these pictures, I might also give it to Griffin. However, I've seen others now where Blessing looked a lot better in the front lat spread and most muscular than he does here.
I'd personally have Charles winning because he's more complete imo. I really don't like Blessing's lat insertions, they ruin the FDB, FLS, and A&T for me, the other poses are debatable. Charles also held the poses better and his legs were better, so he's the winner for me. But I think you're right in that the IFBB is really favoring more aesthetic physiques now, it was an apples and oranges situation. Blessing also improved a ton from his last showing so I don't feel he's undeserving.
Hey. Where are you, Tom? We all miss you. You undoubtedly have one of the best bodybuilding related UA-cam channels EVER! Keep up the good work, man. 💪
I feel like you can tell Tom doesn’t enjoy UA-cam as much as some others, but I feel like this could be his job if he uploaded more. Videos are of insane quality
Thanks for covering this. Very impressive improvements from Blessing. If he keeps this trajectory he could do pretty well in future considering his age. Refreshing to see the top 2 do vacuums in open class.
Blessings biceps are insane, almost cartoonish, lol, and I love his back too. As most have said before he needs to bring up the legs to really contend with guys like Ramy.....
Oh, thank you, your review is much appreciated (as always)! I do agree on everything except the ST, because I don't think the overall presentation of Blessing allows him to overcome his severe lack of triceps. On the other note, Charles presented a well-rounded physique (look at the striation in the delts and the sartorius in the far leg) with a really meaty tricep. In general, I do appreciate it when your analysis is not biased by the hype, or the enthusiasm around an athlete. Let me please highlight the difference in size between Blessing legs, with left being noticeably weaker.
always love listening to your commentary and input unlike the shit NSP says like “he looks sharp” can’t believe his fans actl listen to that shit. But jesus blessing’s bicep is insane and i love that you pointed out he was pointing his feet out to compensate for lack of quad sweep great observation
I would've had Charles winning, mostly on account of his superiour lower body conditioning and mass (calves aside). Still, Blessing is obviously much more gifted in terms of structure and especially in the FDB he dwarfed Charles. His lower body, his triceps and lats continue to hold him back however. It was a very interesting contest to see nonetheless. Both competitors had some serious flaws but both made a great effort to work around them which is super commendable. Tbh, I feel like if Charles Griffen had also adopted a more suitable posing style for the ST he would've won. His triceps blow Blessing's out of the water but he opted for the same twisted variation that Blessing did. By doing so he hid his triceps and made the comparision more about the abs.
I'm honestly pretty thrilled that IFBB is giving more importance to aesthetics. Genetics is more than just muscle. Bodybuilding has always been more or less a contest of who struck the genetic lottery, everybody trains and everybody is trying to come in shape. A structure like blessing needs to be rewarded. Honestly reminds me of Phil vs rhoden in 2018, with Charles being a much inferior version of Phil and blessing a superior one of rhoden. Overall, imo blessing was just miles ahead.
@@francescoporcari8597 I mean yeah, in competition the 2018 rhoden would mop the floor with blessing. I just meant that blessing has more potential in that he has the muscle to boot with those aesthetics whereas Shawn always kinda lacked in the muscular department.
@@shreyas1690 you have a point, but Blessing has to bring up those lats as Dennis Wolf (they're similar structure-wise, while white and black men have different muscle characteristics) did in the past.
Everyone is talking about Blessing’s tiny waist, but imo it looks weird as hell paired with his sky high lat insertions. It’s not a V taper anymore, it’s a T taper lol
Please never retire from UA-cam Tom. At worst, just cover the Mr. O and Arnold every year. I've watched your top 10s hundreds of times on repeat!
True man
Tomn8er is the best, most unbiased and most thorough analyst or commentator on UA-cam . Quality pics and quality commentating .
Agreed, best bodybuilding analysis by far.....
Truly, there aren't many content creators for bodybuilding keep at man
He is respectfully a level above Nick's S+P and Marx Max
It's been a while Tom, good to see you around.
