In the main two bouts, U.S. wrestlers Tervel Dlagnev and Kyle Dake will face off against highly ranked international opposition for Global Wrestling Championship titles. The following matches will be available on pay per view
Rollie Peterkin vs. Stephen Abas
Abas retired from competitive wrestling in 2008, but he has competed sporadically in these types of events. The three-time NCAA champion at Fresno State holds a silver medal that he won at the 2004 Olympic Games. Abas does hold a 3-0 record as a professional MMA fighter, but he has mostly settled into a coaching role at this point.
Peterkin wrestled collegiately at the University of Pennsylvania. He qualified for the NCAA tournament three times but was never able to achieve All-American status. Peterkin recently left a career on Wall Street to embark on an MMA run (you can read his blog about it here). He holds a 3-0 record as a professional with all his bouts coming under the Inka FC banner.
Despite being mostly retired, Abas will still bring skill, experience and athletic advantages to the mat. This match will be pretty much one sided.
Joe Warren vs. Scott Jorgensen
Warren's MMA career appeared to nearing the end after back-to-back losses. However, since then, he has won five fights in a row and claimed the Bellator bantamweight title. Before ever fighting, Warren won the Pan American Championships, World Cup and World Championships in Greco-Roman.
While mostly known for his MMA career that saw him fight for the first ever UFC bantamweight title, Jorgensen made some noise of the mats as well. During his career at Boise State, he claimed three Pac-10 titles and continued to work with the team after graduation.
This match offers a rare Bellator vs. UFC opportunity. These two are actually friends and have trained together in the past. On paper Warren is the more accomplished wrestler. Plus, he seems to have taken less of a physical toll over the course of his career. Warren should prevail, but do not be shocked by a close affair between competitors who know each other quite well.
Shawn Bunch vs. Damacio Page
Bunch continued wrestling after his two-time All American career at Edinboro. He wrestled extensively on the international circuit and represented the U.S. at the 2009 World Championships. In 2012, Bunch signed with Bellator. So far, he has gone 3-1 in the promotion.
Page wrestled collegiately at Cerritos College. He has been fighting professionally since 2005. He went 3-1 under the WEC banner between 2008-2009. The Greg Jackson protege recently got back on track with three-straight victories for Legacy FC.
Over the course of his MMA career, Page has struggled against better wrestlers. On the mats, Bunch will be a clear favorite. He should have very little trouble getting into his offense. This one might end with a fall.
Jordan Oliver vs. Frank Molinaro
Oliver finished his career at Oklahoma State with a pair of NCAA titles and four All-American seasons. He has now staked a claim as a regular on the 65 kilos freestyle Olympic ladder. In 2014, he came up short of making the U.S. world team as he fell in the trials finale to Brent Metcalf.
Molinaro wrestled for Cael Sanderson at Penn State. He finished his career with an undefeated season and a national title his senior year. Like Oliver, he has dedicated himself to securing a spot on the 2016 Olympic team. Earlier this year, he won the Dave Schultz Memorial International.
These two narrowly missed wrestling at both the U.S. Open and World Team Trials. Oliver has to be the favorite here. His hyper-offensive style translates much better to freestyle than the grinding domination of Molinaro. However, this will most likely not be the last time these two face off.
Gray Maynard vs. Ozzy Dugulubgov
Before transitioning to MMA, Maynard was a three-time All-American at Michigan State. He was also teammates with fellow UFC fighter Rashad Evans. The former lightweight title challenger seems determined to return to his wrestling roots as he recently competed in the Flo Premiere League as well.
Despite being from the North Caucasus region like Khabib Nurmagomedov and Rustam Khailbov, Dugulubgov is not a wrestler. He comes from mostly a taekwondo background. He signed with World Series of Fighting in 2013 and has gone 3-1 for the promotion. However, his lone defeat under the WSOF banner came against former Boise State wrestler Jonathan Nunez. That is probably not a good sign here.
