IFBB Pro Sergio Oliva Jr was preparing to return to the stage in 2023, but an unfortunate circumstance changed all of that instantly. Through no direct fault of his own, Oliva was involved in a traffic accident that led to the death of a motorcycle rider. Even though Oliva had not been charged with a crime, legal proceedings in that part of the world are different than in the United States. So, he’s unsure what lies ahead for him until all the proper steps had been taken.
Oliva discussed the delays on a recent episode of The Menace Podcast with Dennis James, Milos Sarcev, and Chris Cormier.
“I can’t do anything until the case is finalized and sent on to the insurance. So now, I’m just waiting for the car insurance people to deal with the case,” he told James. “It’s just a normal accident situation, but because of Ramadan, nobody’s working.”
Oliva had hoped to compete in the Arnold Classic Brazil on April 15th, but he feels that may not happen. Fans haven’t seen him onstage since the 2022 Arnold Classic USA, where he placed sixth. He opted to go to Dubai later after that show so he could experience life in a different part of the world and reconnect with his sport.
“It has the best gym I’ve ever trained at,” said the former San Diego resident. Oliva told the other hosts that losing to a competitor 100 pounds smaller than he was (Shaun Clarida at the 2021 Legion Sports Fest Pro) served as a wakeup call that he needed to make a change.
“I weighed the most at that show, and I got beat by Milos’ guy again (Regan Grimes), and that was probably the worst condition I had in a long time so I just wanted to do something as a fresh start.”
Oliva was an open book during this interview, and you can see and hear all he had to say by watching TMP over at the Muscle & Fitness YouTube channel. Make sure you subscribe so you can catch new episodes every Sunday. Don’t forget to follow @themenacepodcast on Instagram as well.
