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Mike Matarazzo | |
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Bodybuilder | |
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Personal info | |
Nickname | "Big Guns" |
Born | November 8, 1965 |
Died | August 16, 2014 48) | (aged
Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) |
Weight | (In Season): 250 lb (Off-Season): 275 lb |
Professional career | |
Active | 1991-2001 |
Michael Richard Matarazzo (November 8, 1965 – August 16, 2014) was an American IFBB professional bodybuilder.
Originally from Boston, Massachusetts, Matarazzo took up boxing after being inspired by Rocky. He turned to bodybuilding and won the first contest he entered: The 1989 Gold's Gym Classic in Massachusetts. [1] He moved to Venice, California, in early 1991 and in a great surprise, won the USA Championships that year over favorite Flex Wheeler as well as Ronnie Coleman and Chris Cormier. [2] It was only his second bodybuilding contest and it earned 25-year-old Matarazzo the right to turn pro. [3] He also competed for the first time in the Mr. Olympia contest in 1991. Known primarily for his massive arms and calves, his best placing in the Mr. Olympia competition (out of seven total appearances) was 9th in 1998. [4]
Matarazzo's last appearance in a professional bodybuilding event was the 2001 Mr. Olympia where he placed 21st. [5] He was forced to retire due to having open heart surgery on December 8, 2004 for clogged arteries. On November 8, 2007 Matarazzo suffered a heart attack, his second cardiac-related problem since his 2004 surgery. [6] On August 3, 2014, Matarazzo was in the intensive care unit of Stanford hospital in Palo Alto due to heart complications. [7] [8] He died on August 16 while awaiting a heart transplant. [9] [10] At the time of his death he was residing in Modesto, California and had been forced to stop working as a bail bondsman [11] due to his 20% heart function. [12]
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