CHROMEBIRD

Spencer said that he doesn't watch video and that freestyle is his strongest style. I agree that Hartutyunyan deserves more credit for the win.

Valid point. If I'm being honest, after seeing the photo it doesn't look like Thunder Beard is really big uppercase Impact font COMMITTED

Is Hoke Hogan still wrestling for WVU? The folkstyle world needs a Hoke Hogan vs. Thunder Beard match. Someone start feeding that kid

Does Gable have a good low kick? (Idk why this low kick stuff has been trending on social media lately)

Are we overthinking it? I figured Kerk probably just got offered a bigger paycheck at LU.

Thanks for all y'alls work on this. Establishing a wrestling history book sounds like a great project, though I'm not jealous of how difficult all the data gathering and validation must be. Does that make it harder to commit records with uncertainty or known errors to the ledger? Or is the idea that the records can be added to the blockchain and amended later as more facts emerge? I'm also excited to see what your project could grow into as regular season and non-championship data becomes more available; and more interestingly, advanced analytics. There are primitive AI models out there that starting to capture wrestling actions at a more granular level, from stance and pace to the different types of attacks and scrambles. We'll definitely get a much different look at the sport once we learn to mine info from stuff like that (or maybe it'll worsen the sport, idk).

Agreed. I'm most interested in seeing how the pylon rule changes mat wrestling (or not). And overall, if the rules really will create a lot more action. Either way, it'll be nice to have a live test lab to try out new things that may one day be incorporated into folkstyle or UWW rulesets

This will never happen in wrestling, but Unrivaled set up their housing so that all the players stay in the same apartment complex for the season (about 2 months). I think they were initially planning to do some filming at the apartments, but the players were like "nahhh, don't turn this into some Real Housewives shіt". I wouldn't want to watch create some fake reality tv style drama fabricated by the producers, but I wonder if fans would want a little peek into wrestlers' lives off the mat. It might just be a bunch of dudes training, cutting weight, and playing video games though.

My memory is a little hazy on the ball grab & clinch days, which we all want to forget, but I thought the rule in MFS was that the clinch OT started with one wrestler in on the leg (or waist?) of the opponent? Either way, I kind of like the idea of wrestlers being in uncomfortable positions like the upper body clinch. Bailing instantly would be an interesting strategy because unclasping your hands would be a loss in CLAW unless you take your opponent down. Would you immediately drop down and go for a leg or blast double? Releasing your clinch while your opponent still has you locked might also make you prone for exposure or getting tossed. Could create some interesting action either way.

I agree that there needs to be a location, school, or some kind of affiliation to create a stronger connection with fans. It looks like the teams are setup that way now, so if an investors come along and wants to bring a team to their city, they could easily do so... Kind of like the way the Unrivaled league is setup in wbb now. Here are the other three teams. If any of you had General Manager Angelo Ferrari on your 2025 Bingo card, please buy yourself a Powerball ticket ASAP

Slightly different variation this time. If I understand correctly, OT will be 30sec, both wrestlers in over & under clinch with their hands locked. Wrestler that breaks their grip loses (opponent get 1pt?) but will have whatever time remains in the period to score. If both wrestlers remain in the clinch with their hands locked after the OT clock runs out, the match is a tie. It's interesting that CLAW intentionally chose to call their OT a clinch, which is kind of bad word to wrestling fans. The OT format sounds a little goofy and I'm not sure if that's the best way to resolve a tie, but then again it's supposed to draw interest from casuals. I'm curious to see how it works out.

In a nutshell, here's what I've gathered about the rules: Dual format. Folkstyle rules, but: 4 periods, 5min total 1st period - 90sec; 2nd - 60sec, Wrestler A on top; 3rd - 60sec, Wrestler A on bottom; 4th - 90sec optional choice 2pt TD 1pt bonus if a wrestler scores in first 10sec of the period 1pt push out, no grounding 2pt exposure 2pt riding time, must rideout the entire period 1pt for pylon knockdown during mat wrestling(!) 1pt for receiving optional choice Quicker stalling and stalemate calls Clinch for OT No singlets Dual scoring: Win = 5 team points + match point differential 25 team points for pinfellery 6 wrestlers per team, 1000lb "budget", put out any lineup up to 1000lbs on the fly (so, you could see a 145lber vs. a 197lber) I'm sure they'll tweak the rules and format further, but they look good! We'll see how it actually works out

What do you all think of this? There were a few mentions of it in the RAF discussions. I'm not familiar with any of the development or draft or other stuff to date, but this sounds like a pretty fun concept and I like how experimental they're going with the rules & format. I mean why not take a few risks and try new things out? For many of us, it'll probably be difficult to keep in mind that CLAW is trying to appeal first to combat and casual sports fans first, and not really the most diehard aficionados of the sport (e.g., this forum). There's also a CLAW fantasy league with a $1,000 grand prize to get folks interested. It looks like they've got some pretty good names on the team rosters, and some funny/surprising GMs locked in. Bader interviewed one of the founders on his show recently: Dual season starts on Oct 28. https://www.wrestleclaw.com/

https://www.themat.com/membership/athletes/find-a-club

I'm not familiar with the practice quote, but I think it's kind of the opposite. Spencer has admitted in interviews that he gets really nervous before every match, whether it's for a gold mdeal or just an exhibition. He's probably wrestled in hundreds of tournaments in his life by now so I don't know if competing more alone will fix his nerves. I feel like a good approach would be to first learn to get a handle on his anxiety, then wrestle more tournaments and use those techniques to develop his confidence. Interestingly, Ramos faced similar demons but worked with a sports psychologist to overcome it. He frequently mentioned incorporating self-talk and visualization into his pre-match routine. I guess the weird center mat staredown stuff that some people used to ridicule was also part of it, and it seemed to work out pretty well for him.

Bez

But he's so young now. A kid, if you will

L = QV W = LV

It's just high expectations is all. Most people probably thought he had the best chance of bringing home a gold medal out of anyone on our MFS team this year. Is that a fair expectation? Maybe not, but we all know what Spencer is capable of. To his credit, it was kind of a shock that he didn't bulldoze his way through the bracket.

Could be that he's putting additional pressure on himself to raise his career stock if he really wants to be a coach, AD, or college administrator. Not that his current accolades aren't already impressive as hell...

Zahid or Hidlay should make things interesting. Loser of the match can no longer be on social media or podcasts. Who cares about belts

If he did what you're hinting at, he wouldn't be able to compete at UWW events until late 2027. That's a lot of time away from competition. I think he's still a legit threat to make another World/Oly team in the US.

Sounds like International Metcalf syndrome. I still like Spencer's chances to be our guy in 2028 and a World medalist before then. Plenty of time.

I heard Ionel has a new pickleball training partner. Coincidence?

This part. One of the most helpful things Brands could do for Spencer right now is watch tape with him. Lee is notorious for spending exactly zero time gameplanning against opponents, and it's a skill that he's never developed. While it's a flex for sure to just do your own thing and force wrestlers to have to adjust to you, this approach has bitten him in the past and now we're talking about World level best-of-the-best caliber competition. Going into matches blind and having to figure things out in real-time puts him at an automatic disadvantage no matter how good you are. It was a good move by Brands to allow the Otoguros to come train with Lee & DeSanto, but he needs to be smarter with his "don't overthink it" philosophy. Yes, Spencer shouldn't overthink all the what-ifs and let anxiety take over his game. OTOH, I think it would help to go a level deeper and study some film and learn a thing of two. Hell, bring in Kozak, have him teach Spencer how to analyze and break down match footage. That would be a tremendous help.