Joe Weider’s 2025 Olympia Fitness & Performance Weekend is now officially in the books after thousands of flex fans flocked to Resorts World in Las Vegas to see Derek Lunsford win this year’s Sandow Trophy. But while many people know the end result, there were some interesting statistics that came out of this year’s ‘O’ that you may have missed.
Here are 5 of those remarkable figures.
1) The 2025 Olympia had a record-breaking prize purse
To establish itself as the premier bodybuilding competition and most competitive stage of them all, the 2025 Olympia rose to a record prize pool of $2 million. In the Open division, where most of the money is up for grabs, Derek Lunsford took home a whopping $600,000 for first place, while runner-up Hadi Choopan pocketed $250,000 and Andrew Jacked’s third place earned him $100,000.
2) The Open Division was as unpredictable as ever
Derek Lunsford’s victory at Mr Olympia in 2025 marked the fourth year in a row that a new champion has been crowned. This is in stark contrast to epic runs such as Lee Haney and Ronnie Coleman’s eight consecutive victories, Phil Heath’s dominant trophies for seven years in a row, or Dorian Yates’ six consecutive titles. In fact, you’d have to go back to 1980 to 1983, the only other era in which a new champion was crowned four times in a row, meaning today’s Open division is as unpredictable as it’s ever been.
3) Derek Lunsford broke the same streak as Jay Cutler
In terms of data crunching, Derek Lunsford’s victory at the 2025 ‘O’ is all the more impressive because the odds of any bodybuilder regaining the Sandow Trophy after losing it are slim. That feat was first accomplished in 2009 when Jay Cutler regained the title from Dexter Jackson. However, following Cutler’s loss to Phil Heath in 2011, Derek Lunsford is the only other bodybuilder to hold the title of Mr. Olympia regains the championship after a shock defeat to then-rising Samson Dauda last year.
4) Hadi Choopan won the popular vote
The “Persian Wolf” may have finished second in Olympia for the third time in a row last weekend, but he can take solace in the fact that he was voted “People’s Champion” by the public.. This is the second time he has won the popular vote, as Choopan previously won the same award in 2019. The Iranian icon, who won the Mr Olympia title in 2022, continues to be an inspiration to bodybuilding fans around the world.
5) Turkish bodybuilder Nihat Kaya may be the youngest 212 finalist
Although difficult to verify conclusively, due to the lack of availability on some athletes’ dates of birth, the The 22-year-old Turkish bodybuilder Nihat Kaya is perhaps the youngest contender ever to reach the top 5 of the 212 Olympia finals, finishing in fourth place, behind only Lucas Garcia, Shaun Clarida and winner Keone Pearson. With such a young performance, there is no doubt that this fast-rising star has a bright future ahead of him and will be working hard towards 2026.
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