Ryan Crowley shares his thoughts on Flex Lewis’ future in the Men’s Open division and going up against mass monsters like Big Ramy.
Flex Lewis announced in 2018 that he was going to retire from Men’s 212 and move into the Men’s Open division. Since then, we have sadly not seen him compete due to unforeseen circumstances. After over a year of training for the transition, he dropped out of the Olympia 2020 due to injury. He then dropped out of the Olympia this year due to focusing on starting his own gym and having another child. Needless to say – fans are on the edge of their seats waiting for his official reveal in Men’s Open when it finally happens. Until then, all we can do is speculate how he will match up to the larger size competitors. In our latest GI Exclusive, bodybuilder Ryan Crowley weighs in on how Flex Wheeler will compare in the Men’s Open division.
Ryan Crowley is an up and coming bodybuilder who made headlines this year due to a gruesome injury that went viral. Crowley tore his pec severely – which threatened his entire bodybuilding future. He is in recovery now and optimistic he will return better than ever – but it will take some time. We connected with Crowley via video chat this month to discuss his injury and also his thoughts on the latest trending topics in the sport.
In today’s segment, we asked Ryan Crowley to name his favorite bodybuilder physiques in the sport. There was no question – he placed Jay Cutler, Dallas McCarver, and Flex Lewis as his favorite bodybuilders. In fact, Flex Lewis specifically provided him much of his inspiration to become a competitive bodybuilder. Much like Crowley, Lewis is a UK bodybuilder – and Lewis’ enormous success in the Men’s 212 league is of create motivation for Crowley to follow in his footsteps.
Upon mentioning his admiration and respect for Flex Lewis, we ask Ryan Crowley for his thoughts on Lewis’ transition to the Men’s Open division. Does Crowley think Lewis can bring the same level of champion status to the Mr. Olympia proper? There’s no doubt that Lewis has one of the most finely crafted physiques in history – but can the size difference put him at a disadvantage.
Ryan Crowley struggles to answer this question. He respects Flex Lewis so much that he doesn’t want to cast negativity over his transition to Men’s Open. That being said, Crowley can’t help but wonder how the size change will effect Lewis’ chances. Even if Flex Lewis brought his best physique of his entire life – could it stand up to the pure mass of Big Ramy?
We make mention that Hadi Choopan made a similar transition from Men’s 212 to Men’s Open. While he hasn’t won the Mr. Olympia yet – he has placed in the top five both years upon competing in Men’s Open. It was a shocking success story – and one that could pave the way for Flex Lewis.
Ryan Crowley agrees – but also states that until we see Flex Lewis next to the other competitors at Mr. Olympia, it’s impossible to really know for sure. There are many factors at play. What will Lewis look like with added pounds on his frame? Will he lose the sharp conditioning that made his Men’s 212 reign so iconic? We can’t know these answers – and the extended delay before seeing Lewis compete only makes the tension stronger.
Ryan Crowley has the highest hopes for Flex Lewis to succeed – but the realist in him worries about the various factors that can be hurdles in Lewis’ first year in a new division. For now – only time will tell.
You can watch Ryan Crowley talk about Flex Lewis’ Men’s Open future in our latest GI Exclusive interview segment above!