InterMat Staff

Skutt Catholic

Northfield

Garner

Croatan

New York Military Academy

Minnewaska

Union-LaPorte City

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Here are the final medal round matches across all three styles for the 2026 Senior World Championships Final Results Men’s Freestyle 57 kg Gold Medal Match: Spencer Lee (USA) over Roman Bravo-Young (Mexico) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Chong-Song Han (North Korea) over Munkh Erdene Batkhuyag (Mongolia) 3-1 Bronze Medal Match: Abubakar Mutaliev (Russia) over Islam Bazarganov (Azerbaijan) 6-2 61 kg Gold Medal Match: Ahmad Javan (Iran) over Zavur Uguev (Russia) 9-2 Bronze Medal Match: Marcus Blaze (USA) over Nikhil (India) 9-1 Bronze Medal Match: Kwang-Myong Kim (North Korea) over Zelimkhan Abakarov (Albania) 3-3 65 kg Gold Medal Match: Bo Bassett (USA) over Vazgen Tavayan (Armenia) 9-1 Bronze Medal Match: Rahman Amouzad (Iran) over Shamil Mamedov (Bulgaria) 5-4 Bronze Medal Match: Abasgadzhi Magomedov (Russia) over Abdulamazhid Kudiev (Tajikistan) 3-2 70 kg Gold Medal Match: Ibragim Ibragimov (Russia) over Ernazar Akmataliev (Kyrgyzstan) 5-2 Bronze Medal Match: Tulga Tumur Ochir (Mongolia) over Vasile Diacon (Moldova) Fall 3:55 Bronze Medal Match: Zain Retherford (USA) over Lachlan McNeil (Canada) 4-0 74 kg Gold Medal Match: Inalbek Sheriev (Russia) over Nurkozha Kaipanov (Kazakhstan) 10-4 Bronze Medal Match: Amir Mohammad Yazdani (Iran) over Tajmuraz Salkazanov (Slovakia) 5-4 Bronze Medal Match: Yoshinosuke Aoyagi (Japan) over Turan Bayramov (Azerbaijan) 11-0 79 kg Gold Medal Match: Levi Haines (USA) over Mohammad Nokhodilarimi (Iran) 4-3 Bronze Medal Match: Mahamedkhabib Kadzimahamedau (Belarus) over Dzhabrail Gadzhiev (Azerbaijan) 3-0 Bronze Medal Match: Ismail Kaniev (Russia) over Suldkhuu Olonbayaryn (Mongolia) 6-0 86 kg Gold Medal Match: Kyle Dake (USA) over Arsenii Dzhioev (Azerbaijan) 3-2 Bronze Medal Match: Vladimiri Gamkrelidze (Georgia) over Georgios Kougioumtsidis (Greece) 6-0 Bronze Medal Match: Malik Shavaev (Kyrgyzstan) over Ibragim Kadiev (Russia) 4-3 92 kg Gold Medal Match: Amanula Gadzhimagomedov (Russia) over Trent Hidlay (USA) 3-2 Bronze Medal Match: Ali Tcokaev (Azerbaijan) over Amir Hossein Firouzpour (Iran) 6-0 Bronze Medal Match: Miriani Maisuradze (Georgia) over Samuel Scherrer (Switzerland) 6-3 97 kg Gold Medal Match: Kyle Snyder (USA) over Arash Yoshida (Japan) 4-4 Bronze Medal Match: Abdulrashid Sadulaev (Russia) over Zbiginiew Baranowski (Poland) 5-0 Bronze Medal Match: Hassan Yazdani (Iran) over Akhmed Tazhudinov (Bahrain) 5-0 125 kg Gold Medal Match: Amir Zare (Iran) over Abdulla Kurbanov (Russia) 11-0 Bronze Medal Match: Wyatt Hendrickson (USA) over Jaspooran Singh (India) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Giorgio Meshvildishvili (Azerbaijan) over Vladislav Baitsaev (Hungary) Cautions Women’s Freestyle 50 kg Gold Medal Match: Yui Susaki (Japan) over Neelam Sirohi (India) Fall 2:13 Bronze Medal Match: Zeinep Bayanova (Kazakhstan) over Nataliia Varakina (Belarus) 6-1 Bronze Medal Match: Feng Ziqi (China) over Oksana Livach (Ukraine) 10-0 53 kg Gold Medal Match: Moe Kiyooka (Japan) over Lucia Yepez Guzman (Ecuador) 6-0 Bronze Medal Match: Andreea Ana (Romania) over Cristelle Rodriguez-Dobler (USA) 6-3 Bronze Medal Match: Jonna Malmgren (Sweden) over Jin Zhang (China) 5-2 55 kg Gold Medal Match: Everest Leydecker (USA) over Nataliia Klivchutska (Ukraine) 4-1 Bronze Medal Match: Ekaterina Verbina (Russia) over Tuba Demir (Turkiye) 11-0 Bronze Medal Match: Nagisa Harada (Japan) over Anastasia Blayvas (Germany) Fall 4:10 57 kg Gold Medal Match: Kexin Hong (China) over Sena Nagamoto (Japan) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Iryna Kurachkina (Belarus) over Khulan Batkhuyag (Mongolia) 12-11 Bronze Medal Match: Helen Maroulis (USA) over Nilufar Raimova (Kazakhstan) 5-2 59 kg Gold Medal Match: Manisha Bhanwala (India) over Abby Nette (USA) 8-6 Bronze Medal Match: Mariia Vynnyk (Ukraine) over Svetlana Lipatova (Russia) 7-6 Bronze Medal Match: Bolortuya Khurelkhuu (Mongolia) over Altyn Shagayeva (Kazakhstan) Fall 2:59 62 kg Gold Medal Match: Adaugo Nwachukwu (USA) over Nonoka Ozaki (Japan) 12-11 Bronze Medal Match: Amina Tandelova (Russia) over Esther Kolawole (Nigeria) 7-3 Bronze Medal Match: Bilyana Dudova (Bulgaria) over Johanna Lindborg (Sweden) 5-2 65 kg Gold Medal Match: Alina Kasabieva (Russia) over Irina Ringaci (Moldova) 6-3 Bronze Medal Match: Nana Ikehata (Japan) over Enkhjin Tuvshinjargal (Mongolia) 9-0 Bronze Medal Match: Yongxin Feng (China) over Solomiia Vynnyk (Ukraine) 11-0 68 kg Gold Medal Match: Jia Long (China) over Meerim Zhumanazarova (Kyrgyzstan) 4-3 Bronze Medal Match: Kennedy Blades (USA) over Delgermaa Enkhsaikhan (Mongolia) Fall 5:10 Bronze Medal Match: Adela Hanzlickova (Czech Republic) over Manola Skobelska (Ukraine) 6-6 72 kg Gold Medal Match: Zelu Li (China) over Wiktoria Choluj (Poland) 4-3 Bronze Medal Match: Tanu Sharma (India) over Precious Wieser 9-5 Bronze Medal Match: Mahiro Yoshitake (Japan) over Zhamila Bakbergenova (Kazakhstan) 6-4 76 kg Gold Medal Match: Anastasiya Alpyeyeva (Ukraine) over Kajal Dhocak (India) 8-6 Bronze Medal Match: Dymond Guilford (USA) over Kadriye Aksoy (Turkiye) 7-2 Bronze Medal Match: Davaanasan Enkh Amar (Mongolia) over Aiperi Medet Kyzy (Kyrgyzstan) 4-1 Greco Roman 55 kg Gold Medal Match: Eldaniz Azizli (Azerbaijan) over Payam Ahmadi (Iran) 3-1 Bronze Medal Match: Vakhtang Lolua (Georgia) over Davaabandi Munkh Erdene (Mongolia) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Iskhar Kurbayez (Kazakhstan) over Lalit Sehrawat (India) 9-0 60 kg Gold Medal Match: Koto Gomi (Japan) over Ali Ahmadi Vafa (Iran) Fall 4:12 Bronze Medal Match: Alisher Ganiev (Uzbekistan) over Abdolmohammad Papi (Germany) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Aidos Sultangali (Kazakhstan) over Liguo Cao (China) 5-1 63 kg Gold Medal Match: Karen Aslanyan (Armenia) over Nihat Mammadali (Azerbaijan) 8-4 Bronze Medal Match: Sergey Emelin (Russia) over Aref Mohammadi (Qatar) 9-0 Bronze Medal Match: Ozobek Khalimboev (Uzbekistan) over Edmond Nazaryan (Bulgaria) 7-3 67 kg Gold Medal Match: Saeid Esmaeili Leivesi (Iran) over Aytjan Khalmakhanov (Uzbekistan) Fall Bronze Medal Match: Bagdat Sabaz (Kazakhstan) over Hasrat Jafarov (Azerbaijan) 8-5 Bronze Medal Match: Luis Orta (Cuba) over Slavik Galstyan (Armenia) 10-6 72 kg Gold Medal Match: Seyed Sohrabi (Iran) over Krisztian Vancza (Hungary) 4-0 Bronze Medal Match: Iuri Lomadze (Georgia) over Parviz Nasibov (Ukraine) 7-4 Bronze Medal Match: Amantur Ismailov (Kyrgyzstan) over Mingiian Goriaev (Russia) 10-0 77 kg Gold Medal Match: Sanan Suleymanov (Azerbaijan) over Alexandrin Gutu (Moldova) 8-3 Bronze Medal Match: Ali Oskou (Iran) over Doniyorkhon Nakibov (Uzbekistan) 4-3 Bronze Medal Match: Shuai Mamedau (Belarus) over Stoyan Kubatov (Belarus) Fall 4:32 82 kg Gold Medal Match: Gholamreza Farrokhi (Iran) over Yuksel Saricicek (Turkiye) 7-1 Bronze Medal Match: Mihail Bradu (Moldova) over Gamzat Gadzhiev (Russia) 3-3 Bronze Medal Match: Akzhol Makhmudov (Kyrgyzstan) over Halishan Bahejiang (China) 6-5 87 kg Gold Medal Match: Semen Novikov (Bulgaria) over Alireza Mohmadipiani (Iran) 4-0 Bronze Medal Match: Lasha Gobadze (Georgia) over Mukhammadkodir Rasulov (Uzbekistan) 5-1 Bronze Medal Match: Gevorg Tadevosyan (Armenia) over Yaroslav Filchakov (Ukraine) 4-1 97 kg Gold Medal Match: Kiryl Maskevich (Belarus) over Artur Sargsian (Russia) 7-1 Bronze Medal Match: Kiril Milov (Bulgaria) over Markus Ragginger (Austria) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Mohammadhadi Saravi (Iran) over Alex Bjurberg Kessidis (Sweden) 3-0 130 kg Gold Medal Match: Fardin Hedayati (Iran) over Darius Vitek (Hungary) 8-0 Bronze Medal Match: Pavel Hlinchuk (Belarus) over Rafael Tsitsuashvili (Uzbekistan) 3-1 Bronze Medal Match: Wenhao Jiang (China) over Matti Kuosmanen (Finland) 5-4

