The 2022 Mr. Olympia will be held on December 16-17 in Las Vegas, so it’s time for predictions. We have picks from four previous Mr. Olympia champs, who together won the ultimate bodybuilding title 20 times. They’re joined by eight other notables, including The Barbell; and, to top it all off, we’ve tabulated the 2022 Mr. Olympia consensus prediction for a top 10. No one picked against Big Ramy winning his third title, but after the current champ the field is wide open with this year’s favorites joined by a remarkably strong Olympia rookie class. Who will win? Who will make the top five or top 10? We’ll soon find out. Until then, here are the 2022 Mr. Olympia predictions.
The Barbell
We’re confident of the winner, but the next few places in our Oympia prediction will depend on conditioning. We have William Bonac second largely because of his second-place finish in March’s Arnold Classic and photos showing additional size, but it’s just as likely that Brandon Curry or Hadi Choopan get the runner-up slot. In our 6-10 places, we have four Mr. Olympia rookies, one or two of whom could rise into the top five if those penciled in there are less than their best.
1. Big Ramy
2. William Bonac
3. Brandon Curry
4. Hadi Choopan
5. Nick Walker
6. Derek Lunsford
7. Andrew Jacked
8. Hunter Labrada
9. Samson Dauda
10. Michal Krizo
Ronnie Coleman
In a YouTube video, 8-time Mr. Olympia Ronnie Coleman listed his 2022 Mr. Olympia top 10. His top five is uncontroversial, but he’s higher than everyone else on Michal Krizo and Blessing Awodibu and, like The Barbell, has four Mr. Olympia rookies in the 6-10 slots. (Though qualified for the open Mr. Olympia, Shaun Clarida is competing in the 212 Olympia.)
1. Big Ramy
2. Brandon Curry
3. Hadi Choopan
4. William Bonac
5. Nick Walker
6. Michal Krizo
7. Andrew Jacked
8. Hunter Labrada
9. Blessing Awodibu
10. Shaun Clarida
Chris Cormier
Chris Cormier competed in 10 Mr. Olympias and finished third twice (1999, 2002). He and Dexter Jackson are the only Olympia prognosticators to have Hadi Choopan out of their top four.
1. Big Ramy
2. Brandon Curry
3. William Bonac
4. Nick Walker
5. Hadi Choopan
6. Samson Dauda
Jay Cutler
Jay Cutler, a 4-time Mr. Olympia, predicted the top three will be the same as last year. “It’s crazy because we’re looking at Ramy and he looks unbelievable. I think he’ll win unless he just does something drastic,” Cutler said. As for rookie Michal Krizo, Cutler was less diplomatic than he was this summer: “I’m one of the few that has seen him pose in person. Was I impressed? Not so much. I still see a lot of holes in his body.”
1. Big Ramy
2. Brandon Curry
3. Hadi Choopan
Phil Heath
Phil Heath, 7-time Mr. Olympia, didn’t precisely rank the Mr. Olympia top five, but he did slot his top five into three levels. “All it takes is for Ramy to slip,” Heath said. “We saw that happen last year. I mean, [he] wasn’t better than when he won his first one [in 2020], so you leave the door open two years, things can happen.” As for Michal Krizo, Heath is impressed but noted holes in his physique and presentation that he thought would become apparent over repeated comparisons, adding: “In this league, they will run your ass through some call-outs.”
Favorite: Big Ramy
Biggest Threats: Hadi Choopan, Brandon Curry
Disruptors: William Bonac, Nick Walker
Dexter Jackson
Dexter Jackson, the winningest pro bodybuilder of all-time and the 2008 Mr. Olympia, is the only prognosticator to put Nick Walker in his top three, and he joins Cormier in pushing Choopan out of the top four.
1. Big Ramy
2. William Bonac
3. Nick Walker
4. Brandon Curry
5. Hadi Choopan
6. Samson Dauda
Dennis James
Dennis James competed in 10 Mr. Olympias, and finished fourth in 2003. James coaches Big Ramy with an emphasis on training. His top six Mr. Olympia finishers were not ranked, so, after Ramy, they’re listed here alphabetically.
Big Ramy
? William Bonac
? Hadi Choopan
? Brandon Curry
? Derek Lunsford
? Nick Walker
Chad Nichols
Chad Nichols also coaches Big Ramy, as well as William Bonac, with an emphasis on nutrition and contest prep, so his top two is unsurprising.
1. Big Ramy
2. William Bonac
3. Hadi Choopan
4. Brandon Curry
5. Nick Walker
6. Samson Dauda
Lee Priest
Lee Priest competed in six Mr. Olympias and finished sixth thrice (1997, 2000, 2002). He and Markus Ruhl are the only prognosticators to slot Andrew Jacked in their top six. His top six Mr. Olympia finishers were not ranked, so, after Ramy, they’re listed here alphabetically.
Big Ramy
? William Bonac
? Hadi Choopan
? Brandon Curry
? Samson Dauda
? Andrew Jacked
Markus Ruhl
Markus Ruhl competed in nine Mr. Olympias and finished fifth in 2004. He’s shaking things up with his four-through-six picks. Ruhl’s the only prognosticator to add Hunter Labrada to his top six and the only one to leave 2019 Mr. Olympia Brandon Curry out of his top six.
1. Big Ramy
2. William Bonac
3. Hadi Choopan
4. Hunter Labrada
5. Derek Lunsford
6. Andrew Jacked
Milos Sarcev
Milos Sarcev competed in seven Mr. Olympias, all in the ’90s, and finished 10th twice (1997, 1999). He coaches Samson Dauda, so, of course, he has him ranked the highest of any prognosticator.
1. Big Ramy
2. Hadi Choopan
3. William Bonac
4. Samson Dauda
5. Derek Lunsford
6. Brandon Curry
Nick’s Strength and Power
Nick Miller of the popular video channel Nick’s Strength and Power served up his prediction for the 2022 Mr. Olympia top 10 with Hadi Choopan second and Derek Lunsford and Andrew Jacked rounding out the top six. He was the only predictor to drop William Bonac (the consensus #2) out of his top six.
1. Big Ramy
2. Hadi Choopan
3. Brandon Curry
4. Nick Walker
5. Derek Lunsford
6. Andrew Jacked
7. Hunter Labrada
8. William Bonac
9. Michal Krizo
10. Iain Valliere
2022 MR. OLYMPIA CONSENSUS PREDICTION
For the 2022 Mr. Olympia consensus vote, we limited it to the eight prognosticators who ranked six or more competitors. Ramy is #1 on every list. We assigned five points for each #2, four for each #3, three for each #4, two for each #5, and one for each #6. Interestingly, Hadi Choopan is the only man, other than Ramy, to appear in the top six of all eight lists. As you can see, the two-to-four placings are close. They could be shuffled in several ways. And, with such a huge lineup, it’s likely that at least one competitor not on the following rollcall will shock the bodybuilding world in Vegas.
1. Big Ramy (#1 on all lists)
2. William Bonac (31 points)
3. Hadi Choopan (29 points)
4. Brandon Curry (25 points)
5. Nick Walker (16 points)
6. Derek Lunsford (7 points)
7. Samson Dauda (6 points)
8. Hunter Labrada (3 points)
9. Andrew Jacked (2 points)
10. Michal Krizo (1 point)