Tomn8er, I think you forget about the mandatory, or compulsory, or relaxed, or symmetry round or whatever they call it these days. The guy with the better overall shape wins front relaxed and rear relaxed hands down, maybe even the quarter turn poses. It's not just the flexed poses! And when it's close, the bigger guy wins. Lastly, and I forgot to mention this in my last post about the AC, the judges have traditionally penalized too many tattoos like it or not. No Olympian besides Yates ever had a tatt. Bonac and Griffin have way too much body art.
Very solid point on the symmetry round mate, nice.
I do tend to forget that as they rarely take pics for it, but that could easily make the difference in many cases.
Cbum has a tat
Many Olympians are Tattoed. Our current classic Champ even has his whole forearm tattoed and many others have huge tattoos aswell.
Body "art" its goddamn awful🤣
Blessing REALLY improved since I last saw him compete. His legs actually look bigger (but could still use some more size and development), his waist is not terrible, and I actually like his back development. It’s not so much the overall size of it-Charles has a much bigger back but it’s the development and the way Blessing’s muscles pop out. They look more carved out than Charles’ back muscles. I think he deserved the win.
Tom is the last OG from the luimarco era, hope he comes back…
Was waiting for this one. Good to have you back
Blessing needs to fix his hips and feet placement in his poses. It's awkward and has too much space in between his legs. Needs to hit poses similar to Shawn rhoden. Once that's fixed he'll destroy lineups with his symmetry.
He doesnt have rhodens legs though, his legs remind me of Bostin loyd when he competed
Great to see your videos pop up again. I had Charles by a fair margin. Pose for pose it seems close, but Blessing is just missing too much. His hamstrings are small and have almost no detail. His quads, though drastically improved, are still very undersized and (even though I haven't seen any one else mention this, but it seems very obvious to me) they are suuuper un-symmetrical (his left quad seems half the size of his right.) He has non existent triceps. His lats, though decent, are undersized compared to his upper back. Great structure, great midsection in the front double and front lat, great biceps/chest/delts/upper back, but too many massive flaws imo.
Like always, the GOAT with another video. Thanks for the content, really appreciate it
I think u were off on this one. It‘s always personal taste with bodybuilding. But Charles just doesn‘t have a pleasant structure to me. He is densely muscled, yes. He is in condition too. But, he has no shoulder with, his legs are too small from the back, his abs are bad and I think his arm are also too shout for that massive core. The vacuum is commendable though. Blessing though has fantastic structure and he improved a lot. Very small waist, good conditioning, good shoulder with, good legs from the front, good arms, good abs and good back. He just needs to fill out his frame a bit more, but them he will be dangerous. If he grows more, without blowing out the midsection, then he will be quite dangerous.
I agree
Absolutely right bro..
I was shocked how some are saying this was a close call...it was an easy money for blessing...!
I actually think Charles has wider shoulders, maybe its not as noticeable with his wide waist
The best Bodybuilding analysis channel on UA-cam
I genuinely respect your critiques and reviews more than anyone else in the game.
Glad to see that you are still uploading, love your vids!!
Your commentary and descriptions are so great that I feel I could visualise the whole shot without even seeing the guys. That’s why I appreciate your channel so much Tom, always a banger!
Thank you for taking the time to do this! I always look forward to your videos.
You are the best. Very professional and real. You are the rare quality thing on youtube. Love you brother ❤️
And still hands down the best bodybuilding analysis on UA-cam 100%
Always appreciate your analysis of show's whether it's old or new. Keep up with the vids when you can, it's always a teat when i get the noti
Brother I was hoping you'll review this! Thanks🙏🏼
Glad to see ur videos. You're the best bodybuilding channel on youtube. I feel you with bodybuilding's waning interest with all that's going on in the world!
I was just watching about the indy pro on nicks channel and was thinking , man I wish Tom did a video about it and lo behold you actually did. Great to see you still posting
Damn YT, I wasn't even notified you had another zinger for us! And I double-checked the bell and it's ON. Anyway, they can't deny me some Tomn8er stuff :D
Liked your video as usual, good stuff! I also had Griffen winning, even by a hair. Well, maybe him being slightly faded and Blessing maintaining or even improving for finals have sealed the deal (despite scorecards showing an unanimous win for Blessing).
