Thoughts on the 2027 World Team Trials Procedures

[bnwtwg]

100% serious question: can RAF throw some quid pro quo dark money at Nickal and Steveson to enter Farrell and go back to OTT. All three brands win: the athlete, RAF, and UFC. Thanks in advance.

[LJB]

i will say...

the farrell may actually be worth watching this year...

it has been a bit weak for a minute...

[bnwtwg]

31 minutes ago, LJB said:

i will say...

the farrell may actually be worth watching this year...

it has been a bit weak for a minute...

It was a big deal in 2019 as well, pretty certain it was only oly weights and big domestic names were there including Steveson, Snyder, Gross, Imar, Nolf, Ringer, Jackson, Zillmer, etc

That might be the last time it was relevant and excited for a return to prominence.

[LJB]

i am almost positive it was a qualifier in 2023 as well...

feels like only the winner and not top 3...

[bnwtwg]

1 hour ago, LJB said:

i am almost positive it was a qualifier in 2023 as well...

feels like only the winner and not top 3...

2024 OTT qualification was only the Farrel winner. The rest was age group champs, NCAA champ of same year, past world/oly team members, and a "Not the US Open" top 5? top 7? in December or January. *And a last chance tourney that I think was winner or go home.

Edited August 11 by bnwtwg
Forgot OTT last chance

[LJB]

top 3 feels like one of the weaker "qualifiers" i've seen in a minute...

[bnwtwg]

34 minutes ago, LJB said:

top 3 feels like one of the weaker "qualifiers" i've seen in a minute...

Ehh it's the US Open/ WTT. OTT will be much tighter - my guess is 12 per weight, less than that actually show up

[LJB]

1 minute ago, bnwtwg said:

Ehh it's the US Open/ WTT. OTT will be much tighter - my guess is 12 per weight, less than that actually show up

[JMill]

On 8/11/2026 at 10:59 AM, LJB said:

i will believe OTT trials will be in december when it happens...

regardless, quotas earned are for the country not the athlete, so, it really does not matter who gets sent to the ranking series...

Quotas are earned for the country, but ranking series points are earned for the athlete. The same athlete needs to wrestle in multiple ranking series tournaments to get enough points to earn the country an allocation through that route. 

[LJB]

11 hours ago, JMill said:

Quotas are earned for the country, but ranking series points are earned for the athlete. The same athlete needs to wrestle in multiple ranking series tournaments to get enough points to earn the country an allocation through that route. 

traditionally yes...

not sure that will apply for the olympic qualifying...

whatever... we will find out soon enough...

 

[JMill]

9 hours ago, LJB said:

traditionally yes...

not sure that will apply for the olympic qualifying...

whatever... we will find out soon enough...

 

CP said that’s how it is, and he seemed pretty sure of it… It’s part of the reason for determining the team early.

The second phase will be the UWW Rankings in which the first three wrestlers of the rankings, not qualified in the first phase, will obtain one quota place for their NOC for the LA28 Olympic Games.

[LJB]

CP has no real knowledge or connections to anyone...

that does not make him a bad guy, but, just understand who you are listening to...

[JMill]

To be fair, the whole FRL crew was in agreement and acknowledged this is where there was some confusion (which leads me to believe they looked into it further for clarification). The above copy & paste was directly from the UWW website, and it certainly makes it sound like it is not based on a country’s combined ranking points. 
 However, a wrestler’s seed at the Olympics, earned with ranking series points, stays with the country, not the wrestler.

A key change is that at the Olympic Games, the seed belongs to the country, which keeps the seed even if it replaces the athlete who earned it. In all other events, the seed belongs to the wrestler, and a nation loses that seed if a different athlete competes.
 

[LJB]