Nick Walker is the new Mr. Olympia champion, prompting Bob Cicherillo and Shawn Ray to discuss what’s next for his bodybuilding career. In a September 30 video, Cicherillo and Ray explained why it’s a mistake for “The Mutant” to jump into the 2027 Arnold Classic.
Las Vegas, Nevada witnessed history in September. Nick Walker defied the odds to become only the 20th Mr. Olympia champion in the sport’s history. The weekend was action-packed with plenty of contenders staking their claim in the Men’s Open class. Samson Dauda improved for the finals but couldn’t make up the ground he lost during prejudging.
Despite picking up the biggest win of his career, Walker plans to make a quick turnaround. Immediately after hoisting the Sandow trophy into the air, he revealed plans to compete at the 2027 Arnold Classic. Having finished a close runner-up last year, Walker aims to take home another massive cash prize in just a few months.
Bob Cicherillo, Shawn Ray Talk Nick Walker’s Next Move & Sarah Villegas
In the video, Cicherillo shared that Dauda left the door open for Nick Walker to win the 2026 Mr. Olympia.
“You want to ease into Saturday night. So, people make mistakes. Samson made a mistake. He left the door open. When you make a mistake, as great as Samson is, he doesn’t have to be mad that Nick Walker beat him. He should be mad because anybody could have beaten him. When you’re off, you’re off, and it doesn’t matter who you lose to at that point.”
“Samson has nothing to hold his head down because it is about timing. Listen, Nick Walker missed two Olympias, one to being injured and one from self-inflicted damage, and he sat on the sidelines and had to take it like a man. Samson is the number two bodybuilder on the planet today.”
He emphasized that ‘timing is everything,’ and that Dauda’s career is far from over.
“Timing is everything. It’s a game of inches. This guy is not done. He’s north of 40, and he just vanquished Andrew Jacked, who’s my bodybuilder of the year.”
According to Cicherillo and Ray, it’d be a bad move for Walker to compete at the Arnold Classic.
“Unfortunately, with the good comes the bad, Shawn. Nick has already thrown his hat into the ring of the Arnold. I can see that head shaking already. You know where I’m going. Him and Andrew Jacked, allegedly, I heard this, but I take it as fact, they are going to do the Arnold. Now, I am not in support of this at all.”
“Why do I think this is a bad move? Rewind it one year, bingo. Samson Dauda,” Cicherillo shared. “Is it a good move? Yeah, there’s big money on the line; we get it. But as the incumbent champ, I am not in favor of this again, for Nick. Nick don’t go to the Arnold.”
“He’s not that dominant. All these guys have beaten him,” adds Cicherillo.
‘The Voice of Bodybuilding’ added that losing the Arnold Classic would erase Walker’s momentum.
“Even though it’s a different show, listen, it’s still the Arnold. It’s still the number one qualifier we have. It’s the second biggest show on this earth. If you lose the Arnold, yes, technically you’re still Mr. Olympia, but whatever groundswell you had, whatever momentum you had, like Samson did, comes to a screeching halt because now you’re not going in as the champion.”
They also gave their thoughts on former Women’s Physique Olympia Sarah Villegas coming up short in Vegas.
“That ship has sailed for Sarah. She should really take her act to the WWE because she’s a real bad guy, and let her go be the bad guy in some other federation,” Ray said.
“I’m still going to stick with what we said: start your own federation, do 10,000 tests, MRIs—you can be the champ in your own federation for the next 20 years, and you guys can hold your fist high. All you got was a shameful end to what should have been a stellar career, but nobody is talking about that, and nobody will,” said Cicherillo.
In addition to Walker, Andrew Jacked (Chinedu Andrew Obiekea) has announced his entry for the upcoming 2027 Arnold Classic. He defeated Walker for a huge $750,000 cash prize last year, setting the table for another intense showdown.
Time will tell if competing at the Arnold Classic works against Nick Walker. The prestigious event is set for March 4-7 in Columbus, Ohio.
