Men's Open vs Classic Physique
Men's Open uses eight mandatory bodybuilding poses, cloth posing trunks, and a finals routine of up to three minutes. Classic Physique uses five mandatory poses, plain black trunks, a two-minute finals routine, and height-based weight caps. The published Men's Open page does not specify a division weight cap. Open splits scoring between judging and finals; Classic is scored in judging.
What Men's Open Bodybuilding and Men's Classic Physique are
Men's Open Bodybuilding is judged on the total package, meaning a balance of size, symmetry and muscularity across eight mandatory poses that include most muscular.
Men's Classic Physique is judged on the same balance of size, symmetry and muscularity as open bodybuilding, but within a height-based weight cap and across five mandatory poses that exclude most muscular.
Those wordings are the federation's own, read from NPC Worldwide Rules, access date 2026-08-20. Everything below sets the two published rule sets side by side: attire, posing, scoring, the height tables where they exist, and the champions each side has produced.
How the Men's Open Bodybuilding and Men's Classic Physique rules differ
One published rule at a time, Men's Open Bodybuilding on the left and Men's Classic Physique on the right. Where a cell says a rule is not specified, the federation's own page does not publish one and we leave the gap open.
| Rule | Men's Open Bodybuilding | Men's Classic Physique |
|---|---|---|
| Goal | Not specified in the published rule page. | Not specified in the published rule page. |
| Attire | Solid, non-distracting cloth posing trunks; shirtless and barefoot. Metallic, shiny rubberized material, padding, advertisements, and endorsements are prohibited. | Plain, opaque, solid-black matte Spandex trunks; shirtless and barefoot. Briefs, underwear, padding, and prohibited materials are not allowed. |
| Posing | Eight mandatory poses. Judging presentation is up to 60 seconds; the finals routine is up to three minutes, followed by a 60-second posedown. | Five mandatory poses, excluding most muscular. Judging presentation is up to 60 seconds; the finals routine is up to two minutes, followed by a 60-second posedown. |
| Judging | Quarter turns, mandatory poses, and callouts. Judging counts 50% and Finals count 50%. | Quarter turns, mandatory poses, and callouts. Judging counts 100%; finals callouts may replace the judging score as confirmation. |
| Caps and classes | Not specified in the published rule page. | Height-specific maximum weights apply. See the published table below. |
Men's Classic Physique weight caps by height
Men's Classic Physique caps competition weight by measured height. The other side of this comparison has no published height table, so its column stands empty rather than borrowing one.
| Height | Men's Open Bodybuilding max weight | Men's Classic Physique max weight |
|---|---|---|
| Up to and including 5'4" | Not specified in the published rule page. | 177 lb (80.3 kg) |
| Up to and including 5'5" | Not specified in the published rule page. | 182 lb (82.6 kg) |
| Up to and including 5'6" | Not specified in the published rule page. | 187 lb (84.8 kg) |
| Up to and including 5'7" | Not specified in the published rule page. | 192 lb (87.1 kg) |
| Up to and including 5'8" | Not specified in the published rule page. | 197 lb (89.4 kg) |
| Up to and including 5'9" | Not specified in the published rule page. | 204 lb (92.5 kg) |
| Up to and including 5'10" | Not specified in the published rule page. | 212 lb (96.2 kg) |
| Up to and including 5'11" | Not specified in the published rule page. | 219 lb (99.3 kg) |
| Up to and including 6'0" | Not specified in the published rule page. | 227 lb (103.0 kg) |
| Up to and including 6'1" | Not specified in the published rule page. | 234 lb (106.1 kg) |
| Up to and including 6'2" | Not specified in the published rule page. | 242 lb (109.8 kg) |
| Up to and including 6'3" | Not specified in the published rule page. | 249 lb (112.9 kg) |
| Up to and including 6'4" | Not specified in the published rule page. | 256 lb (116.1 kg) |
| Up to and including 6'5" | Not specified in the published rule page. | 263 lb (119.3 kg) |
| Up to and including 6'6" | Not specified in the published rule page. | 270 lb (122.5 kg) |
| Up to and including 6'7" | Not specified in the published rule page. | 277 lb (125.6 kg) |
| Over 6'7" | Not specified in the published rule page. | 284 lb (128.8 kg) |
Choosing between Men's Open Bodybuilding and Men's Classic Physique
These are the questions the published rules actually answer for each side, grouped so the two can be read against each other. None of it is a recommendation: no federation publishes advice on which division suits a competitor, and we do not invent one.
Men's Open Bodybuilding
- What poses are required in Men's Open Bodybuilding?
- Front double biceps, front lat spread, side chest, back double biceps, back lat spread, side triceps, abdominals and thighs, and most muscular.
- How long is the Men's Open posing routine?
- The judging presentation is limited to 60 seconds. The finals routine is limited to three minutes.
- How is Men's Open scored?
- Judging counts 50% of the score and Finals count 50%.
- Does Men's Open have a published weight cap?
- No. The IFBB Professional League rule page publishes no weight cap for Men's Open, so we do not state one. Classic Physique and Men's Physique are the only two divisions on that page with a published height and weight table.
Men's Classic Physique
- What poses are required in Classic Physique?
- Front double biceps, side chest, back double biceps, abdominals and thighs, and a favorite classic pose.
- Is the most muscular pose allowed in Classic Physique?
- No. The required favorite classic pose specifically excludes most muscular.
- What is the Classic Physique weight cap?
- The maximum weight depends on measured height. The official height-weight table is reproduced on this page.
- How long is the Classic Physique finals routine?
- The finals routine is limited to two minutes.
Recent Men's Open Bodybuilding and Men's Classic Physique Olympia champions
The five most recent Olympia champions we hold on record for each side. Rules say what a division asks for; the champion list shows who has been answering it.
Men's Open Bodybuilding Olympia
2021
Mamdouh Elssbiay
Egypt
2022
Hadi Choopan
Iran
2023
Derek Lunsford
United States
2024
Samson Dauda
United Kingdom
2025
Derek Lunsford
United States
View the full Men's Open Bodybuilding champion history
Men's Classic Physique Olympia
Sources for the Men's Open Bodybuilding and Men's Classic Physique rules
Every rule and cap on this page was read from the pages below on the dates shown. Nothing here is transcribed from a second-hand summary.
IFBB Professional League Rules. Version and access date: 2026-07-13.
Not published here: a typical winning size for either side. Champion height and contest-day weight are recorded together too rarely in this database to average honestly, and a general profile weight is not a stage weight.