Chris Cormier, Terrick El Guindy on Hadi Choopan: ‘This Guy’s Stakes Are Higher Than Just Winning a Title’

With the 2023 Olympia contest slated for November, fans and veterans are taking a closer look at the Men’s Open landscape. In a recent Prime Time Muscle podcast, Chris Cormier and Terrick El Guindy argued that Hadi Choopan’s consistent conditioning and posing endurance will lead him to another Sandow trophy.   

“He’s [Choopan] been etched in for a long time. He’s been one of the greatest conditioned guys we had in the sport and the most I would say… consistent at it in the last five years,” Chris Cormier said. 

Over the last few months, the Open class saw plenty of upsets and curve balls take place on the stages of the Olympia and the Arnold Classic. Last December, Choopan was crowned the first Iranian-born Mr. Olympia and while Mamdouh ‘Big Ramy’ Elssbiay entered as the favorite, the Egyptian native was not only dethroned but placed fifth. The podium also saw Derek Lunsford in second and Nick Walker finish third. 

Choopan received a hero’s welcome in his native country with other competitors setting their sights on the 2023 Arnold Classic. Once again, the on-paper favorite failed to come out on top. Nick Walker finished second with Samson Dauda claiming gold thanks to his balanced and aesthetic physique. 

In a previous Prime Time Musclce appearance, Cormier praised Nick Walker’s work ethic and predicted ‘The Mutant’ would become an eventual Mr. Olympia winner. Conversely, when Terrick El Guindy examined Walker’s freaky physique, he suggested the beautiful builds of Andrew Jacked and Rafael Brandao will prove to be a problem. In their latest undertaking, Cormier and El Guindy explained why Choopan is likely to retain his title later this year despite a growing number of threats. 

Chris Cormier, El Guindy on Hadi Choopan’s Pressure to Defend Mr. Olympia Title: “He’s Representing his Country” 

According to Olympia judge El Guindy, Choopan has gained size and said it will be challenging for Derek Lunsford to catch up to his muscle maturity. 

“He gained size. He’s also had the muscle maturity – people talk about Derek Lunsford – he’s going to get muscle maturity. I had a live with Derek Lunsford, I said, ‘What do you think, you’re going to be working out for a whole year and Hadi Choopan is just going to stop?’ You know what I mean” Terrick El Guindy said. 

Cormier acknowledged that Choopan is one of the hardest workers in the league and El Guindy mentioned that Hadi poses more efficiently than anyone. 

“Here’s the thing. Hadi is one of the hardest-working guys that you ever want to see in the gym. He was back in the gym soon after the competition was over,” said Chris Cormier. 

“He’s going to have even better muscle maturity,” replied Terrick El Guindy. “He’s going to be even better. He’s the one that hits the poses better than anybody. He’s not going to unlearn that stuff, he’s going to be even better.” 

Looking at a twisted back double biceps pose, Cormier advised Choopan to fully extend the bottom of his lat. He believes Choopan is likely to become a two-time Mr. Olympia if he continues to make improvements at the pace he’s going.  

“That three-quarter back [pose] he just did – that right there – so he never really utilizes this bottom lat, that should be fully extended. That’s going to give – that’s going to if this is extended, that is going to make this physique so much more impressive. I would spend time in that shot; he didn’t spend much time even in that shot to even make the best of it. You want to show all your different strengths, and that would have been a great strength for him,” shared Cormier. 

“So, I mean, yeah, it’s going to be hard for him to lose that title if he just keeps doing what he’s doing and keeps improving in the years to come. This wasn’t even the hardest he’s been. So, we know, that he’s capable of coming way harder than this.” 

Given his experience judging physiques, El Guindy shared that bodybuilders tend to peak in their late 30s. 

“Around your early 30s to your late 30s you’re probably peaking in bodybuilding. In your late 30s then injuries… you might be prone to injuries, and then in your late 20s you still don’t have the muscle maturity. Obviously, it depends on how long the person [has been training],” explains El Guindy. 

El Guindy stressed that Choopan is carrying the weight of Iran on his shoulders in each Mr. Olympia appearance. He predicted that Choopan will exceed expectations in Orlando, Florida for his upcoming title defense. 

“When people start talking about Hadi, then you know – the tendency is to talk about Nick Walker and Derek Lunsford because we just love those young guys All-Americans — stop right now, this is the Mr. Olympia, this is the best bodybuilder in the world; this is the guy that years before he won the Mr. Olympia, we were bragging about his conditioning.

This is the guy that has a statue in his country. This is the guy whose stakes are higher than just winning a title. He’s representing his country. This is the Persian Wolf. Anybody that thinks he’s a one-and-done and thinks he’s going to go away quietly is pretty dumb.” 

In light of Samson Dauda’s victory at the Arnold Classic, fans and notable voices in the bodybuilding community have dubbed him a 2023 Olympia favorite. Bob Cicherillo, a commentator and IFBB athletes rep, believes Dauda and Derek Lunsford are now equal threats to Choopan’s title when they step on stage again. 

RELATED: Flex Wheeler on Hadi Choopan Beating Derek Lunsford: ‘Olympias Aren’t Won From The Back Anymore’

Fans are counting down the days until the next Mr. Olympia competition. Considering Choopan’s latest off-season physique update, he appears to be rebounding nicely following the biggest win of his career.

You can watch the full video below, courtesy of the Olympia TV YouTube channel: 

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