Reaching the pinnacle of the sport once is difficult enough, but retaining that spot is even more challenging. Taking to YouTube on November 10, 2024, bodybuilding veteran Shawn Ray expressed doubt about Derek Lunsford and Hadi Choopan’s chances of winning back the Mr. Olympia title. In addition, he was critical of Chris Bumstead’s mindset for the 2024 Prague Pro after admitting he doesn’t think he can win.
The 2024 Mr. Olympia sent shockwaves through the sport. Ultimately, Samson Dauda emerged victorious, having finally shored up his conditioning levels to be comparable with frontrunners Hadi Choopan and Derek Lunsford. Meanwhile, in Classic Physique, Chris Bumstead claimed his sixth consecutive Olympia title before announcing his retirement.
The decision to step away from the sport was short-lived for the Canadian champion. He revealed that he’d be participating in the upcoming 2024 EVLS Prague Pro in the Open class, leaving the bodybuilding community highly curious about his chances. With the Open landscape changing at a breakneck pace, Shawn Ray opened up on where the sport is headed in the final quarter of 2024.
Shawn Ray Doubts Derek Lunsford & Hadi Choopan Can Win Back Mr. Olympia, Critical of Chris Bumstead Doing Prague ‘For Fun’
First, Ray reiterated why he told Samson Dauda to retire following his 2024 Mr. Olympia victory.
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“Samson can go out there and set himself up for life after. Preserve his health. Preserve injury and be a great ambassador and make that transfer into, 40 is going to be right around the corner. Or he could come back and run the risk of losing it.”
As history has told us, it’s exceedingly difficult to win back the Mr. Olympia title. Ray contends that this certainly applies to former champions Derek Lunsford and Hadi Choopan.
“Sometimes when you lose it, you can never get it back. Right now, I guarantee it, Derek and Hadi are both wondering, are they ever going to get it back again? Dexter Jackson never did. He won it in 2008, beat the defending champion Jay Cutler, and never got it back.”
He explained that Dexter Jackson never won back the honor after more than 10 years of competing, and says there’s never a ‘right time’ to stop in the sport.
“He competed from 2008 up until 2021 chasing that. My logic is you’ve won the highest show there is in the land, you’re 38 years old, you got to find your way off the stage. It’s never going to be the right time. It’s hard to leave on top and only one person ever did that. He was 31 years old and that was Lee Haney. That’s the hardest thing to do is to leave on top.”
Ronnie Coleman didn’t leave on top. Ronnie Coleman left and put himself in harm’s way. I don’t want to see that happen to Samson,” he adds. “The longer you do it, the only thing waiting for you is injury.”
Ray was critical of Chris Bumstead trying out Prague ‘for fun,’ and thought his mindset was more success-driven. This comes after Bumstead admitted that he thought he wouldn’t win the Prague Pro.
“He made a post that he’s just doing it to have fun. You don’t do bodybuilding to have fun, not with professionals.
This kid that we’re talking about that was in fourth, fourth in the Olympia [Martin Fitzwater],” says Ray. “He’s a real bodybuilder and he’s a legitimate threat to win that title. Chris made a comment that he just wants to have fun, he wants to experience it. I didn’t think he had that mindset. I thought if he’s going to Prague, he’s all-in.”
Should ‘Cbum’ win in Prague and take his physique to Olympia, he would prompt the judges to decide on what an Open Olympia champion should look like, says Ray.
“He’s opening the door of possibility that if he wins in Prague and qualifies for the Olympia in ’25, maybe that’s the storybook ending where he’s going to listen to what I’ve been saying the last three years I’ve been saying it. Stand him next to the champion, make the judges make the tough decision of whether or not they want to change the look of what Mr. Olympia looks like.”
Shawn Ray isn’t the only bodybuilder to give his thoughts on Chris Bumstead’s jump into the Open shark tank. Recently, Nick ‘The Mutant’ Walker tackled the issue. Even though Bumstead is coming from Classic Physique, he says he has a legitimate shot at winning gold in Prague.
Whether he intends to enter the show for fun or not, fans are overjoyed to witness Bumstead attempt an Open show. Don’t miss his performance from November 16-17 in the Czech Republic. Fitness Volt will have live coverage of the event.
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