Manion discussed each pose and explained how Lunsford ended up with a 5-3 win.
The 2025 Olympia is in the books and Derek Lunsford took home his second title. It was a close battle from the start between Lunsford and Hadi Choopan.
Lunsford set a goal to complete bodybuilding’s trifecta after his victories at the Arnold Classic and Pittsburgh Pro. He accomplished this goal by winning his second Olympia title. Choopan finished as the runner-up once again. It was a big-time performance by Andrew Jacked, who was one of the most improved bodybuilders over the course of the year, finishing in third place.
IFBB Pro League Vice President Tyler Manion went through each pose and explained why Lunsford gained the advantage in the end.
Derek Lunsford vs. Hadi Choopan Pose Battle
Tyler Manion shared a video explaining who won each pose during the competition and why.
Front Double Biceps
Manion began with the front double biceps. This pose was given to Derek Lunsford thanks to his taper and small waist, along with his leg size. He admitted that Lunsford lacks detail in his inner arms but was still able to come out on top.
“He definitely kept his leg size for this show. You see nice, deep lines in the separation throughout his legs. You see good leg width from the front, and he just held onto more volume in his legs.”
Front Lat Spread
This might not be the best pose for the top two finishers but it went to Lunsford because of the detail of his outer arms and shoulders.
“Hadi’s shoulders are a little bit flat…I don’t think it’s their strongest pose. With Derek, you can see the size and detail on his outer arms are much, much better than what his inner arm looks like when it’s raised for the front double. He had good volume and cap to his delts.”
Side Chest
The shoulders played a role again in Lunsford coming out on top in the side chest pose.
“Again, I think Derek’s shoulder is better than Hadi’s shoulder. Derek’s outer arms have more of that volume and roundness. Hadi has more of that peak to his biceps.”
Back Double Biceps
The back double bicep went to Lunsford as well because of the density in his back.
“Hadi’s back has good width, doesn’t quite match Derek’s width, but the real difference here is the density to the back.”
Back Lat Spread
The front lat spread went to Lunsford but it changed up here with the back going to Choopan because of his thickness and detail.
“Hadi does a very, very good job of opening up his back all the way so you see the thickness, density, and detail throughout his back.”
Side Tricep
Side tricep is the fifth pose that went to Derek Lunsford during the competition. He brings great thickness and roundness to his lower body.
“In this pose, because of the lower body advantage and overall size and thickness and roundness, I gave his pose to Derek.”
Abdominal and Thigh
Hadi Choopan has dominated abdominal and thigh for awhile now. This is one of his best poses and he came out on top once again.
“Just the flow of the pose and the conditioning that gets brought out, especially through the midsection. I thought this was a clear pose for Hadi.”
Most Muscular
The final pose discussed was the most muscular and Manion gave the edge to Choopan to give him his third pose win.
“The overall polish and flow of this pose, it’s very hard to take it off Hadi and I thought it was a clear pose for Hadi.”
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