"I cannot like him" - Jose Raymond discusses Shawn Ray and his scuffle with Dominic Nicholls

Jose Raymond became an elite bodybuilder in the 212 division after building a monstrous lower body in the 2010s. After finishing in the top-five four times, his efforts finally bore fruit in 2015 as he was crowned the Arnold Classic 212 champion. Since taking a backseat in the game, Raymond has been an active voice within the sport.

In a recent episode of IFBB AMA, Jose Raymond vocalized how much he dislikes former Open division powerhouse Shawn Ray. While Raymond believes Ray to be one of the best bodybuilders to grace the stage, he cannot bring himself to like him after his recent scuffle with coach Chad Nicholls' son Dominic.

"Even to this day, I feel bad that I want to beat his ass. I feel bad that I don’t like that guy. I don’t want to not like anyone but Shawn Ray is unlikeable. I cannot like him."

Shawn Ray recently got into a scuffle with Dominic Nicholls after accusing his father, Chad Nicholls, of killing bodybuilders with his coaching practices. Ray's comments about Nicholls go back to 2021 when he accused Chad of using 'Dr. Death protocols' and blamed him for the death of certain bodybuilders.

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"You should be responsible for it" - Milos Sarcev and Jose Raymond discuss Shawn Ray's comments and his attitude

Samson Dauda's coach, Milos Sarcev, also joined Jose Raymond on the show. Continuing the conversation, Milos stated that although he is friends with Shawn Ray, he still believes the former IFBB professional has gone off the rails.

"Listen, you should be responsible for everything you say and do, and especially if you’re accusing somebody, you should be responsible for it. I mean, I’m friends with Shawn but I’ve also kicked Shawn twice out of my gym, I didn’t allow him to come back."

Sarcev stated that he did not place any blame on Dominic for confronting Ray. He believes that Ray's comments over the years have pushed Dominic into action.

"He can be very unreasonable, he doesn’t think far in the consequences right. He just points fingers and say, you are 58 years old… you should know better and he keeps pushing. After years of talking, years of talking, he’s bringing it back and then hashtag this and post and another post and another post. What do you expect? I don’t blame Dominic at all."

Raymond responded by stating that Ray's antics since retirement have rendered him a 'villain' in the industry. He stated that Ray, as a veteran of the game, should instead focus on impacting athletes in a positive manner.

"Shawn Ray uses this term all the time and you’ll recognize it. He says it’s a cautionary tale. You ever hear him say that? It’s a cautionary tale. Well, here’s a cautionary tale for Shawn, you’re 58 years old, you’re one of the greatest bodybuilders of all time, one of the greatest physiques of all time, you should be one of the most popular guys in the sport; he should be helping people, he should be lifting people up, he should be promoting the sport, instead, he is the villain of this entire industry. Nobody in bodybuilding likes Shawn, nobody."

Dominic Nicholls' confrontation with Shawn Ray was intense with threats being made towards the veteran.