Statistics

Competitive Record

Introduction

It was the same story, sort of, that had unfolded in Orlando, Florida, at the Nationals the year before. That time, however, it was too much water filling his 247-pound body that caused him to place fourth.

What to do, DeMayo mused. "A lot of people had told me I just needed to come in ripped and I'd win the USA," he reflected. "So I did what I thought I had to do and still lost. At first, I displaced my frustration on the judges, but as soon as I got the photos back, I knew I was placed fairly. I trained wrong, not being me -- big, powerful, and freaky."

The loss of another contest wasn't the only thing bothering the then-25-year-old, the guy who'd bested Kevin Levrone at the '91 Junior Nationals. In 1992 Paul packed his Malden, Massachussetts, bags and headed for Venice, California, in hopes of furthering his physique career. Instead of finding fame and fortune, though, he ran into misfortune and empty pockets.

Paul and girlfriend Jill Greeley rented a one-bedroom apartment that was walking distance from Gold's Gym, where DeMayo pumped iron and Jill kept the books in the accounting department. Away from all his family and friends, he wasn't exactly the next in line to be interviewed by Robin Leach. He had no pals, no wheels, few funds, no endorsement contract, no title, no pro card. After his stunning defeats at the '92 Nationals and '93 USA, the bright California sunshine turned pitch-black. The Quadster announced his retirement from competitive bodybuilding for the time being, although some scribes forgot to mention the terms "competitive" and "tempoarary" when they reported the news.

DeMayo's luck changed in February 1994, when Met-Rx offered him a contract, but he and Jill decided to move back to their roots anyway, and they returned to Massachussetts in April. He zeroed in on the Nationals, which were scheduled for October 21 and 22 in -- of all place -- his Waterloo of '92, Orlando. The word was out that Paul was coming back. What didn't get out was the fact that he had suffered a severe injury to his right calf in July.

Doing the best he could to work around the pain, DeMayo was true to his work and showed up sporting an extra-large package. The heaviest man in the show at 252 1/2" pounds, he powered his way à la Dorian Yates past Craig Titus and Don Long to finally earn that elusive National title -- and the invitation to the pro ranks that comes with it.

This time, when I stuck the recorder in front of Paul DeMayo's mug, he was a brand-new man. He certainly has a lot to be exhilarated about: an upgraded contract with Met-Rx, a bonus from the company for winning it all in Florida, a scheduled move back to California and a neat little gift courtesy of Met-Rx owner Dr. Scott Connelly -- a '95 Corvette, DeMayo's dream car.

The Interview

Good things started happening in February, when Met-Rx offered you a contract. How did that come about?
Well, actually, I was approached by Fred Bagatourian....I didn't have a contract in mind...he just asked me to try the product. I did, and, basically, it was working well for me. Actually, I was just hoping to get free product [laughs].

My whole body composition was changing. I was at my heaviest off-season weight but wasn't carrying much fat. Fred approached me...to be part of Dr. Connelly's Met-Rx team. They were very generous to me, treated me very well. They gave me some financial stability. Things were starting to look up at that time.

You got the long-awaited contract, but two months later you and Jill decided to move back East after 2 1/2 years in Venice. I imagine it was a tough decision.
It was. I truly didn't feel leaving California was the answer, you know...I thought maybe we could move to a different place. Living in Venice for over two years can get to anybody. The bottom line was, my girlfriend was at her rope's end. She wasn't happy. She missed her family, her friends. Of course, the earthquakes, riots and fires certainly didn't do anything to encourage her to stay! [Both crack up.]

She had decided to move back home...I wanted to be with her, and I decided it was the best thing for me too. So it was my choice as well, thinking it would be in my best interest. Which it was...I came home, got my head together, got back with my training partner, Teddy Hanley....You know...I was trated realy well at the gyms.

