SUCKY you're still not getting a BB fundamental-a wide waist from the front is a disaster-WORSE than a gut because it effects the most important front poses AND effects taper.
Sorry, but having a belly like a preagnant woman is a far worse symmetrical liability than having a thick waist. Bodybuilding is about building the body into something that conveys an image of greater muscularity and lower bodyfat than an average man. How can you look good if you look like an obese man with low bodyfat? As I've said before, a gut distension is the
worst symetrical liability one can have, because it is the one bodypart which nis visible in all angles except from the back, and it makes you look like someone who has morbid obesity.
As for taper, it is not something that depends of waist girth, but rather of the
differential between the waist and two things: the delt and lat width. When standing relaxed, Ronnie has an advantage over Dorian in taper, and I never denied that. Like I said, this is one of the few areas where Ronnie scores point over Dorian as far as symmetry goes.
Now, when it comes to the mandatories from the front, Dorian's taper is actually quite good, due to his incredible lat width. It is only when the taper is a function of the differential between delt width and waist that Ronnie defeats Dorian. In the abs-and-thighs and front lat spread, Dorian's taper is actually
better than Ronnie's, because in these two mandatories it is the lats that create the taper and not the delts. Get it? Funny that you mentioned the front mandatories, the front mandatories, because Ronnie has
no taper advantage over Yates exactly because these two shots emphasize the contrast between lats and waist, not delts and waist.

In the abs-and-thigh, furthermore, Dorian has superior abs/serratus separations than Ronnie, and that wins him points
even if Ronnie did have a better taper - which is not the case.
Get it through that wooden head. Stop trying to minimize the problem, stop trying to pretend that washboard abs or a flat stomach helps this when they're not related. DUH! 
What are you talking about? I never denied that Ronnie has better taper than Dorian
when standing relaxed. In thisd case, the taper is a funtion of delt-to-waist ratio, and there's not question that Ronnie's is superior. What's yourt point? All I'm saying is that Ronnie does
not have better taper than Dorian in the muscularity round when executing the front mandatories, because the delts are not called into play in creating taper in this shot. And how does having a flat stomach not win points when it coems to midsection if it's an
obvious symmetrical liability from the sides? Even if a distended gut is not visible from the front in his 1999 version - and although Ronnie's was in both 2003 and 2004 -, it
still compromises symmetry both during transition as well as in the side mandatories. Perhaps this wouldn't be problem if there were no side mandatories and no transition, but the bottom line is that there are and Ronnie is compromised. You could argue that having a distended gut is having bad taper from the sides.

Pumpster, give up: you're waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay out of your league trying to argue with me. Leave it to NeoSeminole or PraetorFenix to try to do that, because at least they don't get flat out destroyed by me; at least they put up a fight. They still get defeated, but at least they hold their own

Two dolts congratulating themselves.
I'll take your charge seriously, because you're obviously an expert when it comes to being a dolt...

SUCKMYMUSCLE