Mr. Olympia used to be the jewel in bodybuilding’s crown, but those days are gone.

In a confirmation-of-sorts that fans have grown tired of the CGI-looking “mass monsters” which dominated between 1985-2015, the Classic Olympia, which focuses on physiques which hark back to the so-called “golden age” of bodybuilding between 1970-1985, has spiked in popularity and finally overtaken the main contest in terms of popularity.

Current king Chris Bumstead has been crucial to this pivot in popularity, racking up an impressive x4 straight victories with his unique combination of size and definition; a feat which has led many (including me!) to call him “one of the best to ever grace a boybuilding stage”.

But as much as I admire him, we must know when to draw the line.

You see, after his most recent victory, a fabulous photoshop mockup began circulating online which stood Chris Bumstead alongside the great Arnold Schwarzenegger, asking the question on everybody’s lips:

“Who wins?”

As you can imagine, the internet went into full-scale meltdown.

For the next few days I sat back and scrolled through hilarious social media comment sections, watching strangers berate and threaten eachother if they disagreed over which picture of a man in their underwear looks better.

Seriously, come on people.

But what do I think?

Well, there can only really be one winner here and it’s Ah-nuld.

Don’t get me wrong, I actually think CBum has a slightly better physique than Arnie overall, but I believe that the differences between the two aren’t big enough to justify 50 years of advancements in all things relating to training, recovery, nutrition, supplementation, posing and, yes, drugs.

Let’s face it, it’s fucking absurdthat Schwarzenegger was able to achieve such a great physique during a time when gym setups were as basic as could be and solid information on training and nutrition was so difficult to come by – let alone one which could rival the best of the sport some 50 years later!

When we also take into consideration the impact which he had – not just on the sport of bodybuilding but on celebrity culture as a whole – the gap widens further in Arnold’s favour.

He was literally “the face of fitness” for five decades, with George Bush even appointing him as Chairman of the President’s Council of Physical Fitness and Sports during the early 1990s, and he’s one of the few people who can legitimately claim to have inspired more humans to start hitting the gym than Rocky Balboa.

He achieved a level of fame thoughout the 80s-90s which we don’t really see anymore (Michael Jackson, Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, Mike Tyson), with perhaps only The Rock coming close to it in recent years.

And all of this is why, in my humble opinion, no bodybuilder will top what Arnold Schwarzenegger really did – not just in the sport, but for it.

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