I know one of your concerns was whether you could find a facility that would compare to Gold's, Venice. You've said you never had a bad workout in Venice. You used three different training sites when you moved back, right?
Right. I trained at the original gym I used before I moved to California -- Gold's in Everett -- the World Gym in Sommerville and the new Nautilus Plus club that opened in Billerica. It was equiped with Hammer Strength, all the new state-of-the-art equipment. It worked out real well.

Teddy was there for me all the time. He was tired of Michey Mouse workouts, and he really wanted to get into it. And he did. It paid off for him too -- the kid put on 11 pounds of muscle since he stated training with me [laughs].

I also put on some serious muscle, and it showed at the Nationals. I got up to 275 pounds in the off-season but was in fairly good shape. Of course, in bodybuilding terms I was in off-season shape, but in normal terms I was never way out of condition.

Ironically, you moved back home because of Jill, but when you got there, the relationship became strained.
[Pauses] Well, we just chose to take a break and go our separate ways for a bit. You know, we had to do what was best for each other. That's all I can really say....We're still friends. We had been together since out senior year in high school, so obviously, this wasn't an easy time for either of us. We're not dating at this point.

A big load was taken off your mind when Met-Rx re-signed you before the Nationals.
I was very touched. I developed a good relationship with Scott Connelly, who saw me for the person I am--not for the shows I win or the titles I have. He accepted me for what I was. He had it in his mind to re-sign me long before the Nationals. That meant a lot to me.

This company has been really good to me, and I enjoy working for them. I really believe in the product, too, and I'm not just sating that. I used the upgraded version of the product Scott gave me eight weeks otu from the Nationals...you know, I was 263 pounds eight weeks out and my weight stayed about the same, but I got so much leaner. It seemed too good to be true.

Now, I know all the East Coast people are going to say you finally won because you moved back home, got away from the Southern Cal syndrome. I don't believe that. I feel you made tremendous gains in your time at Gold's, Venice, but just weren't able to put things together the day of the contest.
I feel where I train...where I prepare...I can do anywhere. If I couldn't do that, I wouldn't be where I am today. Too many people have stereotyped me in the past, thinking I got caught up in the Venice glitz. When I lived out there, I really had no friends but plenty of acquaintances. I'm a very secure person. I'm not one of those people who runs around asking everybody, "What do you think I should do?" or "How do I look?" I'm very secure with myself, and through that I know I've made my mistakes...it's true I may not have gotten it together the day of the show, but I didn't miss by much.

You saw me the day after the Nationals in '92. Someitmes it's even a matter of hours. Remember the picture you took of me in the parking lot about two hours after the ['91] Nationals in Pittsburgh? So I've been close.

I didn't get sidetracked by anybody in Vencice. I came here to the East Coast and did the same thing I did in Venice. My training was the same. Having Teddy with me made a difference, but as far as getting up, going to the gym...[trails off].

The lifestyle was the same, just in a different town, different building?
Exactly.

Even though you did have a contract, did you feel any anxiety going into the Nationals this time? Did you wonder if people would call you wasked up if you didn't win?
No, I didn't. If I had lost, I still knew a lot of people wanted me for guest posings and stuff. I still have a lot of things people think you have to be professional to have. If you take a look around now...you've got guys like Gerard Dente signing with Twinlab; Roger Stewart, amateur, Twinlab. A lot more amateurs are getting looked at by companies now.

Do you think it's a wise thing to do?
Yeah, I do. Because outside of the bodybuilding industry you mention a title, and they don't have the slightest idea what you're talking about. They don't have any clue. You're a personality, and how you are and how you carry yourself is what will pull you through.

One of the best kept secrets of this past summer was the injury to your calf that scared the holy daylights out of you. Enough that at one point you felt you might have to miss the competition. What actually happened?
Yeah--nobody's asked me about that. It happened on July 3...I really thought I was out of the Nationals. I was on the seated calf machine, had four plates on there. At the end of the exercise I went to rack it. . .it had bounced off the rubber, but it still caught enough to where it was...stable.

