It seems everyone is talking about the totally unexpected announcement that IFBB Pro Rubiel Mosquera aka NECKZILLA has inked with the highly prestigious Evogen Nutrition brand. This is none other than “The Pro Creator,” Hany Rambod’s supplement company. This is the same Hany Rambod who was the guru behind champions like Jay Cutler, Phil Heath, Hadi Choopan, Derek Lunsford, Jeremy Buendia, and others. When Hany told the world he was pulling back from prepping athletes, it literally sent shockwaves throughout the fitness industry. And Evogen doesn’t work with just anybody. In fact, I can’t remember them signing anyone in ages! So there’s no question that EVOGEN signing NECKZILLA is bound to make the rounds. But what does it mean? Is it simply the brand looking to partner up with an up-and-coming pro bodybuilder? Or is there more to the story than meets the eye? What’s actually going on here?
Let’s be honest, brutally honest! People want to see Hany back in the coaching mix. They want to see him get the next huge superstar off and running. He’s one of the few gurus who can make it happen time in and time again. History doesn’t lie. There’s countless fans that want to see more, here. They want to read between the lines, even if there’s nothing to read. There’s so much excitement behind this signing, but I just don’t know if that excitement is warranted. This is no dig on Rubiel, but look at the people Hany is known for working with. Just go look to the paragraph above. Could he break into this category with Hany’s help? I mean, anything’s possible, but I tend to think this signing was more about needing an athlete, someone they could get behind as a company, and someone who probably wouldn’t break the bank than Evogen signing the next Mr. Olympia. That said, a lot of what happens next is in Rubiel’s hands.
What do I mean by that? Well, sometimes when a bodybuilder gets signed to a good deal, they tend to get comfortable. That’s the wrong mindset. When you get signed, that’s when you should really want to reach for the stars. Now you have some money coming in, some product coming in, so that’s when you take it up another level or two.
Let’s say Rubiel starts getting top honors, then he starts winning tough shows, that might get Hany more interested. If Rubiel really works hard to make Evogen proud and he puts himself in the conversation for the higher placings at Big 3 show (Olympia, ASC, NY Pro), for example, I could see the possibility of Hany maybe giving him some advices on the d/l or maybe even coming out of retirement for a coaching encore. I could see that happen in that situation, but for right now, I’m more inclined to think that Evogen simply needed a good pro bodybuilder to work with and Rubiel got the nod.
Only time will tell what happens next, but for now, huge congrats to NECKZILLA and EVOGEN!!