Saturday’s DI Dual Results Wyoming 51 Western Wyoming 0 125 - Isaiah Harrison (Wyoming) fall Wylee Wilson (Western Wyoming) Fall 4:06 133 - Luke Willochell (Wyoming) tech Luke Schroeder (Western Wyoming) 15-0 141 - Derek Barrows (Wyoming) fall Dalton Compton (Western Wyoming) 3:37 149 - Austin Collins (Wyoming) tech Logan Crowther (Western Wyoming) 20-4 157 - Antonio Avila (Wyoming) tech Treyson Hunt (Western Wyoming) 16-1 165 - Manny Rojas (Wyoming) maj Dominic Blue (Western Wyoming) 10-2 174 - Riley Davis (Wyoming) tech Kelten Crow (Western Wyoming) 20-5 184 - Eddie Neitenbach (Wyoming) tech Isaac McGee (Western Wyoming) 21-6 197 - Joey Novak (Wyoming) fall Trevyn Gates (Western Wyoming) :56 285 - Winston McBridge (Wyoming) maj Morgan Hatch (Western Wyoming) 18-5 Hofstra 35 Sacred Heart 7 125 - Teague Strobel (Hofstra) fall Austin Zimmerman (Sacred Heart) 4:37 133 - Gauge Shipp (Hofstra) dec Braxton Fries-Appello (Sacred Heart) 2-0 141 - Laudan Henry (Hofstra) dec John Hildebrandt (Sacred Heart) 4-0 149 - Noah Tapia (Hofstra) fall Felix Lettini (Sacred Heart) 3:43 157 - Zach Reilly (Hofstra) fall John Sheehy (Sacred Heart) 5:59 165 - Jake Slotnick (Hofstra) dec AJ Falcone (Sacred Heart) 7-1 174 - Jayden D’Ambrosio (Sacred Heart) dec Frank Volpe (Hofstra) 10-4 184 - Jaden Simpson (Hofstra) maj Eric Wolf (Sacred Heart) 16-3 197 - Will Conlon (Hofstra) maj Henry Downing (Sacred Heart) 11-2 285 - Brendan Gilchrist (Sacred Heart) maj Danny Church (Hofstra) 11-2 Sunday’s DI Dual Results Purdue 24 Kent State 12 125 - Adan Benavidez (Kent State) dec Ashton Jackson (Purdue) 9-8 133 - Vincent Paino (Purdue) maj Nick Molchak (Kent State) 11-2 141 - Isaiah Schaefer (Purdue) maj Landen Duncan (Kent State) 12-2 149 - Nate Roth (Kent State) dec Gavin Brown (Purdue) 6-3 157 - Reese Stephen (Kent State) dec Brody Saccoccia (Purdue) 4-2 165 - Joey Blaze (Purdue) tech Ty Deericks (Kent State) 21-5 174 - Brody Baumann (Purdue) tech Ethan Barr (Kent State) 19-3 184 - James Rowley (Purdue) dec JR Reed (Kent State) 6-5 197 - Noah Weaver (Purdue) dec Trent Thomas (Kent State) 18-12 285 - Brentan Simmerman (Kent State) dec Austin Richens (Purdue) 4-2 Michigan 50 VMI 0 125 - Henry Aslikyan (Michigan) fall Malachi Ortiz (VMI) 2:55 133 - Moses Mendoza (Michigan) fall Cody Tanner (VMI) 4:45 141 - Kellen Wolbert (Michigan) maj Phoenix Alyea (VMI) 11-3 149 - Sergio Lemley (Michigan) tech EJ Sheeran (VMI) 20-4 157 - Justin Gates (Michigan) tech Merritt Clinton (VMI) 19-3 165 - Cam Catrabone (Michigan) fall JT Bowers (VMI) 1:28 174 - Josh Knudten (Michigan) maj Beau Lewis (VMI) 15-4 184 - Brock Mantanona (Michigan) tech Gideon Gerber (VMI) 20-4 197 - Hayden Walters (Michigan) tech Toby Schoffstall (VMI) 16-0 285 - Niko Sahakian (Michigan) maj Braxton Lewis (VMI) 12-1 Wisconsin 32 Bloomsburg 7 125 - Alan Koehler (Wisconsin) dec Justin Jones (Bloomsburg) 5-2 133 - Peter Tomazevic (Wisconsin) dec Austin Pollard (Bloomsburg) 10-9 141 - Collin McDowell (Wisconsin) dec Scott Johnson (Bloomsburg) 10-7 149 - Carson Exferd (Wisconsin) dec Jay Chase (Bloomsburg) 1-0 157 - Michael Turi (Bloomsburg) dec Matthew Jens (Wisconsin) 2-1 165 - Morgan Schwarz (Bloomsburg) maj Cody Goebel (Wisconsin) 14-6 174 - Luke Condon (Wisconsin) fall George Johnson (Bloomsburg) 6:12 184 - Clayton Whiting (Wisconsin) FFT 197 - Wyatt Ingham (Wisconsin) maj Wyatt Bush (Bloomsburg) 11-1 285 - Braxton Amos (Wisconsin) maj Mason Rebuck (Bloomsburg) 11-1 North Dakota State 28 Mary 7 125 - Ezekiel Witt (North Dakota State) dec Nic Enzminger (Mary) 7-2 133 - Brendan Agcaoili (North Dakota State) dec Ben DeForest (Mary) 11-7 141 - Sean Solis (Mary) dec Devon Harrison (North Dakota State) 11-7 149 - Jacob Strausbaugh (Mary) maj Brayden Canoyer (North Dakota State) 14-6 157 - Michael Olson (North Dakota State) dec Kale Baumann (Mary) 4-2 165 - Boeden Greenley (North Dakota State) dec Kaden Renner (Mary) 8-2 174 - David Alonso (North Dakota State) maj Joey Mushinsky (Mary) 24-10 184 - Andrew McMonagle (North Dakota State) maj Wyatt Elam (Mary) 14-2 197 - Devin Wasley (North Dakota State) tech Sam Bruss (Mary) 15-0 285 - Adam Cherne (North Dakota State) dec Emery Slater (Mary) 3-2 Oklahoma 46 Northeastern State 0 125 - Sebastian Degennaro (Oklahoma) tech Colden Dyer (Northeastern State) 15-0 133 - Isaiah Powe (Oklahoma) tech Canaan Brummett (Northeastern State) 18-3 141 - Tyler Wells (Oklahoma) tech Sean Gonzalez (Northeastern State) 21-6 149 - Jack Gioffre (Oklahoma) tech Evan Rodriguez (Northeastern State) 17-2 157 - Rafael Hipolito (Oklahoma) fall Chase Dyer (Northeastern State) 3:35 165 - Owen Eck (Oklahoma) dec Clay Giddens (Northeastern State) 7-4 174 - Ty Eise (Oklahoma) dec Silas Foster (Northeastern State) 8-1 184 - Mason Ontiveros (Oklahoma) tech Braden Brown (Northeastern State) 19-3 197 - Jersey Robb (Oklahoma) dec Ethan Day (Northeastern State) 10-3 285 - Bradley Hill (Oklahoma) fall Christian Clark (Northeastern State) :51 American 23 Central Michigan 17 125 - JJ Peace (American) tech Archer Anderson (Central Michigan) 22-7 133 - Colin Martin (American) maj Andrew Austin (Central Michigan) 15-3 141 - Zeke Seltzer (Central Michigan) dec Blake Boyer (American) 7-1 149 - Jimmy Nugent (Central Michigan) dec Leo Maestas (American) 9-2 157 - Reagan Milheim (American) fall Seth Larson (Central Michigan) 1:13 165 - Kaden Milheim (American) dec Leo Contino (Central Michigan) 10-3 174 - Wyatt Ferguson (Central Michigan) maj Austin Craft (American) 10-2 184 - Caleb Campos (American) tech Trey Myers (Central Michigan) 17-2 197 - Luke Cochran (Central Michigan) dec Caleb Close (American) 6-3 285 - Carter Neves (Central Michigan) maj Isaiah Taylor (American) 16-5 American 30 CSU Bakersfield 6 125 - JJ Peace (American) dec Gabe Ramirez (CSU Bakersfield) 4-1SV 133 - Colin Martin (American) maj Saxton Scott (CSU Bakersfield) 8-0 141 - Robert Jones (CSU Bakersfield) dec Cael McIntyre (American) 2-0 149 - Leo Maestas (American) dec Hayden Zinkin (CSU Bakersfield) 7-4 157 - Reagan Milheim (American) fall Jacob Bell (CSU Bakersfield) 4:51 165 - Gabriel Schumm (CSU Bakersfield) dec Kaden Milheim (American) 9-5 174 - Hunter Hohman (American) dec Evan Manzo (CSU Bakersfield) 2-1 184 - RJ Robinson (American) maj Chris Neal (CSU Bakersfield) 15-3 197 - Caleb Close (American) maj Jaxon Hamilton (CSU Bakersfield) 11-2 285 - Emmanuel Ulrich (American) dec Caeden Olin (CSU Bakersfield) 7-3 Central Michigan 33 CSU Bakersfield 9 125 - Archer Anderson (Central Michigan) fall Gabe Ramirez (CSU Bakersfield) 3:20 133 - Andrew Austin (Central Michigan) fall Saxton Scott (CSU Bakersfield) 5:30 141 - Robert Jones (CSU Bakersfield) dec Zeke Seltzer (Central Michigan) 5-0 149 - Jimmy Nugent (Central Michigan) maj Hayden Zinkin (CSU Bakersfield) 8-0 157 - Seth Larson (Central Michigan) tech Jacob Bell (CSU Bakersfield) 17-2 165 - Jared Remington (CSU Bakersfield) dec Cole Hopkins (Central Michigan) 4-1SV 174 - Evan Manzo (CSU Bakersfield) dec Wyatt Ferguson (Central Michigan) 2-1 184 - Trey Myers (Central Michigan) dec Chris Neal (CSU Bakersfield) 7-4 197 - Luke Cochran (Central Michigan) tech Jaxon Hamilton (CSU Bakersfield) 20-5 285 - Carter Neves (Central Michigan) maj Caeden Olin (CSU Bakersfield) 10-1 Iowa State 29 Bucknell 12 125 - Dru Ayala (Iowa State) dec Jackson Heslin (Bucknell) 5-2 133 - Garrett Grice (Iowa State) dec Blue Stiffler (Bucknell) 8-2 141 - Evan Frost (Iowa State) tech Bryce Manera (Bucknell) 19-3 149 - Jacob Frost (Iowa State) tech Cade Wirnsberger (Bucknell) 21-3 157 - Paniro Johnson (Iowa State) maj Ryan Lawler (Bucknell) 16-5 165 - Noah Mulvaney (Bucknell) fall Connor Euton (Iowa State) 6:12 174 - Tate Naaktgeboren (Iowa State) InjDef Myles Takats (Bucknell) 184 - Tyler Bienus (Bucknell) dec Sawyer Bartelt (Iowa State) 4-1TB 197 - Dillon Bechtold (Bucknell) dec Brayden Thompson (Iowa State) 4-1 285 - Coby Merrill (Iowa State) dec Lucas Lawler (Bucknell) 6-2