I climbed out of the machine, was totally relaxed, and the machine slipped. As it did, all that weight took my calf down to the floor. If you can picture my calf resting on the foot peg, and the weight slipped and smashed into my calf. It was like someone taking your foot and stretching it...bang...I was trapped in the machine and I couldn't get out. My training partner had to help me get out.

It swelled up unbelieveably. It looked like I had elephantiasis of the ankle. I had to go to the hosptial and get it X-rayed. What had happened was, I had torn all the tendons, the ligaments.

It sounds like what happened to Dorian Yates' left biceps eight weeks out from the Olympia.
Same exact injury except to my calf. I couldn't frickin' walk. I was miserable. I was given some painkillers and some anti- inflammatories...I hobbled into the gym on a cane. The doctors told me to come back when the swelling came down so they could put me in a cast. I said no way. I had no mobility in my calf at all. I couldn't balance my body. I couldn't train my legs. It still hasn't healed. There were so many times I'd wake up at four in the morning in serious pain...it was an injury that truly scared me because I thought I might have to miss the Nationals.

I just gritted it out. I decided that if I had to hobble on that stage, I was going to do it. It was a scary thing. You should have seen it when it ballooned up. The day it happened it was about 90 degrees outside, the humidity was about 90 percent--I truly thought I was in hell. Somehow, someway it got a little better, and I trained with the pain. There were good days and there were bad days, but fortunately I was able to do the show, and it all worked out for me in the end.

You seem to really enjoy your work at guest posings. You have a ball jumping into the audience, hitting a front double-biceps or quad shot in front of shocked fans. I loved it when you patted that bald dude on the head at the '93 Gold's Classic, Visalia--he was the promoter's uncle, in fact!
I do like it. Without those people I wouldn't make a living. I'm there for them. So many times people only get to see a bodybuilder up on stage. I give them a full shot, let them see what it's all about. That's why I'm there--that's truly why I'm there.

Even though you said your workouts were the same in Boston as they were in Venice, you did back off a bit, didn't you?
Actually, that is true. The exercises and repetitions would vary on a day-to-day basis, but basically I did the same workouts....I just listened to my body a lot more this year.

I trained on a two-on/one-off in the off-season and even carried that into the show. There'd be days when I was tired. If I...didn't feel like training, I wouldn't. I didn't think I'd be falling behind or that it was the end of the world. I'd use a three-on/one-off as well. It just depended on how I was feeling.

Before I lived religiously on a four-on/one-off split. I found that not beating myself to a pulp made a big difference. As far as diet, my calories ranged from 3,500 to 4,200.

You and Craig Titus provided the News & Views with some of its best stuff leading up to the show. Craig initiated it, and you finished it. The great battle of words was then transferred to the stage, but when you got there, all I saw was a handshake. What was it like backstage?
There was a lot of tension, not just between me and Craig, but between a lot of the guys because everyone's buckin' for one thing, and that's to win. And, me being considered the favorite, at least by you...I really didn't have any friends back there.

With me and Craig...yeah, there was probably tension, but we cleared it up on stage. We both reached for a towel at the same time and started talking. I told him all the talk was stupid, he agreed, we shook hands, and it was over.

He did congratulate me after the show. I have to say this about Titus, I admire his consistency. He took fourth in the '93 USA, then took second in the '94 USA and second again in the Nationals. That takes a lot to keep coming and coming. That takes a lot of drive.

Tell us about the big surprise Connelly let you in on when you came to California for photo shoots the week after the show.
Well, I want to clear one thing up. Scott has been very good to me, but I don't want people to think I'm a Donald Trump or anything. When I say I have a contract, I don't want to mislead anyone into thinking I'm rolling in dough. I'm able to make a living. There's been a lot of years of scraping by.

After I had won the show, I had my contract raised, and Scott said he'd be moving me back out to California after the first of the year. He also told me he was tired of the way I was showing up at the venue.