I think based on these pictures, I might also give it to Griffin. However, I've seen others now where Blessing looked a lot better in the front lat spread and most muscular than he does here.
Always love a tomn8er vid
Tomn8er has best analysis on UA-cam pleae keep doing it!
always apreciate your videos!
lets goooo a tom video was hoping for one but certainly not expecting it
Long time no see Tom. Glad to have you back brother
Glad to see you; I absolutely love the content and was starting to miss the vids. Btw has anyone noticed the great lighting at this show?
Tom is back glad to see ya 😀😀
best bodybuilding content out there... keep uploading whenever you feel like it !
Cant wait untill you cover The 2022 Mr O
We appreciate your all your videos. Please, continue to to post only when you really want to, don't worry about pressure
Tom, you have no idea how happy I was when I saw a Tomn8er video
Great to see you back, big love, kindest regards, Richard U.K
I'd personally have Charles winning because he's more complete imo. I really don't like Blessing's lat insertions, they ruin the FDB, FLS, and A&T for me, the other poses are debatable. Charles also held the poses better and his legs were better, so he's the winner for me. But I think you're right in that the IFBB is really favoring more aesthetic physiques now, it was an apples and oranges situation. Blessing also improved a ton from his last showing so I don't feel he's undeserving.
Lats aren't his only weak point: note the lacking triceps and the underdeveloped left leg
@@francescoporcari8597 yeah you're right, but he's doing a pretty good job of hiding those with his posing
missed u man
amazing video as always🔥🔥
You're back!!
Post more often bro we miss your videos
Aye yo please do keep making these! Love from the netherlands!
When you said griffin looked like Ronnie from the back lat spread that’s exactly what I was thinking
Nowadays it has become rare to see a well-developed "u" shaped back, with well-filled low lats.
Glad to see a new video, hope you're well!
The goat is back like he never left
good to see you back big man hope all's well with you
Hey. Where are you, Tom? We all miss you. You undoubtedly have one of the best bodybuilding related UA-cam channels EVER! Keep up the good work, man. 💪
awesome perspective. You are the best
Thank you Tom for your analysis!
I feel like you can tell Tom doesn’t enjoy UA-cam as much as some others, but I feel like this could be his job if he uploaded more. Videos are of insane quality
Blessing waist looks under 30"
Thanks for covering this. Very impressive improvements from Blessing. If he keeps this trajectory he could do pretty well in future considering his age. Refreshing to see the top 2 do vacuums in open class.
We really missed you man please post more
Fuck man I love seeing videos from Tomn8er. Best reviews on UA-cam
5:27 Griffins back looks exactly like Dorians here
I do miss those well-developed round back of 90's early 2000's.
@@francescoporcari8597 Justin Rodriguez, Brandon Curry, Phil Clahar, Charles Griffin, William Bonac, Regan Grimes...
It's good to see you, man.
Literally only tune in for your recaps fam
I knew Tom would hop onto this show, I knew ittt
Like always, we rely on you to provide us with quality content.
I’ve just started listening but I like your realness and stuff so stick with it man
I have a economics essay in 3 hours but tomn8er upload is more important
Blessings biceps are insane, almost cartoonish, lol, and I love his back too. As most have said before he needs to bring up the legs to really contend with guys like Ramy.....
What a pleasant suprise
Tomn8er is the 🐐
Oh, thank you, your review is much appreciated (as always)! I do agree on everything except the ST, because I don't think the overall presentation of Blessing allows him to overcome his severe lack of triceps. On the other note, Charles presented a well-rounded physique (look at the striation in the delts and the sartorius in the far leg) with a really meaty tricep.
In general, I do appreciate it when your analysis is not biased by the hype, or the enthusiasm around an athlete.
Let me please highlight the difference in size between Blessing legs, with left being noticeably weaker.
Let’s gooo, Best Tom in fitness
Great video. I agree with your analysis here - very close but Blessing definitely had that wow factor the gave him the edge in the end.