Just like that, the 2026 Senior World Championships have come to a conclusion. The US men’s freestyle team came into the day needing one of its three finalists to win or both Russian finalists to lose for them to claim a team title. The team race drama ended quickly as Levi Haines grinded out a hard-fought 4-3 victory over Iran’s Mohammad Nokhodilarimi for the 79 kg gold medal. Haines scored takedowns in each period and never appeared seriously threatened during his bout with the now-six-time world medalist from Iran. With the win, Haines now has world medals in each of his two Senior world appearances, a silver last year and gold on Sunday. The win gives the men’s freestyle team their fourth world title in the last ten years (2017, 2022, 2023). In the 57 kg weight class, it was a classic Big Ten showdown as Iowa grad Spencer Lee squared off with Penn State grad Roman Bravo-Young, who represents Mexico internationally. Lee got a quick takedown and then transitioned into a series of leg laces which ended the match after only :26 seconds. During his post-tournament interview, Lee mentioned how he’d torn his ACL for the fourth time, a couple of months ago. This is Lee’s first medal at the World Championships; however, he does have a silver medal from the 2024 Olympic Games. Bravo-Young became the first wrestler to win a medal for Mexico in men’s freestyle. The final American to take the mat on Sunday was Trent Hidlay in the 92 kg gold medal match. Hidlay’s title bout was a rematch of the 2025 92 kg world final against Russia’s Amanula Gadzhimagomedov. In that meeting, Hidlay stormed back to win 13-10 after getting down early. That match featured a handful of exchanges that stemmed from a Hidlay attack and a chest wrap from Gadzhimagomedov. That situation proved to be the difference-maker in Sunday’s bout, as well. Holding a 2-1 lead, Hidlay attempted a leg attack at the edge of the mat and Gadzhimagomedov used the counter well off the mat. The initial ruling was a takedown for the American, giving Hidlay a comfortable 4-1 lead with :19 remaining. The Russian corner challenged the sequence and it was overturned and ruling two points for Gadzhimagomedov, making the score 3-2 in his favor. The call was stunning as Gadzhimagomedov appeared to be completely out of bound before he changed movements from Hidlay. It’s also possible that Hidlay could have been give just a point for a step out, rather than allowing for continuation. Trailing 3-2, Hidlay frantically worked for a score during the final 19 seconds - at one point he did elevate Gadzhimagomedov’s leg, but couldn’t convert and will have to settle for the silver medal. The Hidlay ruling put a slight damper on an otherwise excellent day and tournament for the Americans. Nine of the ten team members finished with a medal. Five of the ten won world championships and six appeared in the finals. American Results 57 kg Gold Medal Match: Spencer Lee over Roman Bravo-Young (Mexico) 10-0 74 kg Repechage: James Green over Narek Harutyunyan (Armenia) 15-2 Repechage: Amir Mohammad Yazdani (Iran) over James Green 8-2 79 kg Gold Medal Match: Levi Haines over Mohammad Nokhodilarimi (Iran) 4-3 92 kg Gold Medal Match: Amanula Gadzhimagomedov (Russia) over Trent Hidlay 3-2 Final Results 57 kg Gold Medal Match: Spencer Lee (USA) over Roman Bravo-Young (Mexico) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Chong-Song Han (North Korea) over Munkh Erdene Batkhuyag (Mongolia) 3-1 Bronze Medal Match: Abubakar Mutaliev (Russia) over Islam Bazarganov (Azerbaijan) 6-2 74 kg Gold Medal Match: Inalbek Sheriev (Russia) over Nurkozha Kaipanov (Kazakhstan) 10-4 Bronze Medal Match: Amir Mohammad Yazdani (Iran) over Tajmuraz Salkazanov (Slovakia) 5-4 Bronze Medal Match: Yoshinosuke Aoyagi (Japan) over Turan Bayramov (Azerbaijan) 11-0 79 kg Gold Medal Match: Levi Haines (USA) over Mohammad Nokhodilarimi (Iran) 4-3 Bronze Medal Match: Mahamedkhabib Kadzimahamedau (Belarus) over Dzhabrail Gadzhiev (Azerbaijan) 3-0 Bronze Medal Match: Ismail Kaniev (Russia) over Suldkhuu Olonbayaryn (Mongolia) 6-0 92 kg Gold Medal Match: Amanula Gadzhimagomedov (Russia) over Trent Hidlay (USA) 3-2 Bronze Medal Match: Ali Tcokaev (Azerbaijan) over Amir Hossein Firouzpour (Iran) 6-0 Bronze Medal Match: Miriani Maisuradze (Georgia) over Samuel Scherrer (Switzerland) 6-3

