Tag: Tito Ortiz
Tito Ortiz: Bodybuilders On Steroids Look Like “Skinny Broken Down Old Men” By Age 60
Tito Ortiz believes steroids should not be allowed in bodybuilding or any other sport.
Bodybuilding often gets criticized in the mainstream media for steroid use and lack of testing in the sport. Yet it’s important to note that other sports have their own problems with steroids – even with testing. MMA in particular has various federations that drug test their athletes – and there have been multiple times where an athlete has failed. The sad truth is that many athletes across all sports find ways to game the system. That’s why when we spoke with UFC Hall Of Famer Tito Ortiz, we wanted to get his opinion on drug testing in not only bodybuilding but sports overall. In our latest GI Exclusive interview, Tito Ortiz explains why he thinks steroids have no place in any sports including bodybuilding.
Tito Ortiz is a powerhouse name in the MMA world. He is best known for his time in the UFC, where he is a former Light Heavyweight Champion, having held the title from April 14, 2000 to September 26, 2003. Ortiz was one of the MMA’s early stars and ultimately became the biggest pay-per-view draw of 2006 for his fights with Chuck Liddell, Forrest Griffin, and Ken Shamrock.
We asked Tito Ortiz if he felt steroids and other performance enhancing drugs had a place in MMA and other sports. Without deliberation, Ortiz made it clear he was against steroids and PEDs in any sport. He finds it to give athletes a disadvantage and ultimately a health risk that isn’t worth it.
It might be easier to hold that opinion for a sport like MMA – where strength is a major factor in the competition. If you use PEDs to become stronger than someone in a fight, that can certainly be seen as unfair. But what about bodybuilding? A sport that is about the judgement of a physique and not a face off of physical ability. Does Ortiz draw a line for certain sports and not others?
We use an example here of testosterone. If a bodybuilder is naturally testosterone deficient compared to another – it could perhaps be considered more fair to allow PEDs so that the athlete can get an even chance against a genetically gifted bodybuilder. Tito Ortiz doesn’t agree. He thinks that an athlete needs to be aware of what they are getting into when they dedicate their life into a sport. If a bodybuilder cannot step up and try to fill that gap without the use of drugs – perhaps that’s just their lot in life.
Tito Ortiz further explains the kinds of risks that bodybuilders take when they decide to use PEDs and steroids to enhance their physique. He thinks there is a risk of young people watching bodybuilding or any other sport and idolizing steroids. That risk is not seeing the long game. They only look at the big bodybuilders or the powerful athletes. They don’t see the aftermath in their later years. Ortiz goes on to say that most bodybuilders who use PEDs in their prime look like “skinny broken down old men” by the time they hit sixty.
Do you agree with Tito Ortiz’s take on bodybuilding and steroids? Watch his full comments in our GI Exclusive interview segment above and let us know your thoughts!
Tito Ortiz Answers: Who Is The Greatest Bodybuilder Of All Time?
Tito Ortiz reveals his involvement and passion for bodybuilding, how it’s poised for a big comeback, and makes his pick for greatest bodybuilder of all time.
While Tito Ortiz is first and foremost a top tier MMA fighter, he has a deep respect, passion, and involvement with the sport of bodybuilding. Bodybuilding was the initial foundation that led Ortiz towards MMA in the first place – though he didn’t even know it was called bodybuilding at the time. He just wanted to get big. And he still holds a fire in his heart for the athletes in bodybuilding who keep pursuing that dream. So what does he think of the current state of the sport? In our latest GI Exclusive interview, Tito Ortiz explains why he thinks bodybuilding is going to make a big comeback and also makes his pick on who is the greatest bodybuilder in history.
Tito Ortiz might not hold a mass monster physique, but his love and passion for getting big has been with him since he was a teenage. It’s what ultimately led him towards mixed martial arts – a path that would take him towards being one of the top fighters in MMA. Even though his life became about MMA, he never left bodybuilding behind. Ortiz currently works with a consulting firm for bodybuilding where he helps young bodybuilders learn how to market themselves. An important part of any sport to bring more eyeballs on the competitions and thus bring more mainstream attention (and cash) to an athlete or league.