What did he mean by that?
He said it in a kidding way. It was at a meeting I was having with him when I came out after the contest. He had me seriously worried. I didn't know if he meant it had to do with the way I was dressing, thinking, maybe I'm gonna have to start ironing my gym clothes [laughs]. He said we have to take care of that--tell me what color Corvette you want!

How did he know a 'Vette has been your dream car?
Scott and I had spent some time together in Orlando...he came to my room Friday afternoon. We were just sitting around, and I was telling him that when I was 19 years old all I wanted out of bodybuilding was a Corvette.

I also told him that when I was younger, I'd build models of cars, and that I'd always been a Corvette fan. All of my friends have had, still have, Corvettes. Teddy has one. I was always in the passenger's seat, not in the driver's seat. I just figured one day I'd have one. He got a big kick out of the story because I told him that once I got my Corvette, I'd retire. He laughed and said not to retire yet, that he still needed me.

I laughed back, told him it would be a while, don't worry about it. Then, at our meeting at Club Met-Rx the following Friday in Costa Mesa, after we talked about the contract and me moving back out to California, he mentioned about the way I was showing up at the venue. Then, lo and behold, he pulled out a sheet of paper and asked me what color Corvette I wanted.

What happened when you realized he was being serious?
It took me about 20 minutes to get my composure. My fingertips were numb. I dropped my glasses. I thought it was a joke. I couldn't believe it. I had a lump in my throat. I could barely talk. I finally thanked him...he changed my life, he totally changed my life. He's giving me a chance to live a dream.

So, what type of 'Vette did you select?
I picked a black--let's just leave it at that. I don't want to come across as someone bragging about the type of car I have. I'll keep it a surprise for now.

Did you ask to move back to California, or did Scott bring it up?
That was something that was offered to me, and I think it's in my best interest to take advantage of it. I'll be moving to the Orange County area.

Moving cross-country again. Are you excited?
Well, part of me is excited, part of me is scared. I have mixed emotions. I have to make the best of it, and hopefully I will. I'll just take it day by day. I think I'll enjoy Orange County. It's more laid back than Venice. I can go to the gym and also enjoy life. Bodybuilding doesn't consume that area like it does in Venice.

"Quadzilla" has been a catchy moniker for you, but it's also caused problems. One of the things that's bugged you is that people haven't been able to look past your thighs and see the improvement of the total package.
As a young kid my legs sprouted first, then my upper body grew around my thighs. People looked at me as just a set of legs. That has bothered me because it's ignorance. There's so much more to my physique than a set of legs. I think I proved that at the Nationals. I just turned 27, and it's just going to take time, but I guarantee you I'll be better as I get older.

Previous to the '94 Nationals there's only been one guy who could stand on stage at 5'10" and carry more than 250 pounds of hard, contest-shape muscle. I think he goes by the name of Dorian. That's pretty good company to be in.
[Smiles] Yeah. I saw Dorian for the first time at the 1990 Night of Champions, when he took second to Mohammed Benaziza. I called him "My England" because I didn't know his name, but he had that tattoo on his forearm. I was totally freaked out by him. I knew that guy was going to be unbelieveable.

If I had to say I have an idol, it's him, because everything he says and everything he does....I was brought up the same way. I work hard in the gym...I'm a bodybuilder. I have the same ethics as he does. I admire him not only as a bodybuilder but as a person too.

Now you'll get a chance to stand next to him on stage sometime soon. And we'll finally have someone else as big as Yates up there.
I'll never, ever think I'll be as big as Dorian Yates. I don't know, man, you look up to somebody for so long and...I could never imagine the man standing next to me. Even when that day does come, the man will have my total respect.

When can we expect to see you make your pro debut?
I'm not sure. I have a lot of guest posings to work around. I have to make money...if I do something, it won't "Now what do you have to say?" They had that ammunition for the longest time, but now they're out of bullets. And the best is yet to come.

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