Maynard has not looked his best during recent fights. However, those defeats are mostly about his ability to take a punch at this point in his career. Maynard looked great beating fellow fighter Dennis Bermudez 18-9 at FPL. He should be equally dominant here.
Brennan Ward vs. Igor Gracie
Ward was a Division III All-American for Johnson & Wales University. In 2013, he won an eight-man Bellator tournament to earn a shot at then-middleweight Alexander Shlemenko, but he was unable to claim the belt. Overall, he holds a 9-3 MMA record.
Renzo Gracie's cousin is a two-time medalist at the Mundials (Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World Championships). He has also won medals at the Brazilian Nationals and Pan American Championships. Gracie is 5-4 as an MMA fighter having fought for Strikeforce, Bellator and WSOF.
Gracie has struggle in MMA when facing physically imposing opposition. Ward should be able to close the distance and control this match in the clinch.
Darryl Christian vs. Gregor Gracie
Christian was a two-time U.S. National Champion in Greco-Roman. He wrestled collegiately for the now defunct University of Oregon team. He is still active as a wrestling trainer for MMA fighters such as B.J. Penn.
Gracie competed extensively in BJJ at the lower belt levels. Since moving up to the black belt level, he did win a bronze medal at the 2009 ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championships. In MMA, he has competed in One FC and WSOF and amassed a 7-4 record.
Obviously Gracie is much more of a grappler than a wrestler. However, he has shown off rather impressive takedowns in some of his submission matches. Plus, age will almost certainly be a factor for Christian. Expect Gracie to pull off a mild upset here.
Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal vs. Rolles Gracie
Lawal was a regular on the Olympic ladder before transitioning to MMA. On the mats, he was a four-time U.S. National Champion. In 2010, Lawal upset Gegard Mousasi for the Strikeforce light heavyweight title. He currently competes for Bellator and is coming off back-to-back victories.
Gracie finished second at the 2007 ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championships. He is also a three-time Pan American Champion. The UFC veteran holds an 8-3 record in MMA. He recently fought Karol Bedorf for the KSW heavyweight title, but he could not wrestle the belt away.
This one might turn into one of the most lopsided scores of the night. Lawal is an extremely accomplished and skilled wrestler. Gracie might be able to hold his own early, but eventually the onslaught will overtake him. Lawal seems to finally be rounding back into top form after a series of devastating injuries.
Predicted Final Dual Score: Team Warren 6 over Team Gracie 2
Global Wrestling Championships Freestyle International Heavyweight Title
Tervel Dlagnev (c) vs. Khadzhimurat Gatsalov
Dlagnev has been a regular on U.S. world teams for years. During his collegiate days, he was a two-time Division II All-American at Nebraska Kearney. On the international level, he has won a pair of bronzes at the World Championships. He recently defeated Tyrell Fortune for the Inaugural GWC heavyweight championship.
Gatsalov is five-time world champion for Russia. He won his first four titles at 96 kilos before moving up to heavyweight. He also took gold at the 2004 Olympics. He has recently been helping former opponent and U.S. Olympian Daniel Cormier prepare for his UFC title bout with Jon Jones. Gatsalov defeated Cormier at the 2004 games.
Both wrestlers finished with bronze medals at the 2014 World Championships. As previously stated Gatsalov has been in the states, so he is away from his normal training camp. Dlagnev will be the bigger wrestler. Expect the American to hold onto his belt with an upset of the former world champ.
Global Wrestling Championships Greco-Roman Welterweight Title
Kyle Dake vs. Arsen Julfalakyan
Arsen Julfalakyan won a Greco-Roman World title in 2013 (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)Julfalakyan had already won three world medals for Armenia before finally breaking through winning the 2014 World Championships. He had also previously taken silver at the 2012 Olympics. In the 2014 finale, he bested Neven Zugaj of Croatia.
Stepping up against a reigning world champion in a foreign style is daring but probably not the smartest thing in the world. Dake shows good stance and base on the feet, but Greco nearly a different sport. Look for Julfalakyan to send the New York fans home unhappy.
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