Historical past went down on Might 10 because the Pittsburgh Professional held its first-ever Males’s Open contest.
Derek Lunsford is the 2025 Pittsburgh Professional Males’s Open champion. He was one in every of 14 rivals vying for this title on the David L. Lawrence Conference Heart in Pittsburgh, PA, on Saturday, Might 10. IFBB Professional League president Jim Manion places on the Pittsburgh Professional yearly, and it’s one of many annual highlights of the bodybuilding season.
Together with the title of Pittsburgh Professional champion, there was a 2025 Mr. Olympia qualification and a $100,000 prize for first place on the road. As a former Olympia champ, Lunsford didn’t want the qualification. Nick Walker got here in second place, and Martin Fitzwater took bronze on this historic contest.
That is the primary time that the Males’s Open division has competed on the Pittsburgh Professional — in previous years, the Males’s Open division was solely featured as a visitor posing exhibition.
2025 Pittsburgh Professional Highlights
The prejudging spherical got here right down to Lunsford, Walker, Bonac, and Fitzwater. Nevertheless, all 4 males frolicked in the course of the ultimate callout. Lunsford and Walker had been on middle stage on the finish, and the followers had been cut up on who was higher. Head decide Steve Weinberger confirmed to BarBend that the judges wanted the second spherical through the finals to find out the winner.
The second spherical was simply as shut. As a matter of reality, a rarity occurred at this contest as a result of Walker and Lunsford truly tied on the scorecards. This meant that the 2 needed to face off in a tiebreaker spherical to find out the champion.
The posing between the 2 bodybuilders was intense, and the gang appeared to favor Walker, however Lunsford had his personal fan base as effectively. The judges in the end went with Lunsford, which means he accomplished his private quest of the triple crown — the Olympia, the Arnold Basic, and now the Pittsburgh Professional.
There have been two different competitions held on the primary day of this occasion. Terrence Ruffin claimed the Basic Physique title, and Erin Banks was topped the Males’s Physique champion.
The 2025 Pittsburgh Professional continues on Sunday, Mar. 11, with motion from the Determine, Bikini, Girls’s Physique, and Wellness divisions. BarBend will present a full recap of all competitions from Pittsburgh as soon as the ultimate awards have been introduced.
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Featured Picture: Roger Lockridge
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