American wrestler Spencer Lee knows he was in trouble in the 57kg semifinals against Islam Bazarganov of Azerbaijan, having fallen 10-3 behind. Bazaganov used a tram-arm gut to turn Lee four time to take the lead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, as Bazarganov was completed the fourth turn, Lee stepped over and blocked the Azerbaijan wrestler before getting the fall while being 10-5 down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“I need to be better tomorrow,” said Lee, the Paris Olympic silver medalist who confirmed his first senior World Championships medal in his second appearance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He will face Roman Bravo Young for the gold medal after the Mexican became the first-ever wrestler to make it to the final of the senior World Championships. Bravo Young defeated returning world champion Han Chongsong of North Korea 4-1.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“I’ve known I was that good, it was just a matter of time,” Bravo Young said after reaching the historic final. “I worked really hard, I feel good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While Lee has defeated Bravo Young twice in international wrestling, the Mexico wrestler hopes that he will able to put on a tougher fight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“Just let it rip,” he said aboutt the final. “I’ve wrestled him before. I know I can hang with these guys. It doesn’t matter about my performance. It was just win and move on. I beat two people that I lost to last year.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The United States managed two more finalists on Saturday with defending champion at 92kg Trent Hidlay pulling off a thrilling 11-8 win over Amirhossein Firouzpour of Iran, coming back from six points behind before pulling off the win.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Hidlay was down 8-2 when he got a takedown and used a leg lace to turn Firouzpour two times to make it 8-8 with the Iranian leading on criteria. But he pressured Firouzpour to give one more takedown to take a 10-8 lead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Firouzpour waited for the last second to find a way to score a match-winning takedown but as he tried to jump over Hidlay, the U.S. wrestler blocked him and planted him outside the zone to score one point and make the score 11-8 and enter his second straight World Championships final.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The 92kg final will be a rematch of 2025 World Championships final as Russia’s Amanula Gadzhimagomedov posted a close 3-2 win over Miriani Maisuradze of Georgia in the other semifinals. He Both scored a takedown but Gadzhimagomedov had an extra stepout to win.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Hidlay and Gadzhimagomedov were invovlved in a barn-burner last year with the former coming out on top 12-8.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The other American wrestler to reach the final was Levi Haines who just about held a 3-3 criteria win over Suldkhuu Olonbayar of Mongolia in the semifinals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Haines took a 1-0 lead after Olonbayar was put on the activity clock but the Mongolian fired back with a takedown and one point for Haines’ passivity. But with 40 seconds left, Haines got a takedown on the edge to lead on criteria that he defended.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He will face four-time world medalist Mohammad Nokhodi of Iran who defeated Dzhabrail Gadzhiev of Azerbaijan, 9-5, to enter his third World Championships final.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In college, Kyle Dake of the USA made a name for himself by winning four national titles in four different weight classes. In Astana on Saturday, he accomplished what could be regarded as the global equivalent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dake claimed his fifth world title in a third different weight class on Saturday when he defeated Arsenii Dzhioev of Azerbaijan 3-2 in the Freestyle 86kg final. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI think this may be my favorite one,\u201d said Dake who, at 35, also became the oldest U.S. champion ever. \u201cThere was a lot of adversity that I went through. In \u201924, losing my dad. My son got really sick\u2026Last year, I fell short of my goals. I wanted to be a world champion last year.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dake previously won back-t0-back world titles at 79kg in 2018 and 2019, then again at 74kg in 2021 and 2022. By winning at 86kg, he joined Abdulrashid Sadulaev of Russia as wrestlers who have accumulated their world golds across three weight classes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Meanwhile, Iran won two of the three other Freestyle golds at stake on the eighth day of competition, with Ahmad Javan of Iran routing Zavur Uguev of Russia at 61kg to avenge a loss in last year\u2019s world final, and Amir Hossein Zare of Iran continuing his total dominance at 125kg.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The experience and determination that led Dake to the top of the world came to the fore before a packed crowd at Astana\u2019s Barys Arena, as the U.S. wrestler reversed a loss to Dzhioev from earlier this year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cJust lateral movement, trying to get corners, hitting angles,\u201d Dake said. \u201cHe\u2019s a really, really tough opponent, he wrestles hard for six minutes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dake, holding a 1-0 lead from an activity point in the first period, shot in for a double-leg takedown that Dzhioev countered. Dake then transitioned to a single and lifted the leg in the air as he moved toward the edge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But instead of settling for the easy stepout, he managed to trip Dzhioev to the mat for two while avoiding being thrown himself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHe\u2019s such a good opponent,\u201d Dake said. \u201cHe got an underhook and got me out of bounds pretty quickly. I knew if it was just one point, it was going to be hard. So, scoring those two was really important.