Competitors switch coaches all the time. Perhaps they don’t like the macro plan, maybe they don’t like the training, maybe they don’t like fasted cardio. It’s really pretty common if you think about it, but what’s not common is when you’re talking about a former Mr Olympia in contention to win back the biggest title in physique-based sports. Hadi not only has been Mr Olympia, but to a lot of fans around the world he should still be Mr O. They don’t believe that Derek beat him last year. Some don’t even believe that Samson beat him way back when.
Now we should also keep in mind that Hadi’s fans are some of the most fanatical all around the world. They can only be compared to Big Ramy fans in terms of their sheer passion and zeal. Then again, Hadi lost a pretty substantial amount of fans with his alleged support of the Iranian regime. This isn’t a political website and we don’t care about the politics here in the United States, much less overseas, but it still is worth mentioning. The fact that Hadi, who has always worked with Hany Ramod is now working with Milos Sarchev, it’s something that we need to talk about. It’s something that if we ignored it, we would be remiss in our obligations as a media site that you know and trust. We did wait a few days to make sure that this wasn’t just another rumor.
One of the things that I love most about writing for IronMag is that we’re not concerned with breaking the stories, rather, we’re interested in getting the story right. I tip my hat to all of those outlets out there that like to be the first one out to press, but many times they have to retract themselves and oftentimes that makes them look a little bit less than serious. This website, while interested in the current events of the sport, is not interested in clickbait or fake news. So when I tell you that Hadi hired Milos, he says he is the new coach, it’s pretty much carved in stone.
It’s very interesting that Hadi also switched coaches for the very reason that he has completely fallen out of the conversation. Everybody is talking about Derek given the fact that he won the Olympia back and that Andrew won the Arnold Classic. Nick Walker is seemingly off the grid, not trying to qualify after the Arnold contests like New York or Pittsburgh. In reality Hadi is the number one contender by virtue of placing second at last year’s Mr Olympia, but honestly I don’t know the last time anybody even mentioned the guy’s name. He has very much become like Big Ramy – respected in name but completely out of the conversation. The difference there is that Ramy hasn’t competed in a number of years and Hadi competed just about 6 months ago at the most prestigious bodybuilding show on the planet. The fact that nobody is talking about him suggests that his time has passed. Now I’m not going to say that he switched coaches because of the fact nobody’s talking about him or to create some headlines, but it certainly begs the question. Is he done? Can he win the title back against the competitors that everyone is talking about? When it comes to Samson and Andrew we’re talking about two statuesque giants with wonderful aesthetics and symmetry. No disrespect to Hadi or the legions of crazy fans that love him, but this guy is an ankle biter with some very questionable body parts. Again no disrespect, because bodybuilding should not be a height contest, but I think that with Andrew and Samson will put to an end the era of 212 competitors winning Sandows in Las Vegas, Nevada. I love the fact that they crossed over but I don’t like the fact that the best bodybuilders on the planet are essentially midgets. I think the fans are ready for towers of power again and when you look at aesthetics and proportions, neither Hadi or even Derek can hold a candle to these guys.
People are still talking about Derek. People talk about Derek everyday. The fact that Derek has become a little bit more diva-like and has been a little bit more juicy with his comments, sends the media into a firestorm. Today’s bodybuilding outlets thrive on drama. Others still make videos in the clickbait and fake news genres. Therefore, when you have a reigning champion talking all sorts of shit about competitors like Samson and Andrew, then it’s honestly a feeding frenzy. Just recently Derek said that Samson only beat him because he was off. Talk about disrespecting a past Mr Olympia champion. But perhaps there’s some truth to that. Because Samson in a very foolish move decided to jump into the Arnold Classic only a couple of months after winning the biggest title in the sport. And what happened there? What happened there was that Derek beat him and beat him royally. So is Derek just talking shit or is he stating facts?
Aside from that, there are rumors that Derek doesn’t even want to be seen with Andrew. He doesn’t want to train with him, he doesn’t want to eat with him, he doesn’t think Andrew’s good enough. Now this could also be totally unsubstantiated hearsay, but let’s not forget that just a couple of years ago the same thing happened when Derek didn’t want to do an excessive amount of videos with Nick. He didn’t think Nick was on his level and he didn’t want to be seen with Nick for more than a couple of shots. Again it doesn’t necessarily prove that Derek was being real with Andrew, but it does show a pattern. And if it is true, so what? He’s Mr Olympia!! He’s entitled to have a big head. After all, he’s earned it. When you’re the number one bodybuilder on the planet everybody else is beneath you. Perhaps that hurts some people’s feelings but that is the name of the game. If you don’t like it, go out and win a Sandow. Otherwise you’re not as good as the reigning Mr Olympia.
