Bodybuilder Derek Lunsford made waves in the IFBB Pro League with his switch to the Men’s Open division for the 2022 Mr. Olympia contest. The former 212 sensation made a statement in his Open debut and believes he’s destined for glory ahead. In a recent post made on Instagram, Lunsford showed off his insanely jacked body transformation from years ago to today.
Derek Lunsford first rose to prominence for his impressive muscle mass, shape, and definition as a Men’s 212 competitor in 2017. He earned an invite to the Mr. Olympia competition after dominating the competition at the 2017 Tampa Pro. He turned in a strong performance and finished fifth in his maiden Olympia appearance. Over the next three years, Lunsford continued to work his way up the ranks and narrowly missed out on the 212 Olympia title twice in 2018 and 2019. In 2021, he finally secured first in the 212 category.
Last season, Lunsford expressed a desire to test himself against mass monsters of the Open class. He shocked fans with a guest-posing appearance at the 2022 Pittsburgh Pro which paved the way for him to receive a special invite for competing in the Open 2022 Mr. Olympia contest.
He entered the show as the wildcard of the division with a ton of buzz surrounding him. In the end, Lunsford backed up the hype and shook up the division with a runner-up finish behind Hadi Choopan at the event last December.
Forging ahead, Derek made it clear his aim was to become Mr. Olympia and laid out his training and diet regimen for achieving his goals two months ago. In a follow-up video, he demonstrated a grueling arms workout he utilized for gaining muscle in the off-season.
IFBB Pro League athletes’ representative Bob Cicherillo backed Lunsford and Samson Dauda as frontrunners to dethrone Choopan. Additionally, Lunsford faced heat from fellow standout Nick Walker who believes he should’ve placed ahead of the former 212 Olympia champ. Moreover, Walker discounted Choopan’s chances of defending the title and predicted a war with Lunsford on stage.
Derek Lunsford teamed up with bodybuilding legend Ronnie Coleman for a brutal back and biceps training session last month. The eight-time Mr. Olympia mentored Lunsford through the challenging workout routine. A week later, Coleman was convinced Lunsford would win the next Olympia event.
Derek Lunsford shares jacked body transformation
In a recent Instagram post, Derek Lunsford shared an unreal body transformation comparing his older look to his new physique, where fans can see the bodybuilder has clearly packed on a substantial amount of muscle tissue.
Derek Lunsford stunned fans with an impressive guest posing appearance at the 2023 Pittsburgh Pro earlier this week. Following the outing, it was evident that fans agree Lunsford and Dauda are the favorites going into the upcoming Mr. Olympia contest.
RELATED: Milos Sarcev Says Samson Dauda ‘Can Beat’ Derek Lunsford, Hadi Choopan at 2023 Mr. Olympia
Lunsford is determined to win the Mr. Olympia title in November. Given the success he’s achieved in the Open class in such a short time, fans are convinced 2023 might be his year.
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