2025 Final X Preview: 74 kg MFS Mitchell Mesenbrink vs. David Carr

It’s about that time! In the past couple of weeks, we’ve spent time loosely discussing Final X; however, it’s time to start talking about the individual matches themselves. Over the next couple of weeks, we’ll break down all 20 Final X matchups - leading into the event itself on June 14th, from Newark, New Jersey. 

Our next preview is in men’s freestyle at 74 kg. This will be a transition year for the men’s freestyle team at this weight. For the first time since 2010, a wrestler not named Burroughs or Dake will represent us at the Senior World Championships. 

Just because it’s a changing of the guard, doesn’t mean that we won’t have a medal contender in Zagreb. Both Final X participants have U20/Junior world gold medals to their respective names. While not regular contenders at the Senior level (yet!), I like our chances at the World Championships with either. 

Those wrestlers are Mitchell Mesenbrink and David Carr. There will be plenty of familiarity between the two as they’ve met twice in the last 15 months. Each has a win. What better way to tilt the balance in one wrestler's favor than a best-of-three series with a trip to their first Senior World Championships on the line?

Prior Previews

57 kg men’s freestyle

61 kg men's freestyle

65 kg men's freestyle

70 kg men's freestyle

50 kg women’s freestyle

53 kg women's freestyle

55 kg women's freestyle

57 kg women's freestyle

74 kg men’s freestyle

Mitchell Mesenbrink vs. David Carr

The overlying question in this series is “Was their US Open finals match an aberration?” A year ago, Mesenbrink and Carr wrestled an extremely tight match in the NCAA finals. Some think that Mesenbrink could have even earned another stalling call, which would have changed the complexion of the match. Then came the ambush at the Open. We know that there are some differences between freestyle and folkstyle; however, not necessarily to the tune of 16-6 which was the final score in Mesenbrink’s favor in Vegas. 

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