Speculation is brewing over who will jump into the 2026 Arnold Classic. In a recent YouTube video on Oct. 26, 2025, Bob Cicherillo and Shawn Ray made their case for why Samson Dauda and Nick Walker should wait before competing again.
The Mr. Olympia in Las Vegas, NV, delivered stunning upsets and shocking defeats. Although Samson Dauda stormed the stage as the reigning champion, pursuing his all-time best conditioning backfired. His back thickness suffered, and his legs appeared down in size, which bodybuilding veterans noticed in the show’s aftermath. As a result, “The Nigerian Lion” was bumped off the podium in fourth place.
The night did not go according to plan for favorite Nick Walker either. He mistimed his peak and lacked the sharpness that was on display when he battled Derek Lunsford during his runner-up showing at the Pittsburgh Pro.
Walker ultimately took sixth place, his worst Olympia performance to date. While we don’t have an official competitors list for the upcoming Arnold Classic, Cicherillo and Ray detailed who should give it a shot and who should sit it out.
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Bob Cicherillo, Shawn Ray Argue Samson Dauda and Nick Walker Should Skip 2026 Arnold Classic
In the video, Ray suggested Keone Pearson enter the 2026 Arnold Classic.
“If you’re going to go in next year’s Open, you might as well go in that one [the Arnold Classic] first. All the guys in the Olympia have done the Arnold Classic. Derek, Hadi, Samson, and still have done very well at the Olympia. I say go for it, Keone, regardless of what happens,” said Ray.
As for possible entries, Cicherillo pointed to Martin Fitzwater, who is fresh off defending his title against Dauda at the 2025 Prague Pro. Chris Aceto also confirmed Andrew Jacked will compete in Ohio.
“Potentials, you’ve got to count on Fitzwater. He has to go to the Arnold, I would think. He’s got a legitimate shot; he’s a contender. Andrew Jacked has already said he’s going in. I haven’t heard from Camp Hadi yet, but again, if I’m him off a loss at the Olympia and a lot of fanfare out there, a lot of groundswell for him and his cause.”
“Then you’ve got new guys like Mo Foda, I know he’s going to be in there or at least looking to get an invite. Then there’s two big question marks in my mind. Samson himself,” shared Cicherillo.
Ray urged Dauda to ‘shut it down’ and skip the 2026 Arnold Classic.
“There’s nothing to gain at the Arnold. He’s a big guy. He needs to shut it down and do like Ronnie Coleman and Dorian Yates and even myself, and wait for next year’s Mr. Olympia.”
As for Walker, Cicherillo believes he should target the last two qualifiers before the 2026 Mr. Olympia. This route will ensure he has enough test runs before the biggest event of the season.
“The other name that came to my mind, was of course, Nick Walker. Obviously, Nick, not his best finish at the Olympia but he’s got to requalify now. Now, what do you do? If I was running Nick’s camp, I’d be changing around the mentality of qualification and what it does for your psyche, your body, all that.”
I would be targeting the last show or two right before the Olympia if I were Nick. I’d be hitting whatever the two last shows are. Put your hat in that ring. Now, you got two or three or four weeks at most to ride into the Olympia, which is easy.”
He explains that the problem with Walker competing at the Arnold Classic is that if he doesn’t win, he’ll still need to qualify for Olympia, putting him in a similar position to 2024 and 2025.
“The problem with the early show, let’s just say he goes in the Arnold, doesn’t win it, okay, now you got the whole summer, then you got May, so now okay, I got to requalify, so I’m going to hit the New York Pro again.”
“Now you got that June, July, August, September type of thing going on. I don’t think that helps his cause that much, honestly. My advice, get your body where you need to get it and hit the last qualifier of the year.”
Walker will be tasked with another challenging year in the sport. His former coach Kyle Wilkes revealed that they stopped working together following a ‘cold’ phone call. Wilkes went on to share that Walker didn’t even like the look he presented in Pittsburgh.
Soon, the guessing game will end, and we’ll know exactly who is in for the 2026 Arnold Classic. Walker or Dauda have yet to confirm their entries, but that could change in time.
Watch the full video from the VOB Media YouTube channel below:
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