Arnold Schwarzenegger’s son’s long-awaited debut has generated buzz in the bodybuilding world. Although he proved himself by winning three gold medals in his first professional competition, some feel his physique and overall performance did not match what his father used to have.

In the meantime, veteran bodybuilder Lee Priest has shown his support for Schwarzenegger's youngest son, Joseph Baena, firing back at the critics.

On March 31, Priest appeared on the IFBB AMM podcast and talked about the debut of the 28-year-old bodybuilder. While discussing the situation where people compared Baena to his father, Priest said:

“Okay, he’s natural, but to say what? He’s not big enough like his dad. Shut up, people. Half the ones that talk this s*** have never done anything themselves, so shut the f*** up.”

As the son of the 7-time Mr. Olympia, there was going to be a comparison, and according to the Australian bodybuilder, this comparison is unnecessary.

He said, “he’s always going to be compared to his father, which you know, you’re never going to be Arnold. There’s only one Arnold, like, there’s only one Ronnie or one Sergio. They’ll compare a younger Sergio to his father.”

Priest continued, “You know, he loves to train. When I see him at Gold’s Gym, we always have good talks. I think it’s just a goal for him. If you’re training sometimes, you want to have a goal.

When you set a goal to compete, it’s always easier to stick to a diet. And go through that s*** you have to go through.”

There is no doubt that Baena has a lot to do to even match his father's legacy. But his recent victories and achievements only show that he is moving forward with proper dedication and preparation.

At the end of March, he achieved success at the NPC Natural Colorado State show, where he won 3 titles, or you could say gold medals, which include:

• The Men’s Open Bodybuilding Heavyweight Class
• Men’s Classic Physique True Novice
• Men’s Classic Physique Novice

Within a week, he made history again by winning the INBA Iron Gladiator Classic Physique title at a California event, receiving praise from bodybuilding legends like Jay Cutler and Phil Heath.

While many people criticize him based on comparison, his journey itself is encouraging and has helped him achieve success now.

Joseph Baena’s journey to the bodybuilding stage

Baena has not always been such a fit young man, and he previously admitted that being overweight created struggles for him during his school days.

In an Instagram post from July 2025, he admitted, “People sometimes forget that I used to be chubby in high school. I got cut from my basketball and football teams because I couldn't keep up with the other kids.”

Swim didn't have tryouts, thankfully, and completely changed my life forever. That was my introduction to Fitness and training”.

Back in 2022, during his interview with People, he admitted that he was bullied when he was a kid.

He said, “It was my closest friends that were the ones that bullied me the most and made fun of me for being overweight and all these kinds of things.

So, that was really a big struggle for me in finding myself and figuring out and creating that ambition to change my weight and my physique.”

So, going from being bullied to forging his own path was not easy for him, and he only deserves praise, not criticism.

As Baena continues to build his own identity in bodybuilding, comparisons to his father may persist. But as per Priest, the focus should remain on the individual rather than the legacy.

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Written by

Supradeep Dutta

Edited by

Ashvinkumar Patil