A day after the American women’s freestyle team captured a world championship, their male counterparts put themselves in position to win themselves on Sunday. The final members of the men’s freestyle team hit the mat on Saturday and three out of the four wrestlers will compete for gold medals tomorrow. In today’s action, Kyle Dake added another world title, while three others wrestled back for bronze medals. In his gold medal matchup, Dake tangled with Azerbaijan’s Arsenii Dzhioev, a returning world bronze medalist. There wasn’t much action in the opening period and Dake got on the board with a point via a Dzhioev activity clock violation. Early in the second, Dake was in position for a go-behind, but dropped down to Dzhioev’s leg and switched to a single, which he finished at the edge for the only two-point score of the contest. It was enough for him to get his hand raised in a 3-2 victory. With the latest championship, Dake now has five world titles and they’ve come at three different weights. Two at 79 kg, two at 74 kg, and this latest at 86 kg. He also had a total of eight world/Olympic medals. Dake’s win over Dzhioev makes it back-to-back matches at this tournament with wins over wrestlers who previously beat him earlier this year. In the semis, he avenged a Ranking Series loss to Russia’s Ibragim Kadiev. Just a day after Kyle Snyder made his case for American wrestling’s hypothetical Mount Rushmore, Dake threw his hat into the ring. Wrestling back for bronze medals on Saturday were Marcus Blaze (61 kg), Zain Retherford (70 kg), and Wyatt Hendrickson (125 kg). Blaze did not initially make the semifinals, so he needed a repechage win before advancing to a bronze medal bout. The bronze medals were the first at the Senior level for Blaze and Hendrickson, while Retherford now has a sizable medal collection of his own. He has three world medals, one of each color. In the final group of competitors for the United States, Spencer Lee (57 kg), Levi Haines (79 kg), and Trent Hidlay (92 kg) all qualified for tomorrow’s gold medal matches. Lee was trailing Azerbaijan’s Islam Bazarganov 10-3 on the scoreboard after giving up a takedown and a few turns. Bazarganov got sloppy trying for another gut wrench and Lee grabbed a headlock and caught Bazarganov on his back for the fall. And extra level of intrigue surrounds Lee’s gold medal match tomorrow. He’ll face former Penn State two-time national champion, Roman Bravo-Young, who competes for Mexico. It also pits Penn State and Iowa grads against each other. The pair met in 2025 in the semifinals of the Zagreb Open and Lee won 8-3. Bravo-Young’s Penn State teammate, Levi Haines, is back in the world finals for a second time in as many tries. Haines had a workman-like 3-3 win on criteria over Mongolia’s Suldkhuu Olonbayar, the same opponent he defeated in the 2025 world semifinals. For the gold medal, Haines will take on Iran’s Mohammad Nokhodilarimi, a five-time world medalist who had a long hit list of Americans he’s beaten over the past three years. That group includes Dean Hamiti, Jordan Burroughs, Evan Wick, Joey Lavallee, and Chance Marsteller. The final match of the tournament will feature a rematch of the 2025 world finals at 92 kg. Trent Hidlay will take on Russia’s Amanula Gadzhimagomedov. Hidlay’s 13-10 comeback win over Gadzhimagomedov was one of the most memorable moments from the 2025 tournament. Just to make the 2026 finals, Hidlay had to stage another impressive comeback, this time at the expense of Iran’s Amirhossien Firouzpourbandpei. The Iranian held an 8-2 lead late in the first period; however, Hidlay reeled off nine straight points in the closing moments of the first and into the second to grab an 11-8 victory. The Americans will also have James Green alive in the 74 kg repechage. He will need two wins just to wrestle for a bronze medal. American results 57 kg Round of 32 - Spencer Lee over Edwin Segura (Guatemala) Fall 1:33 Round of 16 - Spencer Lee over Milad Valizadeh (Iran) 12-2 Quarterfinals - Spencer Lee over Abubakar Mutaliev (Russia) 11-0 Semifinals - Spencer Lee over Islam Bazarganov (Azerbaijan) Fall 4:17 61 kg Repechage - Marcus Blaze over Nikhil (India) 9-1 Bronze Medal Match - Marcus Blaze over Assyl Aitakyn (Kazakhstan) 4-2 70 kg Bronze Medal Match - Zain Retherford over Lachlan McNeil (Canada) 4-0 74 kg Round of 32 - James Green over Orozobek Toktomambetov (Kyrgyzstan) 5-0 Round of 16 - Inalbek Sheriev (Russia) over James Green 10-0 79 kg Round of 32 - Levi Haines over Mohammed Bouazouni (Morocco) Fall 1:30 Round of 16 - Levi Haines over Szymon Wojtkowski (Poland) 10-0 Quarterfinals - Levi Haines over Ismail Khaniev (Russia) 8-1 Semifinals - Levi Haines over Suldkhuu Olonbayar (Mongolia) 3-3 86 kg Gold Medal Match: Kyle Dake over Arsenii Dzhioev (Azerbaijan) 3-2 92 kg Round of 16 - Trent Hidlay over Jesaia Uera (Nauru) Fall :47 Quarterfinals - Trent Hidlay over Ali Tcokaev (Azerbaijan) 5-1 Semifinals - Trent Hidlay over Amirhossien Firouzpourbandpei (Iran) 11-8 125 kg Bronze Medal Match: Wyatt Hendrickson over Jaspooran Singh (India) 10-0 Sunday’s Gold Medal Matchups 57 kg - Spencer Lee (USA) vs. Roman Bravo-Young (Mexico) 74 kg - Inalbek Sheriev (Russia) vs. Nurkozha Kaipanov (Kazakhstan) 79 kg - Levi Haines (USA) vs. Mohammad Nokhodilarimi (Iran) 92 kg - Trent Hidlay (USA) vs. Amanula Gadzhimagomedov (Russia) Final Results 61 kg Gold Medal Match: Ahmad Javan (Iran) over Zavur Uguev (Russia) 9-2 Bronze Medal Match: Marcus Blaze (USA) over Nikhil (India) 9-1 Bronze Medal Match: Kwang-Myong Kim (North Korea) over Zelimkhan Abakarov (Albania) 3-3 70 kg Gold Medal Match: Ibragim Ibragimov (Russia) over Ernazar Akmataliev (Kyrgyzstan) 5-2 Bronze Medal Match: Tulga Tumur Ochir (Mongolia) over Vasile Diacon (Moldova) Fall 3:55 Bronze Medal Match: Zain Retherford (USA) over Lachlan McNeil (Canada) 4-0 86 kg Gold Medal Match: Kyle Dake (USA) over Arsenii Dzhioev (Azerbaijan) 3-2 Bronze Medal Match: Vladimiri Gamkrelidze (Georgia) over Georgios Kougioumtsidis (Greece) 6-0 Bronze Medal Match: Malik Shavaev (Kyrgyzstan) over Ibragim Kadiev (Russia) 4-3 125 kg Gold Medal Match: Amir Zare (Iran) over Abdulla Kurbanov (Russia) 11-0 Bronze Medal Match: Wyatt Hendrickson (USA) over Jaspooran Singh (India) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Giorgio Meshvildishvili (Azerbaijan) over Vladislav Baitsaev (Hungary) Cautions

