Big Ray Williams squats 1014 and then 1080!

Above is Big Ray Williams 1080 squat at the 2018 championships.

I got to see him squat 1014 right here in Texas in 2016. I am still trying to process what I saw last night. It was the greatest strength feat I have personally witnessed. Big Ray Williams, with a smile as big as he is, squatted 1014 ... raw ... just a pair of shorts, t-shirt, knee sleeves, and wrist wraps ... he did not tighten his belt .... and had headphones on with his phone in his pocket until the last set.

We got to Arlington Strength and Conditioning at 7:00 pm. Ray was just chatting with members of the gym. He did one set of about 10 reps of standing band knee extensions with each leg. At 7:30 pm a line formed to take pictures with Ray and get an autographed photo. This lasted about 30 minutes. At about 8:00 pm he did a Q and A session until about 8:40 pm. He was standing the entire time.

After the Q and A, he started his squat warm-up with 5 reps with 165 lb. He went up by 50 kg each set and did 3 - 5 reps. Once he got to 500+ he did one rep per set. He did no stretching, mobility, massage work of any type - only squats. His final sets were 826 lb, 903 lb, 956 lb, and 1014 lb. He completed this entire task in about 30 minutes from his first warm-up squat until the 1014!

His explosion out of the hole was amazing and I mean amazing. What power and control! His walk out, yes walk out - no mono lift - was incredible as well. I remember (I was there) how much Lee Moran's body shook when he walked out with 1003 lb at the 1984 Senior Nationals. See below.

The rack Ray used was too narrow for him so he had to take 4 steps ( 2 per leg) to get behind the rack so he could take the last 2 steps to get his proper width.

During the Q and A he stated that he was a "meat and potatoes guy" and took "lots of pre-workout" supplement. He used only ice baths, no other regular "care." He has had injuries and has worked through those with "lighter weights" and "form" work. He trains alone.

He couldn't have been more friendly and soft spoken. Wow! Just WOW! If you have the opportunity to see him, go! Thank you https://www.facebook.com/RayWilliams86/.

And thank you Chance Dean for telling and accompanying me!