The route to the 2024 Mr. Olympia’s 60th anniversary has been filled with roadblocks and unpredictable turns, leading Shawn Ray and Bob Cicherillo to break down the Open landscape. In a recent YouTube video shared on October 7, 2024, Ray and Cicherillo gave their opinion on Nick Walker’s sudden withdrawal from the Olympia contest. They also discussed how it might affect Hunter Labrada’s placing this weekend.
In 2023, Nick Walker was forced to bow out of the Mr. Olympia contest after sustaining a hamstring injury. He rallied back over the course of months, laying claim to a victory at the 2024 New York Pro. However, he ended up scraping by to pick up the big win after a close battle with surging breakout star Martin Fitzwater.
Those hoping to see Walker back on the Olympia stage were dealt a huge blow recently. ‘The Mutant’ decided to withdraw from the 2024 Mr. Olympia, with him and his coach indicating that his body wasn’t responding to the vigors of prep. Now that Walker is out of the equation, Ray and Cicherillo explained how that might pave the way for Hunter Labrada to turn in a shocking performance.
Shawn Ray, Bob Cicherillo Shed Light on Nick Walker’s 2024 Mr. Olympia Withdrawal, Discuss If Hunter Labrada Can Jump Placings
Shawn Ray suspects Walker decided to not compete at the 2024 Mr. Olympia a while ago, given that he ‘did not look like he was in Olympia preparation period.’
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“Chaos is never going to go away, right, responsibilities are never going to go away, relationships, injuries, sickness, bills, worry but when you let it penetrate your confidence a little bit, it’s like sand when water gets on sand it crumbles. What we saw in that video was a guy that did not look like he was in Olympia preparation period.”
“He didn’t look close. So he pulled the plug on that Olympia way before he made the announcement. To take away the idea that he did the right thing would be juvenile of me. He did the right thing. You don’t want a pilot going up in the air with you flying the plane and he’s got a nervous condition going on,” Ray shared.
He believes Walker compromised his confidence in New York, which might have nudged him to bow out of the prestigious show.
“Nick’s confidence was wavering. He pulled the plug. He had to make that inevitable announcement. He brought his trainer in there for which I would consider no good reason because we don’t want to hear from the trainer, we want to hear from the athlete.”
Cicherillo was critical of Walker because he had his coach, Matt Jansen, do most of the explaining for why he decided not to compete.
“The athlete needs to come out on his own. Make whatever statement you got to make and move on. The problem I got these days is what I’m seeing, is a lot of these so-called gurus or trainers whatever you want to call them whatever name you want to assign to them, they’ve also become managers, life managers, general managers, the athlete seems to go to them for everything,” said Bob Cicherillo.
He said the optics of the video were not flattering to Walker, physically or mentally.
“The biggest takeaway I took was this was not managed well. And I say this with all due respect to all parties. We don’t really know what their setup is.
I don’t know if Matt is just his trainer, just his guru, helps with prep, I don’t know, we’re just speculating, but why on God’s green earth would you put this video out that wasn’t the best looking video and did not cast Nick in a good light physically or mentally,” Cicherillo adds.
Ray added that Walker’s and Jansen’s statement on his withdrawal was more of an excuse, which could lead to unfounded rumors about his absence.
“You need to explain why he’s not responding. How many other bodybuilders are we now going to see in succession use the excuse that after I sign a contract in January, come October, my body is not responding so I’m pulling out.
That’s not an injury. That’s more of an excuse and Matt Jansen did his client no favors by saying that his body — what is the medical diagnosis of your body not responding? Is there a kidney issue or health scare? asks Ray.
With Walker out of the picture, they discussed how it could affect Hunter Labrada on the marquee stage, expressing concern about ‘where he fits in.’
“The reason I left Hunter out which was on purpose is I really don’t know where he fits in here. I don’t have him in the first callout, I don’t think by any stretch he’s in the top four. The question now becomes has the other guys caught up? I got to be honest. I was hoping to see a little bit better out of Italy when he competed and I didn’t see that,” shares Bob Cicherillo.
Looking ahead, Shawn Ray wouldn’t be surprised if Nigeria delivers a one-two punch with Samson Dauda and Andrew Jacked by securing the first and second-place positions.
“Don’t be surprised, do not be surprised if it’s a one-two punch from Nigeria. Samson and Andrew could be one and two and Derek and Hadi could be three and four and now that would just be a whole another scenario going into 2025.”
The 2024 Mr. Olympia lineup promises to deliver high-octane action. Derek Lunsford will look to become a two-time champion as well as his teammate, former Olympia titleholder, Hadi Choopan. However, the stature and size of Samson Dauda and Andrew Jacked could throw a wrench into their title-winning aspirations.
Although Nick Walker is out of the Mr. Olympia, that leaves room for other competitors like Hunter Labrada to make a jump in placings. Don’t miss the 2024 Mr. Olympia contest on October 11-12 in Las Vegas, Nevada as the organization celebrates its 60th anniversary.
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