Welcome back, welcome back, welcome back! Can you believe it’s already NCAA wrestling season again?! This year Week 1 is unique, in that the span is only two days but jam-packed with competition. 58 of the 77 D1 programs scheduled to compete, with 12 of last year’s Top-20 in play. While there’s only a handful of duals, we have six tournaments on tap to get the season rolling: Clarion Open, Cowboy Invite, Hurst Open, Navy Classic, Princeton Open, and the Southeast Open, with some other less D1-friendly tournaments (ESU Open and Jimmie Open) that won't really benefit you in the fantasy boxscore at the end of the day. A reminder of some important rules: Wrestlers entered at a weight must compete at that weight or else their results will not be counted. Wrestlers in the “Floater” spots can compete at ANY weight and accumulate Fantasy points. A wrestler will LOCK on your roster at 12pm ET on the day of their first competition for the week. (refer to the SHP’s Week Preview) Only results against D1 competition (starters, backups, and redshirts) will count towards Fantasy Points. Check your league settings to know how many add/drops are permitted per week. Have a question, concern, suggestions, or just want to chat about Fantasy Wrestling? Hit us up on X (Twitter) or head over to the InterMat Forums where we have a Fantasy Wrestling dedicated Forum page! Tournament entries are still trickling in, so turn those notifications “ON” and check the InterMat Forums for updated entries Wrestlers I Like This Week Wrestler (School)- competition for the week [Proj Score] 125: Rocklin Zinkin (OKST) - Cowboy Invite Vinny Kilkeary (OHST) - Clarion Open Antonio Mills (OHST) - Clarion Open Dom Munaretto (OHST) - Clarion Open Koda Holeman (CP) - Navy Classic Tyler Chappell (PITT) - Navy Classic Travis Clawson (CHAT) - Southeast Open Nicolar Rivera (MARY) - Southeast Open Dom Deputy (NCST) - Southeast Open Louie Gill (WVU) - Southeast Open Joe Uhorchuk (ARMY) - Princeton Open Carson Wagner (BING) - Princeton Open Henry Aslikyan (MICH) - @ VMI [+4] Alan Kohler (WISC) - Vs Bloomsburg [+4] Teague Strobel (HOF) - Vs Sacred Heart [+3] Ayden Smith (ISU) - Vs Bucknell [+3] 133: Jax Forrest (OKST) - Cowboy Invite TK Davis (GWU) - Cowboy Invite Evan Tallmadge (PITT) - Navy Classic Jake Crapps (ARMY) - Princeton Open Matthew Botello (UNC) - Southeast Open Aaron Seidel (VT) - Southeast Open Gunner Andrick (WVU) - Southeast Open Andrew Austin (CMU) - Chippewa Challenge [+6] Moses Mendoza (MICH) - @ VMI [+5] Austin Pollard (BLOO) - @ Wisconsin [+3] Garrett Grice (ISU) - Vs Bucknell [+3] 141: Nic Bouzakis (OHST) - Clarion Open Briar Priest (PITT) - Navy Classic Gable Porter (UVA) - Navy Classic Braden Basile (ARMY) - Princeton Open Alex Almeyda (PENN) - Princeton Open Ethan Uhorchuk (CHAT) - Southeast Open Dario Lemus (MARY) - Southeast Open Evan Frost (ISU) - Vs Bucknell [+5] Kellen Wolbert (MICH) - @ VMI [+4] Isaiah Schaefer (PUR) - Vs Kent State [+3] 149: Carter Nogle (AF) - Clarion Open Jordyn Raney (OKST) - Cowboy Invite Sergio Vega (OKST) - Cowboy Invite Eugene Harney (PITT) - Navy Classic Kal Miller (PITT) - Navy Classic Drew Gorman (VT) - Southeast Open Cross Wasilewski (PENN) - Princeton Open Eligh Rivera (PRIN) - Princeton Open Jimmy Nugent (CMU) - Chippewa Challenge [+7] Noah Tapia (HOF) - Vs Sacred Heart [+4] Sergio Lemley (MICH) - @ VMI [+4] Jacob Frost (ISU) - Vs Bucknell [+3] Gavin Brown (PUR) - Vs Kent State [+3] 157: Brandon Cannon (OHST) - Clarion Open Vince Bouzakis (PITT) - Navy Classic Jimmy Harrington (UVA) - Navy Classic Jude Swisher (PENN) - Princeton Open Charlie DeSena (PENN) - Princeton Open Landon Robideau (OKST) - Cowboy Invite Bentley Sly (APP) - Southeast Open DJ McGee (GMU) - Southeast Open Griffin LaPlante (NCST) - Southeast Open Derek Raike (OHIO) - Southeast Open Ty Watters (WVU) - Southeast Open Gage Owen (AMER) - Chippewa Challenge [+7] Paniro Johnson (ISU) - Vs Bucknell [+4] JT Chance (KENT) - @ Purdue [+3] 165: Ethan Stiles (OHST) - Clarion Open Dylan Evans (PITT) - Navy Classic Nick Hamilton (UVA) - Navy Classic Thomas Snipes (BING) - Princeton Open Sean Seedfeldt (PENN) - Princeton Open Ty Whalen (PRIN) - Princeton Open Kross Cassidy (GMU) - Southeast Open Mac Church (VT) - Southeast Open Noah Nininger (VT) - Southeast Open Dee Lockett (OKST) - Cowboy Invite Casey Swiderski (OKST) - Cowboy Invite Cam Catrabone (MICH) - @ VMI [+5] Joey Blaze (PUR) - Vs Kent State [+4] Cody Goebel (WISC) - Vs Bloomsburg [+4] 174: Jaxon Smith (OHST) - Clarion Open Moses Espinoza-Owens (UVU) - Clarion Open Alex Facundo (OKST) - Cowboy Invite Lorenzo Norman (OKST) - Cowboy Invite Bode Marlow (PITT) - Navy Classic Gunner Filipowicz (ARMY) - Princeton Open Carter Baer (BING) - Princeton Open Holden Garcia (PRIN) - Princeton Open Evan Maag (GMU) - Southeast Open Ryan Burton (VT) - Southeast Open Brody Conley (WVU) - Southeast Open Jurius Clark (HOF) - Vs Sacred Heart [+4] Beau Mantanona (MICH) - @ VMI [+4] Lucas Condon (WISC) - Vs Bloomsburg [+4] Brody Baumann (PUR) - Vs Kent State [+3] 184: Bennett Berge (OKST) - Cowboy Invite Mikey White (OKST) - Cowboy Invite Caesar Garza (CP) - Navy Classic Chase Kranitz (PITT) - Navy Classic CJ Betz (PENN) - Princeton Open Tomas Brooker (APP) - Southeast Open Jeremy Olszko (OHIO) - Southeast Open Jaden Bullock (VT) - Southeast Open Sergio Desiante (VT) - Southeast Open Ian Bush (WVU) - Southeast Open Caleb Campos (AMER) - Chippewa Challenge [+10] Brock Mantanona (MICH) - @ VMI [+5] Clayton Whiting (WISC) - Vs Bloomsburg [+4] James Rowley (PUR) - Vs Kent State [+3] 197: Kael Bennie (UVU) - Clarion Open Stephen Little (LR) - Cowboy Invite Cody Merrill (OKST) - Cowboy Invite Mac Stout (PITT) - Navy Classic Kade Rule (CHAT) - Southeast Open Branson John (MARY) - Southeast Open Sonny Sasso (VT) - Southeast Open Luke Cochran (CMU) - Chippewa Challenge [+8] Wyatt Ingham (WISC) - Vs Bloomsburg [+5] Will Conlon (HOF) - Vs Sacred Heart [+4] Hayden Walters (MICH) - @ VMI [+3] 285: Nick Feldman (OHST) - Clarion Open Dreshaun Ross (OKST) - Cowboy Invite Dayton Pitzer (PITT) - Navy Classic Brady Colbert (ARMY) - Princeton Open Lucas Stoddard (ARMY) - Princeton Open Stephan Monchery (APP) - Southeast Open Kai Calcutt (NCST) - Southeast Open Jimmy Mullen (VT) - Southeast Open Max Vanadia (WVU) - Southeast Open Coby Merrill (ISU) - Vs Bucknell [+4] Brendan Gilchrist (SHU) - @ Hofstra [+4] Braxton Amos (WISC) - Vs Bloomsburg [+4] ************************************************** Good luck and win the week!

