#WrestleBelgrade

Greco-Roman entries released for 2023 World Championships

Tuesday, August 22, 2023 - 12:37 By Eric Olanowski

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BELGRADE, Serbia (August 22) — Serbia's capital city, Belgrade, is set to host United World Wrestling's flagship event of 2023, the World Championships, from September 16-24.

This year's stacked preliminary Greco-Roman field includes nine of ten reigning Greco-Roman world gold medalists, with recent-retiree Zurabi DATUNASHVILI (SRB) being the only absentee 2022 world title holder.

The competition begins on September 16 with freestyle action, but the draws for Greco-Roman wrestling come out on September 20, with the Classic Style starting on September 21. 

The 2023 World Championships hold significant importance for the 2024 Olympic cycle as they mark the initial phase of the six qualifying events for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. 90 Olympic quotas—30 each in freestyle, Greco-Roman, and women's wrestling—are up for contention in Belgrade.

The Olympic quotas will be allocated across six weight classes: 60kg, 67kg, 77kg, 87kg, 97kg, and 130kg. Additionally, four non-Olympic weights will be contested—55kg, 63kg, 72kg, and 82kg—however, placements in these categories will have no impact on qualification for the Paris Olympics.

Wrestlers who achieve gold, silver, or bronze medals in the six Olympic weight categories will secure a place for their nation in the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. Additionally, the two wrestlers who fall short in the bronze-medal bouts will compete in a wrestle-off to determine the fifth quota for the Paris Olympics.

Other Olympic Qualification Events:

  • March 01-03: Pan-American Olympic Qualifier in Acapulco, Mexico
  • March 22-24: African and Oceania Olympic Qualifier in Cairo, Egypt
  • April 04-07: European Olympic Qualifier in Baku, Azerbaijan
  • April 19-21: Asian Olympic Qualifier in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
  • May 09-12: World Olympic Qualifier in Istanbul, Turkey

Nine out of the ten world champions currently grace the early entry list. However, Sebastian NAD (SRB) and Mate NEMES (SRB), Serbia's reigning world champions at 63kg and 67kg, respectively, are both registered at the Olympic weight of 67kg, with the final spot yet to be determined.

Eldaniz AZIZLI (AZE), Zholaman SHARSHENBEKOV (KGZ), Ali ARSALAN (SRB), Akzhol MAKHMUDOV (KGZ), Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR), Artur ALEKSANYAN (ARM) and Riza KAYAALP (TUR) are the other notable world-title holders who'll have targets on their backs coming into Belgrade.

Azizli, a lightweight standout, will strive to secure his third 55kg world title by overcoming fellow world champion Nugzari TSURTSUMIA (GEO). The two clashed in a battle for world gold a year ago, with Azizli emerging victorious. 

Returning world bronze medalist Jasurbek ORTIKBOEV (UZB) is also registered in the 55kg category.

Sharshenbekov faces a challenging journey to defend his 60kg world championship title against countless formidable opponents, including world champions Kenichiro FUMITA (JPN) and Victor CIOBANU (MDA). Edmond NAZARYAN (BUL), who Sharshenbekov defeated in the finals last year, is also a guy to highlight at 60kg.

At 63kg, Leri ABULADZE (GEO), a two-time world runner-up, stands as the solo returning medalist in the weight category and is favored to vie for world supremacy.

The 67kg category holds a compelling narrative centered around Serbia's "issue." With a pair of reigning world champions as viable options, the spotlight is on Mate Nemes, the reigning world champion of the weight, and 63kg world gold medalist Sebastian Nad, who moved up a weight class to pursue his Olympic title aspirations. The Serbian coaching staff will look at Nemes and Nad's results from this season and make a decision in the coming weeks.

Mohammadreza GERAEI (IRI) seeks to recapture his 2021 form when he became the only Greco-Roman wrestler in history to win golds at the World Championships and Olympic Games in the same year.

Promising newcomer Hasrat JAFAROV (AZE), who is only 20 years old, has already earned a European gold and world bronze medal in the 67kg category. He's a guy who could send shockwaves through weight.

At the non-Olympic weight of 72kg, Serbia's Ali ARSALAN (SRB) aims to face off against 2022 world medalists Ulvu GANIZADE (AZE) and Selcuk CAN (TUR) once again.

The 77kg bracket features all four medalists from the previous year's competition.

Makhmudov, the first wrestler from Kyrgyzstan to win a world title, will try to keep his hot streak alive and build towards a second consecutive world-title run.

Zoltan LEVAI (HUN), the opponent Makhmudov defeated for the world title, is certaintly seeking retribution. Also in contention are 2022 world bronze medalists Malkhas AMOYAN (ARM) and Yunus Emre BASAR (TUR).

The anticipated clash for world gold in the 82kg category is expected between the last two winners of the bracket: Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR), the reigning world champion, and Rafig HUSEYNOV (AZE), who clinched the title in 2021.

