Jon Delarosa and his family are facing death threats following his big win at the 2024 Tampa Pro. On August 4, 2024, he responded to these hateful comments on Instagram, pleading with fans to keep his loved ones out of it. In addition, Derek Lunsford issued a statement on the matter on Instagram stories after watching the event live.
The annual Tampa Pro saw 10 athletes emerge with gold at their prestigious event over the weekend. Among the champions crowned was Jon Delarosa, who triumphed over an imposing Men’s Open lineup that included second-place finisher Mohamed Foda, Jordan Hutchinson, and Vladyslav Sukhoruchko.
Just a day after earning his qualification for 2024 Mr. Olympia, Delarosa announced that death threats were leveled against him and his family. Various fans on YouTube and Instagram have suggested that Delarosa’s win was a robbery, which has only added fuel to that fire.
Fans Threaten Bodybuilder Jon Delarosa’s Life After 2024 Tampa Pro Win, Derek Lunsford Weighs In
According to Delarosa, these threats began to pile up shortly after his victory at the 2024 Tampa Pro, where he defeated Mohamed Foda on the scorecards by a total of 11 points.
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“I’ve been getting death threats and all kinds of crazy sh*t on my Instagram. I know some of you are big fans of Mohamed. I’m a fan of Mohamed. He has a great physique.
I think some things go a little too far. I understand the passion from the fans behind what we do and I appreciate it but death threats, guys? Come on.”
Some fans online have suggested that Delarosa only won the show because Foda already qualified for Olympia thanks to his recent win at the 2024 Chicago Pro. They claimed that Olympia was playing ‘politics’ so more athletes would have the right to compete at the biggest event of the year. However, Delarosa disagreed with that notion.
“There’s no political motive for the judges to give me a win. Let’s look at this. What do the judges get for giving me the win? Do they make money? Do they get some sort of compensation? I don’t sell extra tickets. I’m not a Ramy or Chris Bumstead where it’s going to make a difference in ticket sales for them,” Delarosa shared.
Delarosa also explained that not only did he receive death threats, but his loved ones did as well.
“Another thing I want to talk about is keeping my loved ones out of this. My wife has nothing to do with it…Again, we should just have a little bit more class and respect.”
Derek Lunsford, the reigning Mr. Olympia champion, believes Delarosa’s conditioning won him gold in Tampa fair and square.
“All in all what I saw was that the judges did absolutely get it right. I can see from pictures and videos and things like that online that maybe you could draw up a different perspective but actually being at the show tells the tale. I was there front row and it was pretty obvious to me that Jon’s conditioning is what won him the show.”
“I think you can definitely make an argument for Mohamed Foda coming in second that maybe he was really challenging Jon but all in all, this is the same thing I actually told Mohamed in person yesterday,” said Derek Lunsford.
As for the hateful comments, Lunsford could relate to Delarosa, having suffered a similar fate after narrowly besting Hadi Choopan at the 2023 Olympia. He and his family also received death threats after the victory.
“I also have heard that there were some comments by some fans that were hateful comments. I’ve experienced this myself winning the Olympia last year, I still get hateful comments and it’s just not right. Guys look, we have our favorite bodybuilders that we like to support, we want to see them win, and we think sometimes oh they should have won but they didn’t, that’s why I started off by saying I saw it first hand that Jon was the clear-cut winner.”
While he admits Mohamed Foda could have won, Lunsford described Delarosa as the ‘rightful champion,’ stressing that threats to him or his family are uncalled for.
“Could Mohamed have won? Sure. But I think again, if he would have came in a little bit better he could have won the show but that day, Jon was the rightful champion.
The hateful comments whether it be towards athletes, competitors, or whether it be family members, spouse or whatever, it’s just uncalled for guys.”
Although this was easily one of Jon Delarosa’s most impressive wins of his career, it’s been marred by controversy. Fortunately for fans of Delarosa and Foda, both men have qualified for Olympia, meaning they will run it back this October under the bright lights. Do you think Jon Delarosa won the 2024 Tampa Pro soundly or should Foda have walked away victorious?
RELATED: 2024 Mr. Olympia List of Qualified Athletes and Rules
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