Lee Haney vs. Samson Dauda: Breaking Down a Fantasy Bodybuilding Matchup

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Samson Dauda made a press release when he gained the 2023 Arnold Classic in Columbus, OH, again in March. In taking the title, he solidified his place within the prime echelon of the Males’s Open division alongside elite athletes like Hadi Choopan, Nick Walker, Derek Lunsford, and Mamdouh “Big Ramy” Elssbiay.

It was additionally a victory for followers of bodybuilding’s bygone period as Dauda’s physique and presentation are harking back to a previous Mr. Olympia who dominated the game again within the ’80s: Eight-time Sandow Trophy winner Lee Haney.

And ever for the reason that Arnold, bodybuilding followers on-line have questioned what would’ve occurred if Dauda and Haney met on the identical stage for a posedown of their primes?

That clearly can’t occur, however we will examine their attributes, reputation, and coaching kinds to find out if the fantasy matchup would’ve lived as much as the hype.

Bodybuilders Lee Haney and Samson Dauda — Picture: @lee_haney_official and @samson__dauda on Instagram

Bodybuilding Accomplishments

When it comes right down to a comparability, total accomplishments could be the hardest facet. Dauda is in his early 30s and is simply getting began; in the meantime, Haney was 31 years outdated when he retired in 1991 after his eighth Olympia win. The game additionally has extra prime competitions now that weren’t round for a lot of Haney’s reign.

Dauda is in his sixth skilled season, having made his professional debut in 2018. So the compromise we made right here is to check Dauda’s full profession with Haney’s first six years (1983-1988) within the IFBB.

Lee Haney’s Accomplishments

Haney had a busy schedule throughout his rookie 12 months in 1983. In line with Muscle Memory, he competed seven instances and positioned within the prime three at each present, with wins on the Grand Prix Las Vegas and the Night time of Champions. He additionally made his Mr. Olympia debut in 1983, putting third behind champion Samir Bannout.

One 12 months later — and yearly of his profession after — he solely competed in and gained the Mr. Olympia, besides in 1987 when he additionally gained the Grand Prix Germany. So by the top of his sixth season, he already had 5 Olympia wins and eight victories total. Listed below are Haney’s profession highlights via six years as a professional:

5-time Mr. Olympia (1984-1988)
1983 Grand Prix Las Vegas
1983 Night time of Champions
1987 Grand Prix Germany

Samson Dauda’s Accomplishments

In line with NPC News Online, Dauda made his professional debut in 2018 on the Romania Muscle Fest Professional, the place he positioned eleventh. His first professional win got here on the 2021 Prague Pro, which certified him for his first Olympia look at the 2022 show. He positioned sixth in that contest.

The Arnold Basic marks his solely different victory as of April 2023, and his subsequent deliberate contest is the 2023 Mr. Olympia in Orlando, FL, in November. The Arnold Classic win is a nice notch in Dauda’s belt, however that contest didn’t debut until 1989, which was properly into Haney’s run as Mr. Olympia. The eight-time Mr. O by no means competed on the Arnold.

Dauda nonetheless has loads of time to construct up his portfolio of wins, however this portion of the matchup clearly goes to Haney for now. Listed below are Dauda’s prime bodybuilding victories via six years as a professional:

2021 Prague Professional
2023 Arnold Basic

Coaching Fashion

On the subject of training kinds within the health club, the 2 males have completely different approaches. Each are 5’11”, however Dauda is the heavier of the 2 males. Haney weighed in at 243 kilos throughout his Olympia debut and obtained as much as 254 pounds at his last Mr. Olympia in 1991. Dauda competes round 275 kilos or so, along with his low season weight going as much as as much as 330 pounds.

Lee Haney’s Coaching Fashion

The eight-time Mr. Olympia skilled and coached himself all through his profession (although he did have coaching companions so as to add a “second set of eyes” on his progress.) He coined the mantra “stimulate, don’t annihilate,” that means that you just shouldn’t be beating the muscle mass up with heavy weights and many units.

Certain, he would push himself within the health club, however he by no means took the units to the acute as somebody like Dorian Yates could have. As an alternative, he used phases in his coaching.

Part one can be a easy low season exercise. Part two would have extra quantity, and at last, part three can be pre-contest coaching with the very best quantity. He was a fan of free weights as properly.

Should you have been to take a look at one in all Haney’s routines, they’re fairly easy and easy — right here’s a pre-contest routine he shared with Muscle & Health.

Sam Dauda’s Coaching Fashion

Dauda works with coach Milos Sarcev for his contest preps and has used a number of coaching kinds over his profession. He’s finished single body-part coaching, supersets, and even Sarcev’s signature giant set exercises utilizing largely machines.

For Dauda, selection is the spice of life and muscle progress. Nonetheless, he does sometimes prepare with straight units, equivalent to this delt session he shared with Hosstile:

Recognition

On the subject of fan assist, there is no such thing as a actual approach to examine the 2 as a result of the internet wasn’t round in Haney’s period and magazines are few and much between right now. What we do know is each champions have an excessive amount of fan assist.

Lee Haney’s Recognition

Haney was a mainstream star within the Eighties and early Nineteen Nineties. He had tv reveals on ESPN, might be seen in movies with pro wrestlers, and was a Weider athlete all through a lot of his profession. You possibly can additionally see him on the covers of bodybuilding magazines on the newsstands usually.

One among Haney’s largest honors got here in 1999 when President Bill Clinton appointed him to the Council chair of the President’s Council of Health, Sports activities & Diet. He served from 1999 to 2002.

Although he’s been retired for greater than three a long time, Haney nonetheless has nearly 275,000 followers on Instagram and is a fixture on bodybuilding podcasts.

Samson Dauda’s Recognition

Dauda continues to be making a reputation for himself within the sport. The person from Nigeria now calls the UK residence, and his reputation is climbing by the day. As of this writing, he has 269,000 followers on Instagram and 14,000 subscribers on his YouTube channel. He’s sponsored by Hosstile, and is a daily contributor to their podcasts and social media.

Conclusion

Whereas Dauda’s posing and presentation could remind older followers of Haney’s greatness, he nonetheless has fairly a bit of labor to do if he desires to be as completed because the eight-time Mr. Olympia winner.

Nonetheless, the potential is certainly there, and Haney himself has even observed it, placing his personal stamp of approval in an Instagram publish.

They gained’t ever face off as rivals, however it will likely be nice for followers to look at Dauda construct up his personal resume with Haney supporting him alongside the best way.