It was hard to top the first day of men’s freestyle competition at the 2026 World Championships, but the American squad might have accomplished that feat. On Thursday, Bo Bassett and Kyle Snyder defeated world champions from Russia along their paths to the world finals. Today, both completed their runs with gold medals. Additionally, four of their team members started their tournaments and each is still in medal contention. Friday’s finals featured one of the prodigies of a past generation teaming up with the current “next big thing” to claim gold medals as Snyder and Bassett took the mat. Each finished their tournaments in different ways, but each was fitting given their history and reputation. Bassett took the mat first against Armenian veteran Vazgen Tavanyan, a two-time Olympian and one-time world bronze medalist. The Armenian made the finals after a controversial last-second win over returning champion Rahman Amouzad of Iran. Tavanyan was given a point for a caution on Amouzad for failing to engage during the final seconds of their semifinal contest, which turned the bout in Tavanyan’s favor. The Tavanyan/Bassett matchup was always going to be a contrast in styles. Bassett is known for his motor, pace, and variety and frequency of offensive attacks. Tavanyan is more measured with his offense and is generally defensive minded. In a sign of things to come, Bassett finally was able to penetrate through Tavanyan’s defense and secure a takedown during the final seconds of the opening period. Though he held a 2-1 lead, Bassett only turned up the pressure offensively in the second and netted three additional takedowns, along with a point for a head slap from Tavanyan. For the final three seconds of the match, Bassett allowed the time to run out and began to savor the victory. Those were potentially the only three seconds of the bout in which Bassett was not furiously trying to set up an attack. With his win, Bassett now has two world titles in 2026 - one at the U20 age group and this one at Seniors. It likely washes the sour taste out of his mouth after a medal-less showing at the U23 World Championships earlier this month. Bassett became the first American to win a world title at the 65/66 kg range since current head coach Bill Zadick won a world championship in 2006. If Bassett is known for pace and overall domination, Snyder has become synonymous with engineering clutch comeback wins. The veteran added another incredible comeback to his resume as he escaped from a 4-0 hole and shocked Japan’s Arash Yoshida with under :30 left in their 97 kg final. After getting frustrated with Yoshida’s head/hands defense and ability to wiggle out of danger, Snyder finally broke through his Japanese opponents defense and finished a single leg at the edge of the match with :24 seconds remaining in the contest. He nearly got four points for the finish, but wasn’t able to challenge the ruling due to a lost challenge in the previous sequence. That didn’t end up mattering as Snyder stayed extremely active and was able to create a situation where he got a go-behind to tie the bout at four, but he went ahead on criteria. Snyder nearly turned Yoshida in a gut wrench, but that effort from par terre milked the final seconds on the clock and Snyder won a 4-4 match. The win gives Snyder his fifth world championship and sixth world/Olympic title. That combination of six puts him in a tie with legends John Smith and Adeline Gray, one behind Jordan Burroughs. He now has 11 world/Olympic medals and has left with hardware in every World/Olympic event since 2015, but one. Speaking of adding to medals and legacy, Kyle Dake will be looking to do that tomorrow as he advanced to the world finals at 86 kg. Dake grinded out a workmanlike 6-3 victory over young Russian star Ibragim Kadiev in the semifinals. In the finals, Dake will face Azerbaijan’s Arsenii Dzhioev, a bronze medalist from the 2025 tournament. Dzhioev has a win over Dake earlier this year at the Muhamet Malo Ranking Series event; however, Kadiev also beat him during that tournament, as well. Both Zain Retherford (70 kg) and Wyatt Hendrickson (125 kg) advanced to the semifinals before suffering a loss, so both will drop down to bronze medal matches. Marcus Blaze (61 kg) fell in the quarterfinals but was pulled back into repechage, so he’ll need to win a match before wrestling for the bronze. American Results 61 kg Round of 32 - Marcus Blaze over Emrah Ormanoglu (Turkiye) Fall 3:35 Round of 16 - Marcus Blaze over Leonid Colesnic (Moldova) 10-0 Quarterfinals - Ahmad Javan (Iran) over Marcus Blaze 3-2 65 kg Gold Medal Match: Bo Bassett over Vazgen Tavayan (Armenia) 9-1 70 kg Round of 32 - Zain Retherford over Muhammad Abdurachmanov (Belgium) Fall 1:09 Round of 16 - Zain Retherford over Iszmail Muszukajev (Hungary) Fall 4:57 Quarterfinals - Zain Retherford over Kanan Heybatov (Azerbaijan) 7-0 Semifinals - Ernazar Akmataliev (Kyrgyzstan) over Zain Retherford 3-2 86 kg Round of 64 - Kyle Dake over Batbilguun Naadambatyn (Mongolia) 6-5 Round of 32 - Kyle Dake over Paulius Lescauskas (Lithuania) 13-2 Round of 16 - Kyle Dake over Bolat Sakayev (Kazakhstan) 11-0 Quarterfinals - Kyle Dake over Malik Shavaev (Kyrgyzstan) 6-2 Semifinals - Kyle Dake over Ibragim Kadiev (Russia) 6-3 97 kg Gold Medal Match: Kyle Snyder over Arash Yoshida (Japan) 4-4 125 kg Round of 32 - Wyatt Hendrickson over Shamil Sharipov (Bahrain) 11-0 Round of 16 - Wyatt Hendrickson over Buheerdun (China) 11-1 Quarterfinals - Wyatt Hendrickson over Mohsen Siyar (Germany) 12-2 Semifinals - Amir Zare (Iran) over Wyatt Hendrickson 10-0 Saturday’s Gold Medal Matches 61 kg - Zavur Uguev (Russia) vs. Ahmad Javan (Iran) 70 kg - Ibragim Ibragimov (Russia) vs. Ernazar Akmataliev (Kyrgyzstan) 86 kg - Kyle Dake (USA) vs. Arsenii Dzhioev (Azerbaijan) 125 kg - Amir Zare (Iran) vs. Abdulla Kurbanov (Russia) Final Results 65 kg Gold Medal Match: Bo Bassett (USA) over Vazgen Tavayan (Armenia) 9-1 Bronze Medal Match: Rahman Amouzad (Iran) over Shamil Mamedov (Bulgaria) 5-4 Bronze Medal Match: Abasgadzhi Magomedov (Russia) over Abdulamazhid Kudiev (Tajikistan) 3-2 97 kg Gold Medal Match: Kyle Snyder (USA) over Arash Yoshida (Japan) 4-4 Bronze Medal Match: Abdulrashid Sadulaev (Russia) over Zbiginiew Baranowski (Poland) 5-0 Bronze Medal Match: Hassan Yazdani (Iran) over Akhmed Tazhudinov (Bahrain) 5-0

