Nick Walker is scheduled to take the stage in Pittsburgh in May.
Bodybuilder Nick Walker is currently not qualified for the 2025 Olympia. He plans to take the stage during the Pittsburgh Pro and the goal is to win the show and punch his ticket to the biggest competition of the year. The field has gotten much tougher and it will be a tough task to come out on top. To ensure that he qualifies, Shawn Ray recently said that Walker should consider the Detroit Pro.
Early in the week, Derek Lunsford shared that he will be competing in Pittsburgh. Lunsford discussed how he views this as a “legacy” show coming off his win at the 2025 Arnold Classic. He believes that he can win in Pittsburgh and carry momentum into the Olympia, finishing off an insane year.
In spite of recent additions, Ray discussed how Walker should be considering Detroit.
“Detroit would be on my list because he didn’t anticipate Derek jumping into this Pittsburgh show where he could be denied.”
When looking at the overall lineup, Ray believes Walker would come in with a major advantage.
“If he kept the weight down, this is not that far off and this lineup doesn’t look so strong that maybe we don’t rule that out that maybe he is doing the business of sucking it up and going on a low-carbohydrate diet, doing extra cardio, and says I’m going to throw my hat into Detroit as a security measure.”
Shawn Ray Breaks Down Pittsburgh Pro
The Pittsburgh Pro added Men’s Open to this year’s competition for the first time and it is a loaded lineup. With Lunsford now in the mix, there is a legitimate competition at the top with Walker and Martin Fitzwater.
“Derek was off at the Olympia last year and controversially, could have traded places with Fitzwater and nobody would have complained.”
Lunsford finished third at the Olympia while Fitzwater made a major leap into fourth place. He will get a rematch with the former champ in Pittsburgh but it is unlikely that Lunsford comes in looking like he did at the Olympia. Ray does not expect Lunsford to come in like he did at the Arnold but claims a “95% look” could be enough. Despite his win in Columbus, Ray does not believe that this will be easy.
“Derek has a lot at stake. This is not going to be a walk in the park for Derek. Fitzwater playing the size game like Nick Walker, he better be careful because nobody said he was too small at the Olympia.”
The Pittsburgh Pro is expected to be an exciting show because of the star power that will be present. As for Walker, Ray believes that there should be a security blanket in his plans and that would be Detroit.
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