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The world of bodybuilding came undone with Nick Walker winning the biggest title in the world. Nobody ever saw this coming. I must admit, I didn’t see it coming. I had my predictions and he was not in them. He was in the top six possibly but I was even debating that. I must be honest with you when I saw him take the stage at the prejudging of my jaw dropped. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. It seemed as if everything that I thought suddenly turned on its head. There was a competitor who I always complained about having a very blocky look, totally transforming his physique. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not going to become a Nick Walker bandwagon fan. I’ve never been a bandwagon fan for any competitor and I’m not about to start now. But I’ve got to give the guy his flowers because I’ve been probably one of the most critical writers in the scene for God knows how long. I have always been critical of competitors like this because I have a genuine dislike for mass monsters. I don’t think that they represent the values of bodybuilding. In other words, I don’t think that they have the aesthetics or the flow or the symmetry that is inline with the Golden Era of the sport. I think that bodybuilding should be a sport about art and presenting a physique that looks like that of a statue. The statue, like that of the Sandow. Eugene Sandow was not a mass monster. He didn’t walk around looking like he had a roll of carpet under each arm. He didn’t huff and puff. He was an aesthetic wizard. He was like a Robbie Robinson or Bob Paris, but not this. This, however, is what wins. Nick Walker brought it. How am I going to take that away from him?
It’s kind of like Branch Warren and Jay Cutler. These guys were also not aesthetically pleasing in my estimation, but they worked with what they had. And you have to really respect that. Because at the end of the day, bodybuilding is a sport about overcoming adversity. You have people that have lost a hundred pounds, you have people that have given up unhealthy lifestyles, you even people that have defeated what would otherwise be known as terminal illnesses. I have met people with stage 4 renal failure that are somehow alive 10 or 20 years later and it’s all because of weight training and sensible eating. A lot of them are even actively competing or promoting shows. And if you don’t believe me I can give you names. If I’m lying, I’m dying. I’m very serious when it comes to what I have seen over the 20 years covering physique-based sports. Bodybuilding is that powerful. It is all about being the best you. And like I said, it’s about working with what you have. Nick Walker didn’t have the body of a “Sugar” Shawn Ray, but he had the heart of a Jay Cutler. and he has been able to improve his physique over the course of I would say at least the last four years.
I think taking second place at this year’s Arnold Classic really emboldened Nick. I think it pissed them off. I don’t think he wanted to lose to Andrew and I don’t think that he thought he should have lost, either, but instead of whining or having a temper tantrum or going on any number of shows and accusing the Federation of politics or favoritism, he did the business of bodybuilding. He got himself in the gym, he got himself with a coach that he liked more, and he just did what needed to be done.
This is why when Nick took the stage, I literally couldn’t believe what I was seeing. Smaller waist, tight midsection, and condition beyond belief. Honestly, Nick and Derek were the most conditioned guys on that stage. And it doesn’t matter if you like them or you don’t like them. Facts or facts. I mean bodybuilding is a subjective sport but it’s also objective in some regards. I mean you have to be blind not to see that Nick was very conditioned and so was Derek. The thing is Nick was firing on all cylinders and Derek was not. Even Derek said that he was off. When Tony Dougherty was interviewing him backstage, Tony thought that Derek looked his best, but Derek corrected him. His muscles just were not firing at full throttle. But even still Derek looked phenomenal, as did Samson, as did Tonio. Andrew was a little bit off but overall, they were all giving their best and Nick Walker won. And this last piece is very important because I believe that Nick put special emphasis on it.
READ MORE:
Nick Walker Wins The 2026 Olympia – IronMag Bodybuilding & Fitness Blog
www.ironmagazine.com