10 Best Shoulders in Bodybuilding History
Boulders. Death Stars. Planets. Cannons. Whatever you want to call them, no one can deny the sight of a bulging, round set of shoulders. And the 10 men with the best shoulders in bodybuilding history are:
- Markus Ruhl
- Kevin Levrone
- Roelly Winklaar
- Ronnie Coleman
- Phil Heath
- Dennis Wolf
- Big Ramy
- Flex Wheeler
- Victor Martinez
- Steve Kuclo
But before we go in-depth into the rankings, let’s establish the criteria I used to rank these guys. After that, I’ll mention who didn’t make the cut (and there were some hard cuts).
Judging Criteria + Honorable Mentions
There are five factors I considered when selecting the candidates for the best shoulders in bodybuilding history:
- Size of shoulders
- Shape and aesthetic of shoulders
- Proportional development of all three heads (anterior, medial, and rear)
- Impressiveness across all poses – they can’t just be impressive in one pose, it must carry over to at least several
- “Pop” factor, or “wow” factor – how much the shoulders stand out compared to the rest of their physique
What I did not consider was:
- Popularity of bodybuilder
- How often they competed
Okay, now that we have the criteria down, let’s go through the bodybuilders who didn’t quite make the cut.
Honorable Mention #1 – Jay Cutler
4-time Mr. Olympia winner Jay Cutler just narrowly misses out on the 10th spot on this list. Though his shoulders were huge and wide, I always thought they looked a little flat in some shots. Still some of the best shoulders in bodybuilding history though and worthy of a mention.
Honorable Mention #2 – Ben Pakulski
Ben Pakulski is an easy honorable mention. Usually known for his enormous legs, Ben’s shoulders were absolutely bonkers. They stand out from the rest of his upper body in pretty much every shot. He easily could’ve made in the 8-10th spots on the list. But I just felt the other candidates showed more detail through their shoulders.
Honorable Mention #3 – Naser El Sonbaty
One of the great bodybuilders of the 90s, Naser El Sonbaty deserves a mention. His shoulders were huge, striated, and super wide.
10 Best Shoulders in Bodybuilding History
#10 – Steve Kuclo
Starting off the list, we have Steve “KingSnake” Kuclo. Steve Kuclo is a modern bodybuilder, currently competing at the highest level of the IFBB. And one of the biggest reasons for that are his boulder shoulders.
The roundness, fullness, and pop of his delts gave him the edge for me over the honorable mentions. In terms of size, Steve could be even higher on the list. But, I didn’t think his shoulders were as aesthetic as some of the other guys ahead of him.
Watch KingSnake in action:
#9 – Victor Martinez
Coming in at #9 on the list is the uncrowned 2007 Mr. Olympia Victor Martinez. Now, this might be a surprise to some. Victor usually isn’t known for his shoulders.
But he absolutely should be.
While his shoulders aren’t as big or imposing as many of the other names on this list (and they do fade a little bit in the back shots), the pure aesthetic shape was enough to include him here. Look at how round and shapely those cannons are!
Watch Victor Martinez in action here at his best showing (the 2007 Mr. Olympia):
#8 – Flex Wheeler
Flex Wheeler. The king of aesthetics himself makes a (somewhat) surprising entry here at 8. I’ll admit, when I first was putting this list together, I didn’t think he’d make it. I mean, Flex is known for his ungodly shape, lines, and muscle bellies. And usually for his back and arms.
But, the more I looked, the more I noticed how impressive his shoulders really were:
The only reason he isn’t higher is because they do get overshadowed by the rest of his physique to some extent.
Watch Flex in (arguably) his best shape at the Arnold Classic 1993:
#7 – Big Ramy
The two-time, reigning, defending Mr. Olympia “Big Ramy” Mamdouh Elssbiay makes the cut at #7. Big Ramy’s shoulders are massive! And that is the main reason he makes the list. His wide structure really accentuates their size.
Full, huge, and with excellent shape, you cannot argue against him deserving a spot here. His arms are not overbearing, and that makes his delts pop even more.
Watch Big Ramy from his first Mr. Olympia win in 2020:
#6 – Dennis Wolf
At #6 is the German-born Dennis “The Big Bad” Wolf. This is exactly the spot I thought he would land at and deserves. Just outside of the top 5, but knocking right on its door.
Not only did Wolf have huge shoulders, but his aesthetic structure and proportions made them look even better:
Look at those mind-popping delts! And, in contest shape, I always appreciated the incredible separation he had between all three heads of the deltoid.
Watch Dennis Wolf in one of his best contest shapes from the 2007 Mr. Olympia:
#5 – Phil Heath
At #5, we have none other than 7-time Mr. Olympia Winner, Phil “The Gift” Heath. Now, Phil doesn’t usually get praised for his shoulders. And it’s easy to understand why. His arms are silly huge. It’s impossible not to notice them first in nearly every shot (especially from the front).
But, when you do look past the guns, you see two round, bulging, enormous shoulders:
The only reason he isn’t higher is because his arms do take away attention from his shoulders.
Watch “The Gift” capture his first Mr. Olympia title here in 2011:
#4 – Ronnie Coleman
None other than the King himself, 8x Mr. Olympia Ronnie Coleman, landing at number 4. Again, this may seem surprising because Ronnie isn’t particularly known for his shoulders. Back, biceps, quads, sure. But, shoulders?
I implore you to look at this picture and think again:
Ronnie’s delts had one of the best combinations of size, symmetry, aesthetics, and separation. His #4 spot on this list is therefore solidified.
Watch Ronnie Coleman from the 2003 Mr. Olympia, when he infamously “left the planet”:
#3 – Roelly Winklaar
Now this was a tough call. Roelly “The Beast” Winklaar comes in at #3. And, honestly, he could have easily snatched the #1 or #2 spot. Another bodybuilder who’s not normally known for his delts, Roelly had some of the most mind-blowing, eye-popping pair of boulder shoulders you will ever find!
I just can’t get over how massive and armor-like Roelly’s shoulders are. Truly incredible. Even his massive arms don’t detract from the size of them. That’s high praise for his shoulders, given he has some of the best arms of all time.
Watch The Beast in one of his best shapes ever here at the 2018 Arnold Classic:
#2 – Kevin Levrone
Okay, this is going to be controversial. Kevin Levrone is ubiquitously regarded as having the best shoulders of all time by pretty much all of the bodybuilding world. And for damn good reason. However, I decided to give him the runner-up position spot.
But, make no mistake. Kevin’s deltoid muscles are the most aesthetic deltoids of all time.
Kevin’s shoulders defined the bodybuilding aesthetic of the 90s (and of all time, really). Huge, fully developed, round, and somehow perfectly in sync with the rest of his physique. I have no problem with most people putting Kevin first in having the best shoulders of all time.
Watch Kevin “The Maryland Muscle Machine” Levrone in one of my favorite shows, the 1999 Grand Prix:
#1 – Markus Ruhl
First place goes to “The German Giant”, Markus Ruhl!
Now, this was a tough one. It was between the aesthetics of Kevin Levrone’s shoulders or the sheer overwhelming size of Markus Ruhl’s. And I went with Ruhl. Because we’re not just talking about big shoulders here. We are talking about planets on top of his arms:
These pictures are NOT edited! Markus was the freak of freaks. An absolute mass monster who threw all caution to the wind and played the size game as best as anyone has.
Here’s one more for the guy with the best shoulders in bodybuilding history:
You have to watch Markus Ruhl from the now infamous 2002 Night of Champions show:
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