Samson Dauda challenged his fellow competitors to pose down as the 2026 Olympia press conference came to a close
Samson Dauda, Andrew Jacked, and Nick Walker gave fans an early look at their physiques during an impromptu pose down at the 2026 Mr. Olympia press conference, while defending champion Derek Lunsford opted not to participate.
The 2026 Mr. Olympia has not even reached the stage yet, but Samson Dauda has already created one of the weekend’s biggest moments.
During Thursday’s Mr. Olympia press conference in Las Vegas, Dauda challenged his fellow Men’s Open competitors to stop talking, take off their shirts, and settle the debate with an impromptu pose down.
Andrew Jacked and Nick Walker accepted the challenge. The result was an unexpected side-by-side comparison between three of the biggest names competing for the Sandow Trophy, giving fans a rare opportunity to see their physiques just one day before Men’s Open prejudging.
One notable absence from the pose down was defending Mr. Olympia champion Derek Lunsford. Lunsford remained seated as Dauda, Jacked, and Walker stepped forward and displayed their physiques for the crowd.
With Men’s Open prejudging scheduled for Friday night, the moment immediately became one of the most talked-about scenes from the 2026 Olympia press conference.
[RELATED: Catch all the 2026 Mr. Olympia press conference action with the free video replay here]
Samson Dauda Starts the Pose Down
The moment began when Dauda essentially decided that words were no longer necessary. The 2024 Mr. Olympia champion called on his fellow competitors to join him for an impromptu pose down, challenging them to strip down and show what they were bringing into the 2026 Olympia.
It was a familiar move for Dauda.
At the 2024 Mr. Olympia press conference, Dauda also removed his shirt and spontaneously posed in front of the other competitors. Generation Iron covered the moment at the time, noting that Dauda was the only athlete who accepted the opportunity to physically show off his condition before prejudging.
There is an interesting piece of Olympia history attached to that moment. Dauda went on to win the 2024 Mr. Olympia the following weekend, defeating Hadi Choopan and Derek Lunsford to capture his first Sandow Trophy.
Now, two years later, Dauda has once again chosen the press conference as the setting to show off his physique before Olympia prejudging. The circumstances are obviously different. Dauda is no longer the reigning champion, having finished fourth at the 2025 Olympia as Lunsford reclaimed the title.
But the timing is remarkably similar. Just like in 2024, Dauda has given fans a glimpse of his physique approximately one day before the Men’s Open competitors are officially judged.
Andrew Jacked and Nick Walker Accept the Challenge
Samson Dauda was not alone for long. Andrew Jacked and Nick Walker stepped forward and joined the former champion for the impromptu comparison. That made the moment particularly significant because all three athletes enter the 2026 Olympia with very different physiques and very different storylines.
Jacked has arguably built the most momentum throughout the 2026 season. After finishing third at the 2025 Olympia, he won the 2026 Arnold Classic in Columbus before following it up with another victory at the Arnold Classic UK. Generation Iron previously reported that the Arnold Classic victory came against a field that included Walker and former Olympia champion Hadi Choopan.
Nick Walker, meanwhile, has also rebuilt momentum heading into Las Vegas. After finishing sixth at the 2025 Olympia, Walker returned to competition at the 2026 Arnold Classic and finished second behind Jacked. He later won the 2026 Tampa Pro to secure his Olympia qualification.
That means the three men standing next to one another were not simply three random competitors. They represented three of the most closely watched physiques heading into the 2026 Mr. Olympia.
And for the first time this weekend, fans could compare them directly.
Derek Lunsford Does Not Step Forward
Perhaps the most intriguing part of the moment was who did not participate. Derek Lunsford remained seated while Dauda, Jacked, and Walker posed.
That does not necessarily indicate anything about Lunsford’s physical condition or competitive strategy. A press-conference pose down is not an official judging comparison, and athletes can choose to handle these moments differently.
Still, Lunsford’s decision naturally became part of the storyline because he enters the weekend as the reigning Mr. Olympia. Lunsford reclaimed the Sandow in 2025 after defeating Choopan and Jacked, while Dauda finished fourth and Walker finished sixth.
This year’s field is therefore built around a particularly interesting dynamic. Lunsford is attempting to defend the title. Dauda is attempting to reclaim the title he won in 2024. Jacked is attempting to turn his 2026 Arnold Classic success into his first Olympia victory. And Walker is looking to translate his extreme muscularity and improved 2026 season into a return to the top of the Olympia standings.
Samson Dauda Has Already Given Us This Exact Moment Before
The biggest reason this pose down has generated so much attention is the déjà vu. In 2024, Dauda’s press-conference posing became one of the final glimpses of his physique before he stepped onstage as an Olympia contender.
At the time, Generation Iron pointed out that the spontaneous posing gave fans an opportunity to judge Dauda’s upper-body development, while also noting that seeing an athlete alone is very different from seeing him compared directly against the other competitors.
That distinction became especially important once Dauda actually stepped onstage. He went on to defeat the reigning champion Lunsford and claim the Sandow.
Now Dauda has once again initiated an impromptu press-conference pose down immediately before the Olympia. That does not mean history will repeat itself. But it certainly makes the moment more interesting.
A First Look Before the Real Comparison
The biggest takeaway from the press-conference pose down is that it gives fans a preview, not a verdict. The Men’s Open Olympia will ultimately be decided under the competition lights, with the judges comparing the athletes through mandatory poses, callouts, and multiple rounds.
Friday night’s Men’s Open prejudging will provide the first official look at how these physiques compare when everyone is onstage and fully prepared for competition. The 2026 Olympia schedule places the Men’s Open prejudging during Friday night’s session, with the Mr. Olympia finals scheduled for Saturday evening.
That makes Thursday’s pose down particularly valuable from a fan perspective. And after watching Samson Dauda, Andrew Jacked, and Nick Walker stand side by side at the press conference, bodybuilding fans will not have to wait much longer to see how that comparison looks when the judges are holding the scorecards.
