The 2025 Arnold Classic is approaching fast, prompting Bob Cicherillo to take a closer look at the top contenders heading to the event. On February 18, 2025, Cicherillo joined Jay Cutler to discuss how Dauda could win his second Arnold Classic title. In addition, he explained why he doesn’t believe Nick Walker will win the Mr. Olympia.
Samson Dauda has acquired unstoppable momentum over the last bodybuilding season. Before making his way to the biggest show of the year, he enjoyed a test run at the Tsunami Pro show, winning it handily. This tactical move allowed him to shine on the 2024 Mr. Olympia stage when the pressure was at its highest. He claimed the Sandow trophy in a hard-fought battle against Hadi Choopan and Derek Lunsford.
When Lunsford and Choopan were Mr. Olympias, they chose to sit out of contests until their title defenses. However, that hasn’t been the case for Dauda. Instead of taking time off, he jumped into the upcoming 2025 Arnold Classic, scheduled for February 27 to March 1 in Columbus, Ohio.
Bob Cicherillo Says Nick Walker Won’t Win Mr. Olympia, Believes Samson Dauda’s ‘Fate Is In His Hands’ at 2025 Arnold Classic
In a recent YouTube video, Cicherillo explained why Dauda’s fate rests in his hands, sharing that at 100 percent, he beats anybody.
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“I’ve been picking Samson for years. I’ve been saying for three years now since he emerged, his fate is in his hands only. If he comes in 100 percent he wins. He’s got a better body, right?
He’s taller, he’s wider, he’s got better shape, symmetry, proportions. He had to improve a couple like everybody but the only problem he had was I called him coming in the 90 percentile of conditioning, which is good but there’s always going to be two or three guys ahead of you.”
Even at 95 percent, Cicherillo claims Dauda is ahead of his rivals and doesn’t believe he needs Branch Warren-level conditioning.
“I said if he ever shows up at 95, he doesn’t have to be 100 percent, just 95 percent, he doesn’t have to be the most ripped guy on stage, he doesn’t have to be a Branch Warren out there.”
“Just get to 95 percent and you will win the Olympia and he did. He got to 95, listen, could he have been a little sharper? Yes. But this isn’t a sharpness competition.”
Cicherillo adds that Andrew Jacked could defeat Derek Lunsford in Ohio if he looks similar to what he brought in Texas last year.
“If Andrew Jacked shows up at this Arnold as good as he looked in Texas or a little bit better, he could push Samson, which means I think he can beat Derek,” shares Cicherillo. “Talk about the future. He’s wide, he’s big, he ain’t missing anything really. He was a little thin in the legs before but those have grown now. He ain’t missing nothing.”
Given the similarities in their physiques, Cicherillo contends that the Arnold could come down to a match-up between Jacked and Dauda.
“Him and Samson match up very well. It’s Derek that’s the odd man out in terms of size and all that kind of stuff. I can see, and again, it all rests in Andrew Jacked’s hands, if he shows up 100 percent, if Samson shows up at 95 percentile, I could absolutely see those two going toe-to-toe,” he shared.
In Cicherillo’s opinion, he doesn’t believe Nick Walker has the assets to win the Mr. Olympia title.
“No [he couldn’t win the Olympia]. I’ve got to shoot that right down. I shouldn’t say — listen, anything is possible,” he shared. “You’d have four people who would have to come in at their all-time worst.”
He believes Walker reaching 300 pounds and beyond won’t work in his favor.
“He’s not going in the right direction. I didn’t like what I just saw, he just put out some proclamation he got to 306 and I’m thinking why would you get anywhere past — you didn’t lose your last show because you weren’t big enough.”
The top two finishers at the 2025 Arnold Classic will tell fans a lot. It will set the table for another historic Mr. Olympia contest from October 9-12 when the prestigious show returns to Las Vegas, Nevada at the Resorts World venue.
Watch the full video from the Cutler Cast YouTube channel below:
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