Mr. Olympia 2021: Dates, Schedule, Prize Money, Top Bodybuilders and Predictions

It's that time of year again, bodybuilding and fitness fans.

Beginning on Thursday, the Mr. Olympia event is back at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida. With a $1.6 million prize purse up for grabs through 11 divisions, the competition will be fierce and furious.

While the Mr. Olympia bodybuilding competition is the top draw—and features the biggest prize pool with last year's winner taking home $400,000—the 2021 edition of Joe Weider's Olympia Fitness & Performance Weekend has plenty to offer.

Things kick off on Thursday with the Olympia Press Conference. Events like the 212 Olympia, Ms. Olympia and Fitness Olympia will take place on Friday, while the Mr. Olympia, Men's Physique Olympia, Bikini Olympia and Classic Physique Olympia will take place on Saturday evening.

A full rundown of the schedule can be found on the official Mr. Olympia site.

The Men's Open is the main event, and 2020 Sandow Trophy-winner Mamdouh "Big Ramy" Elssbiay is back to headline an impressive field.

Here, we'll break down some of the top bodybuilders and make predictions for the top six.

Brandon Curry

When Brandon Curry unsuccessfully defended his title in 2020, it came as a bit of a surprise—but it was a testament to the size and conditioning of Big Ramy.

Curry strolled into the 2019 Olympia fresh off a win at the Arnold Classic, took the crown and looked to be the favorite again last year. And the 38-year-old came close. He was second only to Elssbiay and managed to best seven-time Mr. Olympia Phil Heath.

While Elssbiay was able to overtake Curry in 2020 with his mass, the Nashville, Tennessee native is looking to counter with a little bulk of his own.

"Big Ramy, in order to compare well against him, I think I have to be a little bit fuller," Curry said in a YouTube video (h/t Tom Miller of Fitness Volt). "I can't diet down as much because I gotta keep the fullness in the quads, fullness in the legs, fullness throughout. So I've gotta have that pop and that roundness."

If Curry can narrow the size gap between him and Elssbiay, there's a real chance he'll reclaim the title.

William Bonac

Robert Cianflone/Getty Images

William Bonac has become a mainstay at the top level of International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness competition in recent years. He has twice won the Arnold Classic (2018, 2020) and was expected to be one of the favorites in Columbus, Ohio this year.

However, travel restrictions from his home in the Netherlands prevented him from competing at the 2021 Arnold Classic. However, he recently announced via Instagram (h/t Vidur Saini of Fitness Volt) that he has arrived in the United States and will compete for the Sandow.

"I want to give a huge shout out to everyone who showed me love and wished me well for missing the Arnold," Bonac said.

The Ghana-born bodybuilder is a threat virtually every time he takes the stage, and that should be no different in 2021. He took second place at the 2019 Olympia and finished fifth last year.

While there's no such thing as a lock in bodybuilding, Bonac is a safe bet to make the top six.

Mamdouh Elssbiay

Elssbiay burst onto the international scene in 2012 with a win at the Amateur Olympia in Kuwait City. A year later, he won his first IFBB event at the New York Pro and took eighth place at the Mr. Olympia.

Last year, the 37-year-old took third at the Arnold Classic before shocking the competition in Orlando by winning his first Mr. Olympia title. He sported a physique last year that will be tough to beat, but he is dedicated to being even bigger and better in 2021.

"I am back in Arizona and we continue where we left off. The workouts are hard, but I love it and I'm ready to do whatever it takes," Elssbiay said on Instagram (h/t Roger Lockridge of Muscle & Fitness).

Based on images shared in an Instagram post by nutritionist Chad Nicolls, Big Ramy may indeed be too big to fail this year. According to Nicolls, Elssbiay was 322 pounds at eight weeks out.

Defending champions have traditionally had an edge at the Mr. Olympia, which is why so many repeats—there have only been 16 different winners since 1965. Of course, we haven't had a repeat champion since Heath reigned from 2011 to 2017.

Still, challengers will clearly have to outshine and outpose Elssbiay to take his title in 2021, which is why we're predicting him to top the final six on Saturday.

Predictions, Top Six

1. Mamdouh Elssbiay

2. Brandon Curry

3. William Bonac

4. Hadi Choopan

5. Nick Walker

6. Iain Valliere