Jay Cutler is breaking down the top Men’s Open competitors set to clash at the 2026 Mr. Olympia. In a September 10 video, he revealed Derek Lunsford’s huge advantage and laid out how Andrew Jacked and Nick Walker can win the contest.
In less than two weeks, the ‘Super Bowl of Bodybuilding‘ takes over the industry. A crop of the world’s best Men’s Open contenders stand out as frontrunners. Derek Lunsford helms the division as a two-time reigning champion. He proved he could win back the title in 2025 after dropping the Sandow trophy to Samson Dauda a year prior.
Dauda aims to recapture Olympia gold; he spent a long off-season building muscle to present a stronger package onstage. Fellow Nigerian athlete Andrew Jacked (Chinedu Andrew Obiekea) cemented himself as a top threat after winning the recent 2026 Arnold Classic Ohio and UK events.
Nick Walker just won the Tampa Pro, so he’s heading into Vegas with real momentum. While Cutler didn’t offer concrete predictions, he weighed in on the chances for the biggest stars in the Men’s Open.
Jay Cutler Breaks Down the 2026 Mr. Olympia, Reveals Derek Lunsford’s ‘Huge Advantage’
In the video, Cutler shared that Lunsford’s width gives him a significant edge at the 2026 Olympia.
“He’s improved, so what you’re seeing here last year, there’s improvement there, especially in the legs. We talk about all eyes on the champion. For some reason, your eyes are really drawn to Derek. He’s got a good polish to him.”
“His age plays a huge difference in that. The way the muscle looks when you’re in your early 30s and you’re maturing, and you’re at that level, I mean, the kid has a lot of mass. He’s very wide. That’s what gives him a huge advantage at the Olympia: his width.”
He called Dauda’s decision to step away for a year a smart move:
“Samson sitting out the whole year, I think this is a genius move. He just let his body just revert back, let the muscle settle in,” shared Cutler. “You have so much muscle, it burns that many more calories, and you can lean out that much quicker.”
When the discussion shifted to Jacked, Cutler was adamant that his posing and muscle maturity were the two issues that needed attention most.
“Perfect posing, tweaking a few things. He showed it at these Arnold Classics. He was tremendous in Ohio.”
“We’ve always waited for him to reach full maturity, and really kind of peak as far as the density versus the conditioning factor. I think that he’s close now. I feel like another few months of muscle just kind of sitting, maturing a little more, I think we’re finally going to see the density and not, oh, he looks a little thin in these poses.”
Looking at Nick Walker, Cutler urged him to show in Vegas as he did in Tampa.
“Nick has improved a lot,” said Cutler. “He seems to be very comfortable with his principles of dialing in, at the point. We’ve seen him bounce with some different advisement. He needs to come in similar to like he did in Tampa.”
He believes that with round muscle tissue, “The Mutant” can offset his shape disadvantage:
“He needs the round muscle tissue to offset where he might get the disadvantage against a lot of shape guys. Although, I feel like Nick, in a lot of poses, when he hits the poses, he’s pretty unbeatable in a lot of the poses.”
Though Cutler suggested Jacked needs a few more months to marinate muscle, some bodybuilders like his chances looking ahead. Branch Warren, a 2000s Men’s Open star, recently predicted Jacked to win the 2026 Mr. Olympia.
Less than two weeks are left until the 2026 Mr. Olympia. The event’s livestream is free and takes place from September 24-27 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
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