William “The Conqueror” Bonac has been a regular fixture in the competitive bodybuilding scene for over a decade. After finishing in the top five in five of the last six Mr. Olympia contests (2016-2021), the Men’s Open athlete’s latest mass-building update might say he’s finally ready to climb the Olympia summit this December.
On Sept. 18, 2022, Bonac’s nutritionist Chad Nicholls shared a picture on Instagram where he said the bodybuilder weighed 120.3 kilograms (265.2 pounds) at the end of his training off-season. (Note: Nicholls appeared to make a typo with the precise numbers of Bonac’s weight details.) According to Nicholls’ caption, Bonac’s initial off-season body weight goal was 120 kilograms (264.5 pounds).
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Bonac plans to take his newly-bulked physique to the 2022 Mr. Olympia this late fall. The contest will take place on Dec. 16-18, 2022, in Las Vegas, NV. According to NPC News Online, like some of his peers in other competitions, Bonac earned automatic qualification for this year’s Olympia by winning the 2022 International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness (IFBB) Pro League Boston Pro. In other notable results from this year, the Ghanaian competitor finished second at the 2022 Arnold Sports Festival to former Olympia winner (2019), Brandon Curry.
As a bodybuilder, Bonac has been on the doorstep of greatness at the Olympia for a little while now. It wasn’t always this way, which might speak to his commitment and growth as an overall professional.
In 2014, Bonac finished in 15th place at the 2014 Mr. Olympia — his debut at the competition. Just a year later, in 2015, Bonac cracked the top 10 with an eighth-place result. By 2016, Bonac had a top-five Mr. Olympia placing to his name. That figure is more or less where Bonac has hovered around since, sans the arguable peak of his career when he took home second place at the 2019 Mr. Olympia. Curry won that edition of the prestigious contest.
Here’s a rundown of some of Bonac’s more noteworthy career results to date:
William Bonac | Notable Career Results
- 2014 Golden State Pro (Men’s Open) — First place | First career victory
- 2014 Mr. Olympia (Men’s Open) — 15th place | Olympia debut
- 2015 Dayana Cadeau Pro (Men’s Open) — First place
- 2015 Mr. Olympia (Men’s Open) — Eighth place
- 2016 Mr. Olympia (Men’s Open) — Fifth place
- 2017 Mr. Olympia (Men’s Open) — Third place
- 2018, 2020 Arnold Sports Festival (Men’s Open) — First place
- 2019 Arnold Classic Australia (Men’s Open) — First place
- 2019 Mr. Olympia (Men’s Open) — Second place | Best Olympia result to date
- 2020 Mr. Olympia (Men’s Open) — Fifth place
- 2021 Mr. Olympia (Men’s Open) — Sixth place
- 2022 Boston Pro (Men’s Open) — First place | Earned 2022 Olympia qualification with victory
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For Bonac to finally stand on top of the Olympia podium, he’ll have to overcome a cadre of elite competitors. With two-time reigning Olympia champion Mamdouh “Big Ramy” Ellsbiay leading a list of names that also features Curry, Nick Walker, Hunter Labrada, and Hadi Choopan — the Men’s Open division isn’t lacking for top-notch talent this year.
Such a field of athletes might make it tough sledding for Bonac in Las Vegas. Then again, with Bonac’s past consistency in the account, this could be the culminating cap to a long and winding journey.
Featured image: @thedietdoc on Instagram