The 87kg bracket is the only weight class lacking a defending world champion. With the recent unexpected retirement of Zurabi Datunashvili, the two-time world champ, and the injury to world silver medalist Turpal BISULTANOV (DEN), the category presents an open field.

Tokyo Olympic champion Zhan BELENIUK (UKR) is registered to compete for the second time since his Olympic victory. He returned to competition earlier this season, securing gold at the Grand Prix de France Henri Deglane.

David LOSONCZI (HUN) and Kiryl MASKEVICH (AIN) are noteworthy contenders for 87kg gold.

In his most recent outing, Losonczi showcased dominance by securing Hungarian Ranking Series gold, outscoring his opponents 41-0.

Maskevich aims to build on his runner-up finish in Oslo and claim the world championship title.

Despite the presence of all medalists from the previous year's World Championships, Artur Aleksanyan remains the favorite in the 97kg category. A consistent force in Greco-Roman wrestling since 2012, 'The White Bear' has accumulated gold, silver, and bronze medals at the Olympic Games and six world medals—four of which are gold—during this period.

Aleksanyan's primary competition includes Kiril MILOV (BUL), who he defeated for the world and European gold over the past year, as well as rival Mohammadhadi SARAVI (IRI) and world bronze medalist Arif NIFTULLAYEV (AZE).

The 130kg category will witness efforts to prevent Riza KAYAALP (TUR) from adding a sixth world title to his achievements. His strongest contenders include Amin MIRZAZADEH (IRI) and Alin ALEXUC CIURARIU (ROU), who secured world silver and bronze medals, respectively, last year.

The 2023 World Championships begin September 16-24 in Belgrade, Serbia. Fans can follow all the action live on www.uww.org or on 'The Home of Wrestling,' United World Wrestling's new app.

*Please note these entries are preliminary and are subject to change.

Greco-Roman entries

55kg
Vitalii KABALOEV (AIN)
Mohamed DRIDI (ALG)
Rudik MKRTCHYAN (ARM)
Eldaniz AZIZLI (AZE)
Wenjie CHEN (CHN)
Nugzari TSURTSUMIA (GEO)
Poya DAD MARZ (IRI)
Mostafa ALQADE (JOR)
Taiga ONISHI (JPN)
Marlan MUKASHEV (KAZ)
Davies ORIWA (KEN)
Hyeokjin JEON (KOR)
Artiom DELEANU (MDA)
Denis MIHAI (ROU)
Umit DURDYYEV (TKM)
Adem Burak UZUN (TUR)
Koriun SAHRADIAN (UKR)
Brady KOONTZ (USA)
AJAY (UWW)
Jasurbek ORTIKBOEV (UZB)

60kg
Hleb MAKARANKA (AIN)
Anvar ALLAKHIAROV (AIN)
Bajram SINA (ALB)
Reginaldo da SILVA (ANG)
Gevorg GHARIBYAN (ARM)
Nihat MAMMADLI (AZE)
Edmond NAZARYAN (BUL)
Liguo CAO (CHN)
Dicther TORO (COL)
Latuf MADI (COM)
Kevin DE ARMAS (CUB)
Jeremy PERALTA (ECU)
Haithem MAHMOUD (EGY)
Helary MAEGISALU (EST)
Leo TUDEZCA (FRA)
Pridon ABULADZE (GEO)
Christopher KRAEMER (GER)
Erik TORBA (HUN)
Mehdi MOHSEN NEJAD (IRI)
Melkamu FETENE (ISR)
Jacopo SANDRON (ITA)
Kenichiro FUMITA (JPN)
Olzhas SULTAN (KAZ)
Zholaman SHARSHENBEKOV (KGZ)
Seunghak KIM (KOR)
Aleksandrs JURKJANS (LAT)
Justas PETRAVICIUS (LTU)
Ismail ETTALIBI (MAR)
Victor CIOBANU (MDA)
Samuel GURRIA (MEX)
Joao BENAVIDES (PER)
Michal TRACZ (POL)
Razvan ARNAUT (ROU)
Ibrahim BUNDUKA (SLE)
Sabolc LOSONC (SRB)
Virgil BICA (SWE)
Aslamdzhon AZIZOV (TJK)
Kerem KAMAL (TUR)
Viktor PETRYK (UKR)
Ildar HAFIZOV (USA)
MANISH (UWW)
Jamal VALIZADEH (UWW)
Islomjon BAKHRAMOV (UZB)
Raiber RODRIGUEZ (VEN)

