Will Derek Lunsford Be The Next Olympia 212 Champ?
Muscular Development|January 2019

Will Derek Lunsford Be The Next Olympia 212 Champ?

Ron Harris
Will Derek Lunsford Be The Next Olympia 212 Champ?

WHO WILL BE NEXT AFTER FLEX?

Midway through the 2018 contest season, six-time 212 Olympia champion James “Flex” Lewis formally announced that win, lose or draw (just kidding, there are no ties in bodybuilding), this would be his final appearance as a 212 pro. While this left it open-ended as to his likely future as an open pro, it was clear that even if Flex won his seventh title on the way out, which he did, his reign was ending, and the title would be up for grabs. Who would be the Olympia champion next? Going into this year’s fray in Las Vegas, the logical choice for the 2019 champ would have been the runner-up in both 2016 and 2017, Ahmad Ashkanani. History shows that having multiple second-place finishes to the champ is a strong predictor for succession (see related story, “Being Next in Line – a Hit-or-Miss Proposition”). Most of us fully expected the Kuwaiti with the king cobra back to earn one final runner-up slot before taking his rightful place on the throne. But it was not meant to be. That honor went to 25-year-old Derek Lunsford. Derek had burst on the pro scene like a meteor in 2017, winning the 212 division at the Tampa Pro just seven days after turning pro via an overall win at the NPC USA Championships, then scoring a spot in the elite top five at the 212 Olympia just six weeks later. Few saw it coming outside of Derek and his camp, but now the collective focus has shifted his way as we ponder who will be the man to succeed the Welsh Dragon.

FOCUSING SOLELY ON THE O

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