While Derek Lunsford avenged his loss against Samson Dauda and reclaimed the Mr. Olympia title, the debate around whether he deserved to win rages on over two months after the contest. Now, Lunsford is being compared with the likes of Dorian Yates and Ronnie Coleman.

About a week ago, Jay Cutler's former coach weighed in on the debate. “If Derek had competed against Ronnie or Dorian, he wouldn’t have beaten them,” said Aceto. However, former Mr. Olympia Samir Bannout had a completely different opinion.

“Let me give you my honest answe," The Lion of Lebanon posted on social media, directly responding to the Olympia winning coach.

"When Derek stands up on stage with the quality equal to Ron and Dorian, he can beat them both… but when will that happen, I don’t know,” Bannout wrote on his Instagram story. In fact, the former champion believes Derek Lunsford can do even better.

"Derek can be beyond great… however, he MUST do the following: *No more chasing SIZE. No more xxxx. Needs to be clam on stage,” added the 70-year-old.

Coleman and Yates ruled their respective era for decades with 14 Olympia titles between them. In contrast, Lunsford just won his third Olympia title and second Men’s Open.

Yet, as the debate continues, Samir Bannout is not the only one who has come to Derek’s defense.

Lee Haney Callsout Fans after Derek Lunsford backlash

Lunsford muted himself after the backlash, but 8x Mr. Olympia Lee Haney stood up for the two-division champion. In a post, Haney questions why he is being dragged for winning the competition when it’s the judges who choose the outcome.

"I feel it's unfair that Derek is being crucified for winning this year's Mr. Olympia. Whether we agree with his physique or not, Derek didn't judge the show. The call was made solely by the judges. So why should he be dragged through the mud?” reasoned Haney.

He doubled down on his words by expressing that Lunsford is the biggest ambassador of the sport in the modern era.

"Bodybuilding is a brotherhood that should be respected amongst its peers at all costs. I, for one, respect Derek as an athlete, a husband, a father, and a great role model on and off the stage. Carry on, Young Lion," the record-setting Mr. Olympia said about the reigning champion.

Written by

Suryakant Das

Edited by

Sagnik Bagchi