The stakes couldn’t be higher at the 2025 Mr. Olympia — cash prizes, history, and bragging rights are all on the line. On October 2, 2025, bodybuilding veteran Jose Raymond revealed his top six Open Bodybuilding picks just days before the event kicks off.
The 61st Joe Weider’s Olympia Fitness & Performance Weekend is nearly here. Competitors across 11 IFBB Pro divisions will gather next week, from October 9–12 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Atop the event sits the headlining Men’s Open class.
At the 2024 Mr. Olympia, Samson Dauda shocked the world, defeating former titleholders Hadi Choopan and Derek Lunsford for gold. This year’s lineup is one of the strongest we’ve seen. Fans are thrilled to welcome Nick Walker back to the stage. He missed the last two Mr. Olympias, once due to injury, and again in 2024 after his body stopped responding to prep.
Walker faced setbacks en route to qualifying. He lost in an extremely close battle against Lunsford at the Pittsburgh Pro. To ensure he finally made it back to Olympia, “The Mutant” dominated the New York Pro for a third time. No one has forgotten about Andrew Jacked either; he qualified following a statement victory at the 2025 FIBO Championships.
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If Dauda wants to pull off a successful title defense, he’ll have to get past a number of contenders, including some high-profile debutants.
Ugolnikov “Good Vito” Vitalii, Rubiel Mosquera, Brett Wilkin, and Classic star-turned Open Pro, Urs Kalecinski, are all set to compete at their first Mr. Olympia contest. With over 20 Men’s Open competitors battling it out, Raymond laid out how he sees the competition unfolding.
Jose Raymond’s Top 6 Picks for the 2025 Mr. Olympia
Find his picks from the video below:
- Winner — Derek Lunsford
- Second Place — Samson Dauda
- Third Place — Nick Walker
- Fourth Place — Hadi Choopan
- Fifth Place — Andrew Jacked
- Sixth Place — Ugolnikov “Good Vito” Vitalii
Predictions have been all over the place in the lead-up to the Mr. Olympia. Former eight-time champs Lee Haney and Ronnie Coleman have both backed Choopan to win. “The King” even suggested that Dauda would drop down to fourth place when the dust settles.
Bodybuilding legend Jay Cutler wouldn’t give concrete picks, but he did break down the top contenders. Even though he believes Dauda has the best physique of anyone in this era, he argued that Lunsford is actually in the best position to win the competition, especially if his legs match his powerful back.
Don’t miss the 2025 Mr. Olympia contest next weekend. Fitness Volt will have live coverage of the action!
RELATED: 2025 Mr. Olympia Men’s Open Bodybuilding Preview
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