Heading into the 2023 Arnold Classic, all eyes have been on Nick Walker. After coming in third on the 2022 Mr. Olympia simply months earlier, “The Mutant” was the presumptive favorite amongst bodybuilding analysts.
However Walker didn’t depart Columbus, OH, because the champ on March 4 — as a substitute, the judges awarded that honor to Samson Dauda, who had positioned sixth on the 2022 Mr. Olympia. This left Walker within the runner-up spot and Andrew Jacked in third place.
On March 14, 2023, Walker took to his Mutant & the Mouth podcast to speak about his Arnold expertise with co-host and former 212 competitor, Guy Cisternino. Watch the complete interview beneath.
[Related: 12 of the Biggest Men’s Bodybuilders of All Time]
Nick Walker on His Disappointing Arnold Basic End
As soon as the dialog received rolling, Walker stated he initially felt that Andrew Jacked had the very best probability of beating him, so when Jacked received referred to as for third place, Walker thought his victory was a certain factor.
However proper after Jacked’s putting was confirmed, the judges referred to as Walker’s title subsequent for runner-up. His response was a easy one: “I used to be identical to, ‘What the [email protected]$&?’”
Walker defined that his shock wasn’t out of disrespect for Dauda. As a substitute, it stemmed from the truth that Walker had won the Arnold Classic again in 2021, and if somebody goes to unseat a previous winner, he stated they should do it decisively.
[Related: 10 Memorable Performances From the Arnold Classic Bodybuilding Contest]
“When there’s a champ right here, you’ve received to take them out,” Walker stated. “Pay attention, Samson seemed unimaginable […] however he didn’t take me out.”
Cisternino agreed with Walker, saying: “I’ve all the time been underneath the idea that, with a purpose to take out a champion, you actually need to knock him out. And, you already know, I don’t suppose there was [sic] any actually knockout punches that have been thrown.”
Walker then revealed that he didn’t even wish to do the Arnold initially however agreed to it solely after they upped the prize money to $300,000. In the long run, going from the Olympia straight into Arnold prep proved extra taxing than he anticipated.
“I assumed it was gonna be a breeze, I actually did,” Walker stated of his Arnold prep. “[It] ended up being most likely one of many hardest preps I’ve ever performed in a brief period of time.”
Nick Walker’s 2023 Mr. Olympia Technique
Because the interview continued, the discuss veered towards the enhancements Walker hopes to make later this yr on the 2023 Mr. Olympia. His essential precedence in the mean time is to steadiness conditioning along with his signature dimension and form.
“[The goal] is to be much more peeled than I used to be on the Arnold however be certain that we’re [full],” Walker stated. “I’m a fan of conditioning; I’m a fan of graininess. And pay attention, I get that Samson has higher form than me, and that’s superb — he’s loads taller. However my form is there.”
The 2023 Olympia weekend takes place Nov. 2-5 from Miami, FL.
Extra Bodybuilding Information
Keep updated on the world of bodybuilding by trying out these tales from BarBend:
Picture Courtesy of the Arnold Sports activities Pageant