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He wasn\u2019t out of the woods yet. Dzhioev came back with a stepout, then received an activity point to make it a one-point gap with :35 to go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When Dzhioev shot in for a takedown, Dake wrapped his arms around the chest and held his ground to run out the clock and clinch the victory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCoach Cody (Sanderson) had a little bit of a panic attack in the corner,\u201d Dake said. \u201cI\u2019m just so comfortable there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dake said he has been working on avoiding getting into that situation, from which he often works an effective counter, but which can also backfire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat\u2019s how I scored my points yesterday — I didn\u2019t get stuck in the chest wrap every single time,\u201d Dake said. \u201cI didn\u2019t score on it, but I also got my legs back, re-attacked and scored, so that will continue to be a point of emphasis moving forward. I\u2019m really pleased how it turned out.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After the adversity of recent years, from which his faith helped him get through, Dake could have easily thrown in the towel, particularly when he lost in the U.S. trials to Zahid VALENCIA (USA), who went on to win the 2025 world gold in Zagreb.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But he came back, beat Valencia in this year\u2019s trials and made it back to the top of the medal podium. That gave him six world medals overall\u2014he also a silver from 2023\u2014to go with his two Olympic bronzes, both at 74kg.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As he displayed over two grueling days in Astana, Dake shows no signs of slowing down. He can\u2019t, given the competition he faces daily in one of the combative wrestling clubs in the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dake has been a member of the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club, affiliated with Penn State in State College, Pennsylvania, since 2022, somewhat ironic given the rivalry he had with the school\u2019s wrestlers when he was at Cornell University.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The intensity of the wrestling room cannot be overemphasized. In fact, he was preceded as a gold medalist in Astana by teammate Kyle Snyder and Levi Haines could join them tomorrow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Two others, Zain Retherford and Marcus Blaze claimed bronze medals on Saturday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe have so many guys that are always pushing the pace,\u201d Dake said. \u201cWe push each other to get better. Conditioning is just part of who we are. You have to be able to go out and wrestle hard for six minutes, and wrestle the way that you want to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOur coaching staff is the best in the world and I just have a great support system around me\u2026I don\u2019t think I\u2019d be here without that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the 61kg final, Javan handled everything thrown at him in a frantic second period by Uguev, the Tokyo Olympic champion who was aiming for a title repeat and fourth overall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After Javan received an activity point in the first period, Uguev went ahead in the second with an activity point and a stepout from a single-leg attack.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But when Uguev went on the attack again, Javan countered and spun behind for a go- ahead takedown and added a gut wrench to lead 5-2. The two repeated the process two more times, without the roll. Uguev shoots, Javan gets behind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At 125kg, Zare had little trouble putting away Abdulla Kurbanov of Russia with an 11-0 victory that ended 56 seconds into the second period, giving him a fourth world title and fifth medal overall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the first period, Kurbanov tried to match Zare\u2019s power, only to result in five straight stepouts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kurbanov changed his strategy in the second and tried to be more aggressive by shooting, but fared no better. Zare put his full weight on Kurbanov and spun behind, then hit a gut wrench to make it 9-0, then got behind again on another shot to end the match.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For Zare, the victory keeps him undefeated since losing in the final of the Paris Olympics to Geno Petriashvili of Georgia, This year, he won his second titles at both the Asian Championships and Asian Games.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The other gold at stake went to Ibragim Ibragimoc of Russia, who scored all of his points in the first period to defeat Ernazar Akmataliev of Kyrgyzstan 5-2 at 70kg and make his first senior medal at gold one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ibragimov, the 2025 European champion at 65kg, scored a single-leg takedown-gut wrench combination and a stepout in the opening period, then held on until conceding a takedown with 10 seconds left.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Akmataliev leaves Astana with his fourth career world medal but still looking to strike gold. The 2025 Asian champion now has two silvers and two bronzes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the bronze-medal matches, Georgios Kougioumtsidis of Greece came up short of a medal at 86kg, a year after becoming Greek\u2019s first-ever male world champion with a victory at 79kg.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kougioumtsidis was dealt a 6-0 loss by Vladimeri Gamkrelidze of Georgia, who combined two takedowns and two activity clock points to add the 86kg world bronze to the 2023 silver he won at 79kg.