Arnold Schwarzenegger and Lou Ferrigno may be good friends today, but during the 1970s, their relationship was very different. The famous documentary Pumping Iron, released in 1977, clearly portrayed the rivalry between these 2.

Apart from on-stage rivalry, there were some funny moments created by Schwarzenegger himself. And those moments later caused him to lose Ferrigno's trust.

On July 26, Katsu shared a post on its X account. The post revealed Schwarzenegger’s one lie before a competition to Ferrigno which created the trust issue that still remains in the mind of the 2-time Mr. Universe.

According to the post, Arnold said, “I dragged them in by talking about my mother. Because they're Italians and they love family. So I said, Yesterday I called my mother, and I said we're really looking forward to seeing her one day.”

And he said, But the competition is tonight. I said, I know. But I just told her I won. She said, 'Congratulations.' It made them all look at each other, like, 'Oh, Jesus, I don't know if he'll be able to reach her later.”

The Austrian Oak also said, “And the funny thing is, Lou has never really trusted me ever again since that moment. Imagine, 50 years… Every time I say something. I go, I know it's foggy today, Lou, but the sun is going to come out in the next two hours, and he looks around, like, Is he putting me on here? No matter what I say”.

Consider it a funny thing or a psychological approach. Like many bodybuilders, Arnold was also famous for this.

That can be found in one scene of Pumping Iron. Playing with Ferrigno’s mind, the Austrian Oak said, “You know, it’s amazing. Can you imagine how I feel? Six-time Mr. Olympia. Six f—ing times. It’s incredible.”

He even told Ferrigno and his family that Lou needed one more month to prepare for the 1975 Mr. Olympia, the year on which Pumping Iron was filmed.

Although Schwarzenegger says Ferrigno no longer trusts him because of the lie, Ferrigno once revealed that he doesn't believe this.

Lou Ferrigno Talked About Defeating the Psychology

During a Sports Psychology Interview, Ferrigno was asked to give his opinion on bodybuilders who use psychological tactics to intimidate their competitors.

In response, he said, “I don’t believe in, ah, this psyching out, which really comes down to how you feel about yourself, what kind of shape you are in.”

He also said, “If you're competing in a competition and you’re one hundred percent at your best, it’s the best you can do.”

Ferrigno admitted that in bodybuilding, people say negative things. But it did not affect him, as he believed that only hard work and preparation can make one a winner. And when one is prepared, no one can defeat him.

Follow Bodybuilding Bros for more such content.

Written by

Supradeep Dutta

Edited by

Ashvinkumar Patil