Coming into Friday’s medal round matches, the USA women’s freestyle team needed to win one of their two gold medal matches to clinch a team title over the Japanese squad. They also had the opportunity to win if Japan’s athlete at 55 kg lost her bronze medal match, but their destiny was in their own hands. Any drama surrounding the team competition was squashed in the first gold medal match of the day as 19-year-old Everest Leydecker captured the gold medal at 55 kg. Leydecker’s bout with Ukraine’s Nataliia Klivchutska wasn’t necessarily one for the highlight reels, but it produced the correct result for the young American star and her team. The pair were generally risk averse for most of the contest and spent the bulk of the six minutes handfighting and fighting a positional battle. In the second period, Klivchutska was put on the activity clock for a second time and failed to score, which gave Leydecker a 2-1 lead. After that point was awarded and Leydecker had the advantage, Klivchutska opened up and tried a leg attack. Leydecker stuffed the attempt and whipped her across her back for a set of exposure points and a 4-1 lead. The American continued to display her stout defense for the remainder of the contest and it ended with that score. Leydecker captured a world title in her first appearance at the Senior World Championships. Also in 2026, Leydecker won her second consecutive U20 world title and was a bronze medalist at the U23 championships earlier this month. The women’s freestyle portion of the tournament concluded with the 59 kg gold medal matchup between Abby Nette and India’s Manisha Bhanwala. Nette got an early lead with a point from an activity clock violation, followed by a single leg finish at the edge of the mat for four points and a 5-0 lead. Unfortunately for Nette, that lead evaporated during the second period and Bhanwala rallied for an 8-6 victory, making her India’s first Senior world champion in women’s freestyle. Nette settled for a silver medal in her second Senior world team appearance. The title for the US women’s freestyle team is their first since 1999. This finish comes a year after the American women took fourth place at the 2025 World Championships in Zagreb. With titles from Leydecker and Adaugo Nwachukwu (62 kg), it’s the first time since 2022 that multiple American women have won gold at a World Championship event. Six of the ten women on the 2026 team will return to the United States with a medal.

Cumberland

Zephyrhills

Camas

Smith Station

Northern York

Mount Saint Joseph

Savannah

Charlottesville

In the coming months, you are going to hear a lot of conversations about ducking, dodging and the relative lack of importance placed on the regular season. Many will be whiny fans, which we need. Others will have good points. Is it time to rethink the regular season for NCAA DI wrestling? Can we make it more important? Do events like the National Duals and Mid Major Duals help the cause? What if we did something a little more out of the box? Here is an article I wrote two years ago on the subject So, the first inaugural "Mid Major" Duals is in the books and it got me thinking. How do we make this event important? How do we incentivize teams to attend? In fact- I have the same thoughts about other events. How do we make the regular season matter, period. To me there are two solutions. 1 - Prize money. It is getting more "legalish" to do this. Bowl games pay schools. Why not? The simple reason is there just isn't as much $$ to go around in our sport and most if it is being spent by wealthy donors with a strong stake in making their pet program better. And that's great. But is there a donor or two out there that could put up $ for winning an event like this? Or the weight classes in Vegas, or Scuffle? Perhaps. But let's assume we aren't there yet. So the other solution is... 2 - Allocate NCAA tourney bids at in season events. Imagine if UNI got a bid at every weight for winning the mid major duals? Changes things, doesn't it? Heck, I'd go a step further and give a bid to the individual champs at Vegas, Midlands and Scuffle too. That's 4 bids out of 33 at each weight that are determined through the year. Get the rest settled at conferences. Sounds crazy? A - other sports do things like this B - international wrestling does things like this as well. I think it is two-fold positive. It's good for the fans, as more teams would wrestle their best guys hoping to get "qualification" out of the way early. It's good for programs and athletes to have the chance to lock in bids. I'd actually allow each conference dual champ to send their whole team, all 10 weights as well, but that's probably a bit too extreme for the current thought process. But man, it would make duals matter. Are we ready for something like this? Probably not. Do we need to do something different if we want in season events to matter. We do.