Tito Ortiz is a man who keeps watch on the bodybuilding world just as much as he focuses on his MMA career. Given that level of passion for bodybuilding, what does he think of the current state of the sport? Many have expressed that the quality of physiques is going downhill compared to decades past. Does Ortiz agree? He couldn’t think that it’s farther from the truth and he points more towards statistics to prove his point.
Tito Ortiz actually believes that bodybuilding is in the process of making a comeback (which of course implies that he at least thinks at some point it went downhill). He points towards how the Olympia and many other major competitions grow in size every year. Perhaps people verbally complain about the physiques being lower quality – but the attendance seems to argue the opposite. Or perhaps, that the change is minuscule compared to how many people find the sport as whole entertaining to watch.
Perhaps the fans arguing for a chance is a part of the beginning for some sort of comeback. With the introduction of the Classic Physique division a few years ago and its continued success – we might just be too close to the action to realize a long term progression that signals bodybuilding will be bigger than ever in the coming decade.
We decided to end off our conversation with Tito Ortiz about bodybuilding by rewinding and looking to the past. Who was the greatest bodybuilder in the history of the sport? Tito Ortiz jumps right over usual picks such as Ronnie Coleman or Lee Haney – and goes for the old school original choice. Ortiz thinks Arnold Schwarzenegger is the greatest of all time. This is when you consider the big picture of everything he accomplished. He is arguable the only bonafide bodybuilding mainstream celebrity. That kind of success legitimized the sport and put it into the spotlight. And to Ortiz, that makes him the greatest of all time.
You can watch Tito Ortiz’s full comments on bodybuilding in or latest GI Exclusive interview segment above.
Tito Ortiz: The Top 3 Best & Worst Moments Of His MMA Career
Tito Ortiz looks back at both the biggest highs and lowest lows of MMA fighting career.
Life is full of highs and lows. Not surprisingly, the bigger risk you take the bigger the reward. It doesn’t come without a few blemishes upon looking back. These kinds of risks are necessary for pro athletes who want to become the best. This holds true for Tito Ortiz. You don’t become a champion MMA fighter without making a few mistakes along the way. In our latest GI Exclusive interview, Tito Ortiz breaks down the top three best and worst moments of his MMA fighting career.
While Tito Ortiz isn’t done fighting just yet, he has lived a full and exciting life as a MMA fighter. That’s why we asked him to look back at his full career and recount the highest highs and the lowest lows of his career. You can’t have the highs without the lows. And for pro athletes, failures often lead to learning and experience. They help build a competitor into the champion they will one day become.
So it seems fitting that Tito Ortiz starts off by listing his failures. He mentions this is to end on a high note but one can’t help but think it’s also because the lows truly do teach us how to become more successful. As we bounce back and learn from hindsight – we become stronger as a result.
For Ortiz, the lows truly hit hard. He mentions losing his title to Randy Couture, wearing a t-shirt that stated, “Dana’s my bitch,” and most painful of all – being accused of physical assault against his former girlfriend. Eventually the accusation was recanted – but the firestorm the indecent brought upon him and his family was a fight that no amount of MMA training could prepare him for.
And family is a big word for Tito Ortiz – as it ends up taking two whole picks for his greatest moments in his MMA career. Ortiz starts by describing the high of becoming a champion. This is a moment one certainly saw coming on his list of top 3 best career highs. He followed it up with the birth of his fist son and his final pick of the life he was able to give his children. To Ortiz, seeing his family provided for through his passion of fighting is a gift no championship title can overcome.
You can watch Tito Ortiz go into detail about his darkest low moments and his powerful high moments in our latest GI Exclusive interview segment above.
*Header image courtesy of Instagram