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It was a tough night for the reigning Olympic champ at 86kg as well, as Ibragim Kadiev of Russia fell 4-3 to Malik Shavaev of Kyrgyzstan, who scored a decisive two-point counterlift with :05 left.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Russian-born Shavaev, who also won a bronze at the recent Asian Games, had given up a second activity point to trail 2-1 when he jacked up Kadiev in the final seconds for two. Kadiev rolled through for a reversal, but a challenge to make it a two-pointer was denied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At 70kg, Tulga Tumur Ochir of Mongolia and Retherford both won convincingly to become three-time world medalists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Tumur Ochir was leading 5-0 — all from single points — when he nailed Vasile Diacon of Moldova with a pancake and secured a fall in 3:54. That adds to his silver medal from last year and bronze at 65kg in 2021.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Retherford gained a pair of takedowns in the first period and that was enough for a 4-0 win over Lachlan McNeil of Canada. With the victory, Retherford completes his collection of medals, having won the gold in 2023 and silver in 2022.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At 61kg, Asian champion Kim Kwang Myong gave the North Korea its first medal of the championships, scoring a late takedown to defeat Zelimkhan Abakarov of Albania, 3-3 on last-point criteria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Abakarov, with a takedown in the first period, was holding a 3-1 lead when Kim shot in on a single in the last minute. He managed to get behind in standing and, with some effort, finally got Abakarov to the mat for the winning points.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The 19-year-old Blaze, last year\u2019s world U20 champion, earned a world medal in just his second senior international tournament by taking the other 61kg bronze with a 4-2 victory over Assyl Aitakyn of Kazakhstan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Blaze got all the points he needed in the first period, when he used a well-executed ankle pick to score a takedown, then added a gut wrench that put him up 4-1. The lone point he conceded in the second period was a one-point penalty for finger-grabbing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At 125kg, Wyatt Hendrickson of the USA made up somewhat for his disappointing performance a year ago in Zagreb, needing just 26 seconds to take a bronze medal with a 10-0 demolition of Jaspooran Singh of India.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Hendrickson, who medaled at two Ranking Series events this year, gained a quick takedown, then gut-wrenched Singh across the mat — four times in succession — to finish the match and end the Indian men\u2019s last chance for a medal in Astana.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In a match that certainly lacked any spark, to say the least, last year\u2019s silver medalist Giorgi Meshvildishvili of Azerbaijan picked up the other 125kg bronze when Vlagyiszlav Bajcajev of Hungary was disqualified for a third fleeing penalty among the six stepouts scored against him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After the Meshvildishvili received an activity point for the lone score of the first period, the match evolved into a repetitive parade out of the ring in the second period, with Meshvildishvili encountering virtually no resistance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The last stepout and penalty increased Meshvildishvili\u2019s lead to a match-ending 10-0, but it will go down officially as a disqualification.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
RESULTS<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n 57kg (34 entries)<\/strong> 61kg (27 entries)<\/strong> BRONZE: Kwang Myong KIM (PRK) df. Zelimkhan ABAKAROV (ALB), 3-3 70kg (24 entries)<\/strong> BRONZE: Tulga TUMUR OCHIR (MGL) df. Vasile DIACON (MDA) by Fall, 3:54 (9-0) 74kg (37 entries)<\/strong> 79kg (30 entries)<\/strong> 86kg (41 entries)<\/strong> BRONZE: Vladimeri GAMKRELIDZE (GEO) df. Georgios KOUGIOUMTSIDIS (GRE), 6-0 92kg (23 entries)<\/strong> 125kg (30 entries)<\/strong> BRONZE: Giorgi MESHVILDISHVILI (AZE) df. Vlagyiszlav BAJCAJEV (HUN) by VCA., 4:13 (10-0) American wrestler Spencer Lee knows he was in trouble in the 57kg semifinals against Islam Bazarganov of Azerbaijan,<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":17302,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[91],"class_list":["post-17301","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-newsbeat","tag-wrestling"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t
SF1: Roman BRAVO YOUNG (MEX) df. Chong Song HAN (PRK), 4-1
SF2: Spencer LEE (USA) df. Islam BAZARGANOV (AZE) by Fall, 4:16 (5-10)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
GOLD: Ahmad JAVAN (IRI) df. Zavur UGUEV (RUS), 9-2<\/p>\n\n\n\n
BRONZE: Marcus BLAZE (USA) df. Assyl AITAKYN (KAZ), 4-2<\/p>\n\n\n\n
GOLD: Ibragim IBRAGIMOV (RUS) df. Ernazar AKMATALIEV (KGZ), 5-2<\/p>\n\n\n\n
BRONZE: Zain RETHERFORD (USA) df. Lachlan MCNEIL (CAN), 4-0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
SF1: Inalbek SHERIEV (RUS) df. Tajmuraz SALKAZANOV (SVK), 3-1
SF2: Nurkozha KAIPANOV (KAZ) df. Yoshinosuke AOYAGI (JPN), 2-1<\/p>\n\n\n\n
SF1: Mohammad NOKHODI (IRI) df. Dzhabrail GADZHIEV (AZE), 9-5
SF2: Levi HAINES (USA) df. Suldkhuu OLONBAYAR (MGL), 3-3<\/p>\n\n\n\n
GOLD: Kyle DAKE (USA) df. Arsenii DZHIOEV (AZE), 3-2<\/p>\n\n\n\n
BRONZE: Malik SHAVAEV (KGZ) df. Ibragim KADIEV (RUS), 4-3<\/p>\n\n\n\n
SF1: Trent HIDLAY (USA) df. Amirhossein FIROUZPOUR (IRI), 11-8
SF2: Amanula GADZHIMAGOMEDOV (RUS) df. Miriani MAISURADZE (GEO), 3-2<\/p>\n\n\n\n
GOLD: Amir Hossein ZARE (IRI) df. Abdulla KURBANOV (RUS) by TS, 11-0, 3:56<\/p>\n\n\n\n
BRONZE: Wyatt HENDRICKSON (USA) df. Jaspooran SINGH (IND) by TS, 10-0, :26<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"