After some ups and downs during the first couple of days of competition at the 2026 Senior World Championships, Thursday was an excellent day for the American team. Both for the men’s and women’s freestyle teams. Thursday saw the final two women’s weight classes begin competition, while the first two men’s freestyle brackets go underway, as well. In both instances, the two American men and women who started their tournaments today each advanced to Friday’s gold medal matches. If that wasn’t enough, later in the session Adaugo Nwachukwu captured the first gold medal of the 2026 tournament for the Americans. Nwachukwu displayed some last-second heroics during her 12-11 victory over two-time world champion and 2024 Olympic bronze medalist Nonoka Ozaki (Japan). During their back-and-forth affair, the two exchanged four-point throws and action-packed sequences. Ozaki came from a 5-0 first-period deficit to take the late lead 11-9. With :14 seconds remaining on the restart, Nwachukwu pushed the pace and was finally able to hustle her way into a takedown during the final few seconds. The takedown gave her criteria and an 11-11 victory. The Japanese corner challenged the flurry; however, the call was upheld, making the final score 12-11. This was Nwachukwu’s first Senior World medal in only her second appearance at the event. Earlier this month, she finished as the silver medalist at the U23 World Championships. Nwachukwu’s win is the first by an American woman over a Japanese opponent in a world or Olympic final since Tamyra Mensh-Stock defeated Ami Ishii for a world title in 2022. In addition to Nwachukwu, Kennedy Blades also grabbed some hardware on Thursday. She posted two wins on the day, one via tech and a fall in her medal round match to claim a bronze medal in the 68 kg weight class. It’s the second straight year that Blades earns a bronze medal at the World Championships. Cristelle Rodriguez-Dobler (53 kg) and Precious Wieser (72 kg) each wrestled in a bronze medal match, but came up just short. One of the most anticipated weight classes of the entire tournament starts this morning as action took place at the 97 kg men’s freestyle bracket. It is a group that contains four past Olympic gold medalists and a handful of legendary figures. Two of those collided in the quarterfinals as Kyle Snyder won the latest round in his rivalry with Russia’s Abdulrashid Sadulaev. As he’s been known to do, Snyder had to come from behind to get the latest win over his Russian rival. Sadulaev got a takedown midway through the second period to take a 4-1 lead. That didn’t last as Snyder was able to score twice from a front headlock position - once with a takedown and the other netted a step out point. The 4-4 match went Snyder’s way on criteria. After being Sadulaev, Snyder cruised to a 5-0 victory over Poland’s Zbigniew Baranowski to make the world finals. There he’ll face Japan’s Arash Yoshida. Yoshida defeated Snyder at a Ranking Series tournament in 2025; however, Snyder got revenge with a win in the 2025 World semifinals. The Japanese wrestler went on to win his first Senior world medal (bronze). Speaking of comebacks, the other American men’s freestyle wrestler, Bo Bassett, staged one for the ages in the quarterfinals. Facing Russia’s Abasgadzhi Magomedov, Bassett trailed 12-3 early in the second period. Bassett never wavered and outscored the Russian 11-1 during the final two minutes of the match to take the match, 14-13. The finals appearance comes less than two weeks after a disappointing medal-less showing from Bassett at the U23 World Championships. For the gold medal, Bassett will face Armenia’s Vazgen Tevanyan, a two-time Olympian and world bronze medalist. From one young sensation to the next, in women’s freestyle, Everest Leydecker also advanced to a gold medal match on Friday. Leydecker posted a steady 6-1 victory over Japan’s Nagisa Harada in the 55 kg semifinals. Like Bassett, Leydecker’s finish at the Senior tournament has already surpassed her result at the recent U23 World Championships (bronze). Finally, veteran Abby Nette emphatically clinched her first Senior world medal and a trip to tomorrow’s final with a fall over Ukraine’s Mariia Vynnyk in the semifinals. Vynnyk was the returning world silver medalist at 59 kg. Leading 4-0, Nette held a Russian tie and Vynnyk tried to shoot through the hold. That proved to be unsuccessful and Nette drove her right to her back. After a prolonged fight from Vynnyk, Nette finally got the fall. American results Women’s Freestyle 53 kg Bronze Medal Match - Andreea Ana (Romania) over Cristelle Rodriguez-Dobler 6-3 55 kg Round of 16 - Everest Leydecker over Karla Godinez Gonzalez (Canada) 2-1 Quarterfinals - Everest Leydecker over Anastasia Blayvas (Germany) Fall 3:55 Semifinals - Everest Leydecker over Nagisa Harada (Japan) 6-1 59 kg Round of 16 - Abby Nette over Gloria Niyonkuru (Burundi) Fall :43 Quarterfinals - Abby Nette over Svetlana Lipatova (Russia) 7-6 Semifinals - Abby Nette over Mariia Vynnyk (Ukraine) Fall 2:12 62 kg Gold Medal Match - Adaugo Nwachukwu over Nonoka Ozaki (Japan) 12-11 68 kg Repechage - Kennedy Blades over Srishti (India) 11-1 Bronze Medal Match - Kennedy Blades over Delgermaa Enkhsaikhan (Mongolia) Fall 5:10 72 kg Bronze Medal Match - Tanu Sharma (India) over Precious Wieser 9-5 Men’s Freestyle 65 kg Round of 32 - Bo Bassett over Peiman Biabani (Canada) Fall 1:12 Round of 16 - Bo Bassett over Quentin Sticker (France) 12-0 Quarterfinals - Bo Bassett over Abasgadzhi Magomedov (Russia) 14-13 Semifinals - Bo Bassett over Abdulmazhid Kudiev (Tajikistan) 12-2 97 kg Round of 16 - Kyle Snyder over Alperen Tokgoz (Turkiye) 10-0 Quarterfinals - Kyle Snyder over Abdulrashid Sadulaev (Russia) 4-4 Semifinals - Kyle Snyder over Zbigniew Baranowski (Poland) 5-0 Friday’s Gold Medal Matches Women’s Freestyle 55 kg - Everest Leydecker (USA) vs. Nataliia Klivchutska (Ukraine) 59 kg - Abby Nette (USA) vs. Manisha Bhanwala (India) Men’s Freestyle 65 kg - Bo Bassett (USA) vs. Vazgen Tevanyan (Armenia) 97 kg - Kyle Snyder (USA) vs. Arash Yoshida (Japan) Final Results Women’s Freestyle 53 kg Gold Medal Match: Moe Kiyooka (Japan) over Lucia Yepez Guzman (Ecuador) 6-0 Bronze Medal Match: Andreea Ana (Romania) over Cristelle Rodriguez-Dobler (USA) 6-3 Bronze Medal Match: Jonna Malmgren (Sweden) over Jin Zhang (China) 5-2 62 kg Gold Medal Match: Adaugo Nwachukwu (USA) over Nonoka Ozaki (Japan) 12-11 Bronze Medal Match: Amina Tandelova (Russia) over Esther Kolawole (Nigeria) 7-3 Bronze Medal Match: Bilyana Dudova (Bulgaria) over Johanna Lindborg (Sweden) 5-2 68 kg Gold Medal Match: Jia Long (China) over Meerim Zhumanazarova (Kyrgyzstan) 4-3 Bronze Medal Match: Kennedy Blades (USA) over Delgermaa Enkhsaikhan (Mongolia) Fall 5:10 Bronze Medal Match: Adela Hanzlickova (Czech Republic) over Manola Skobelska (Ukraine) 6-6 72 kg Gold Medal Match: Zelu Li (China) over Wiktoria Choluj (Poland) 4-3 Bronze Medal Match: Tanu Sharma (India) over Precious Wieser 9-5 Bronze Medal Match: Mahiro Yoshitake (Japan) over Zhamila Bakbergenova (Kazakhstan) 6-4