Do we AS FANS prefer a NICE Mr. O like Lee Haney? Of course, but even Lee was not so nice when had guys like Mike Christian to deal with. Mike was bold and sure of himself. And Haney gave it right back. I don’t think Andrew gave Derek any shit, I just Derek just dished it out. And that’s not a question of being nice or not, it’s basically just acting like a douche or not. You know what I mean?
I mean let’s face it folks this article is about H-A-D-I- WE ARE TRYING TO TALK ABOUT HADI, DEAR BROSISFAM, but I have already spent sevral paragraphs talking about Derek, and another paragraph talking about Samson and Andrew, hell even Nick Walker got a few more mentions here simply by virtue of not wanting to compete anymore in 2026. It really goes to the topic at hand that HADI probably feels like it’s now or never for him to make a drastic change in order to ensure His highest likelihood of ever winning back the OLYMPIA TITLE. If he didn’t win it back in 2025, what’s to say he’ll win it back in 2026? I think Hadi looked his best last year but his best is no match for either Andrew or Samson at theirs. And apparently by the decision of the judges last year, it was no match for Derek’s best. I don’t care either way about it because I don’t know think much of either Derek’s or Hadi’s physiques. But the bigger question is if the coaching change will change Choopan’s luck.
A coach can only go so far. Hadi has always been praised for his condition and I don’t see how Milos could improve on that. I mean Hadi always takes the stage looking bone dry and supervascular. If the goal is to look even more conditioned, I don’t think that’s something that Milos can necessarily help with. I think that comes down to suffering. Could the goal be to gain size? I mean it could be, but is Hadi really going to gain any more size on that frame? The guy already looks ridiculous (sorry bro). If that’s the goal, I would argue that he didn’t Milos for that and I’d have to argue that it’s May 27th and the Olympia is just a few months away. How much tissue could Milos or anybody help Hadi develop in that short amount of time?
On the flipside, maybe the coaching decision was not on HADI’s part. Perhaps whoever was helping Hadi, which was more than likely Hany, is out. Maybe the coach he was working with before, if it wasn’t Hany, didn’t want to work with him moving forward. Perhaps hiring Milos was a reaction to whatever that initial coach decided to do. But I tend to believe that this was entirely on Hadi’s end. I think that he is coming to the realization that even though he has a decorated resume, he’s not being talked about. And whatever he did last year wasn’t good enough. That’s always a danger with taking second place. Because when you take second place at a contest like the Olympia, I think it’s safe to say that some judges had him first. Therefore I am not a big proponent of a runner-up dramatically changing things to come back the next year to win. Plus in 2026, Hadi may not be up against Derek, rather, he might be up against Andrew or Samson. And maybe with what he brought last year he can’t beat these guys in 2026. Again, I just don’t understand the rationale behind changing coaches this close to the Olympia. We’re really talking about a question of 5 to 6 months. It’s definitely bizarre.
Plus let’s not forget that anytime a competitor works with a new coach, whether it be at the amateurs or all the way to the top echelons of professional bodybuilding, there is a margin of error there. The coach needs to really get to know the competitor’s body, how they react to macro and micronutrients, how they react to protocols, etc. On the flip, the competitor needs to feel comfortable with the coach and have a strong line of communication. All of these things take TIME. The idea that Hadi and Milos are going to be able to immediately create clear lines of communication, familiarity, knowledge, and then be able to be as competitive as possible in just a matter of 5 to 6 months is ludicrous. Clearly this was not well thought out or perhaps the coaching relationship has predated the announcement substantially. But I can’t imagine that a big name coach like Milos is going to ghost coach for any reason, much less an indefinite period of time. He’s a big name coach with a who’s who of clients. I don’t think that he would ever lend himself for that sort of publicity stunt.
What can I say folks? I have a lot of questions, as I’m sure you do as well. What do you make of the sudden coaching change? And do you think that the Hadi/Milos connection can win them back the Sandow at the 2026 Mr. Olympia. As always, I hope you enjoyed reading my article at IronMag. I look forward to reading your feedback in the comments. Please be sure to copy and paste a link to this article on all your social media feeds.
Author Bio:
Christian I. Duque is the owner of StrengthAddicts.com, a physique and strength website founded in 2008. He has worked for a number of bodybuilding websites, including RX Muscle and Muscular Development. Christian has written nearly 1,000 published articles for IronMag Blog, as well as articles for StrengthAddicts, RX Muscle, and others. By day, he is also a licensed attorney practicing in the areas of family law, immigration, and criminal defense.
