Samson Dauda posted another jaw dropping update of his current condition eleven weeks out from making his next run at the Olympia title. Shaking up the bodybuilding internet with progress pictures and videos is nothing new for Samson and, if anything, the ability to stir up the, “Is this the year...” conversation is something that’s become something of a specialty for him since he ascended to superstar status a few years ago.
However, for as impressive as Samson is, and despite the clear improvements that he’s made in terms of his size, especially from the side and the back, I think it’s also worth openly asking if any level of excitement generated from his, or any of the other top contenders from this year’s race, if even warranted.
When compared to other solo sports like MMA, Boxing, Tennis, Golf, or even Olympic events, now that this year’s games are finally underway in Paris, there’s an astonishing lack of parody at bodybuilding’s biggest events.
I’ve gone on record dozens of times over the years to say that bodybuilding is a star driven sport. Unlike other major sports, where the league or the team tends to be the driver of the brand, and the level of interest by the common fan is titrated up and down base on the popularity of its stars, the same simply can’t be said for bodybuilding or the IFBB – which isn’t necessarily a negative.
The IFBB isn’t the Premier League or the NFL, and bodybuilding’s fans and culture are unique in and of themselves. However, that doesn’t change the reality of the world we live in, where bodybuilding shows and pure bodybuilding coverage is in competition for views with content creators and social media personalities who aren’t rolling rewashed versions of the same storylines for months and years on end.
With that said, is Samson’s newest update incredibly impressive? Yes, without a doubt.
Does he look like he’s on pace to bring in a better package than what he displayed at last year’s Mr. Olympia? At this point, yes, or at least he appears to be trending in that direction.
But, at the end of the day, will it do anything to change the fact that Derek Lunsford, as the incumbent Olympia champion, is likely to repeat again this year, like every previous Olympia champion since the start of the event nearly 60 years ago?
No, probably not, unless we’re on the verge of seeing a radical shift in bodybuilding competitions play out at the highest level.