I got so excited when I saw the notification pop up
Please review the texas pro, love your videos!
Excellent review 👍
Tomn8er is basically luimarco at this point lol
Your a legend Tom
Awesome video dude
always love listening to your commentary and input unlike the shit NSP says like “he looks sharp” can’t believe his fans actl listen to that shit. But jesus blessing’s bicep is insane and i love that you pointed out he was pointing his feet out to compensate for lack of quad sweep great observation
charles has muscular maturity and seems like has more experience with posing
I would've had Charles winning, mostly on account of his superiour lower body conditioning and mass (calves aside).
Still, Blessing is obviously much more gifted in terms of structure and especially in the FDB he dwarfed Charles. His lower body, his triceps and lats continue to hold him back however.
It was a very interesting contest to see nonetheless. Both competitors had some serious flaws but both made a great effort to work around them which is super commendable. Tbh, I feel like if Charles Griffen had also adopted a more suitable posing style for the ST he would've won. His triceps blow Blessing's out of the water but he opted for the same twisted variation that Blessing did. By doing so he hid his triceps and made the comparision more about the abs.
We love Tom
Missed your content champion
Tom, consider reviewing Arnold Classic Brazil. It was a surprisingly hard win for Brandão. Your analysis are awesome
How does Blessing get those obliques to stop from spilling over as they are now? Are they just over-developed?
Thanks
First Of All Welcome Back To The Channel!
And 2nd: A Big Congrats To Blessing, The Boogeyman Is Coming To The Olympia.
Good commentary buds..
Charles wins back double biceps? 4:59 kkkkkkkkkkkkkk zero details in his back
Did we watch the same show?
Não seja palhaço. Charles têm costa mt melhor sem dúvida nenhuma
Wow nice quality pics
Tom r u doin a vid on the Texas pro? Comment on the Andrew Jacked hype?
Blessing body is astheticaly pleasing🔥
Missed ur videos brother 🙂
Blessing's highlights game is on-point.
What do you think about Justin in 4th?
Hey Tom, could you review the Arnold Classic 2003. And compare the top 3? Would be awesome. Greetings, Tom 👊
Holy shit....he is alive. 😄
No new coverages? Vancouver? Chicago? 😕
Agreed man. It was close to me
Blessing really improved. heads off.
Charles is the bigger guy with much better condition, but blessing has the better structure and flow and imo i am more wowed by that then mass.
FUCKING FINALLY
its been a while man😅
Fantastic 🔥💪💪🏽🔥🌿👍👍🏽
Can you review the Portugal pro? Mr. big evolution Portugal. You are great man !
Is it me or does blessing's left leg look smaller than his right...🤔
I usually agree with you on these breakdowns but I have Blessing hands down, Griffin is just too narrow to stand against Blessing.
Can you do a comparison between a prime Dorian yates and a prime Lee haney?
I'm honestly pretty thrilled that IFBB is giving more importance to aesthetics. Genetics is more than just muscle. Bodybuilding has always been more or less a contest of who struck the genetic lottery, everybody trains and everybody is trying to come in shape. A structure like blessing needs to be rewarded. Honestly reminds me of Phil vs rhoden in 2018, with Charles being a much inferior version of Phil and blessing a superior one of rhoden. Overall, imo blessing was just miles ahead.
I respect your opinion but I strongly disagree. Blessing currently can't be descrived as a superior version of Shawn Rhoden.
@@francescoporcari8597 I mean yeah, in competition the 2018 rhoden would mop the floor with blessing. I just meant that blessing has more potential in that he has the muscle to boot with those aesthetics whereas Shawn always kinda lacked in the muscular department.
@@shreyas1690 you have a point, but Blessing has to bring up those lats as Dennis Wolf (they're similar structure-wise, while white and black men have different muscle characteristics) did in the past.
Hi Tom ! 💪🏼
Everyone is talking about Blessing’s tiny waist, but imo it looks weird as hell paired with his sky high lat insertions. It’s not a V taper anymore, it’s a T taper lol
Great review as always and also suprisingly great battle, both guys improved a lot, both deserved the win to be honest.