63kg
Astemir BIZHOEV (AIN)
Hrachya POGHOSYAN (ARM)
Murad MAMMADOV (AZE)
Abu AMAEV (BUL)
Zheng LI (CHN)
Ivan LIZATOVIC (CRO)
Stefan CLEMENT (FRA)
Leri ABULADZE (GEO)
Etienne KINSINGER (GER)
Krisztian KECSKEMETI (HUN)
Iman MOHAMMADI (IRI)
Ryuto IKEDA (JPN)
Mukhamedali MAMURBEK (KAZ)
Dastan KADYROV (KGZ)
Jinwoong JUNG (KOR)
Alexis RODRIGUEZ (MEX)
Mairbek SALIMOV (POL)
Perica DIMITRIJEVIC (SRB)
Akmyrat GELDIYEV (TKM)
Enes BASAR (TUR)
Oleksandr HRUSHYN (UKR)
Xavier JOHNSON (USA)
Vikram KURADE (UWW)
Shermukhammad SHARIBJANOV (UZB)

67kg
Aliaksandr LIAVONCHYK (AIN)
Aslan VISAITOV (AIN)
Ishak GHAIOU (ALG)
Slavik GALSTYAN (ARM)
Hasrat JAFAROV (AZE)
Ivo ILIEV (BUL)
Nestor ALMANZA (CHI)
Husiyuetu HUSIYUETU (CHN)
Julian HORTA (COL)
Luis SANCHEZ (CUB)
Andres MONTANO (ECU)
Mohamed ELSAYED (EGY)
Mamadassa SYLLA (FRA)
Joni KHETSURIANI (GEO)
Witalis LAZOVSKI (GER)
Krisztian VANCZA (HUN)
Ashu ASHU (IND)
Mohammadreza GERAEI (IRI)
Shon NADORGIN (ISR)
Ignazio SANFILIPPO (ITA)
Kyotaro SOGABE (JPN)
Almat KEBISPAYEV (KAZ)
Amantur ISMAILOV (KGZ)
Minseong KWON (KOR)
Kristupas SLEIVA (LTU)
Valentin PETIC (MDA)
Edsson OLMOS (MEX)
Morten THORESEN (NOR)
Nilton SOTO (PER)
Mateusz BERNATEK (POL)
Mihai MIHUT (ROU)
Mate NEMES (SRB)
Andreas VETSCH (SUI)
Niklas OEHLEN (SWE)
Firuz MIRZORAJABOV (TJK)
Mansur NURBERDIYEV (TKM)
Souleymen NASR (TUN)
Murat FIRAT (TUR)
Parviz NASIBOV (UKR)
Alejandro SANCHO (USA)
Vinayak PATIL (UWW)
Abror ATABAEV (UZB)

72kg
Narek OGANIAN (AIN)
Abdelmalek MERABET (ALG)
Shant KHACHATRYAN (ARM)
Ulvu GANIZADE (AZE)
Stoyan KUBATOV (BUL)
Jian TAN (CHN)
Ibrahim GHANEM (FRA)
Ramaz ZOIDZE (GEO)
Michael WIDMAYER (GER)
Robert FRITSCH (HUN)
Danial SOHRABI (IRI)
Zaur KABALOEV (ITA)
Rintaro SOGABE (JPN)
Ibragim MAGOMADOV (KAZ)
Jiyeon LEE (KOR)
Mihai PETIC (MDA)
Haavard JOERGENSEN (NOR)
Kamil CZARNECKI (POL)
Ali ARSALAN (SRB)
Selcuk CAN (TUR)
Artur POLITAIEV (UKR)
Patrick SMITH (USA)
Ankit GULIA (UWW)
Jamol JUMABAEV (UZB)

77kg
Pavel LIAKH (AIN)
Adlet TIULIUBAEV (AIN)
Kevin KUPI (ALB)
Abd OUAKALI (ALG)
Francisco KADIMA (ANG)
Malkhas AMOYAN (ARM)
Sanan SULEYMANOV (AZE)
Joilson RAMOS (BRA)
Aik MNATSAKANIAN (BUL)
Rui LIU (CHN)
Jair CUERO (COL)
Antonio KAMENJASEVIC (CRO)
Yosvanys PENA FLORES (CUB)
Oldrich VARGA (CZE)
Oliver KRUEGER (DEN)
Mohamed KHALIL (EGY)
Marcos SANCHEZ (ESP)
Jonni SARKKINEN (FIN)
Johnny BUR (FRA)
Iuri LOMADZE (GEO)
Deni NAKAEV (GER)
Georgios PREVOLARAKIS (GRE)
Zoltan LEVAI (HUN)
Mohammadali GERAEI (IRI)
Riccardo ABBRESCIA (ITA)
Amro SADEH (JOR)
Nao KUSAKA (JPN)
Demeu ZHADRAYEV (KAZ)
Akzhol MAKHMUDOV (KGZ)
Daekun PARK (KOR)
Paulius GALKINAS (LTU)
Alexandrin GUTU (MDA)
Emmanuel BENITEZ (MEX)
Per Anders KURE (NOR)
Patryk BEDNARZ (POL)
Viktor NEMES (SRB)
Fabio DIETSCHE (SUI)
Per Albin OLOFSSON (SWE)
Toyly ORAZOV (TKM)
Yunus BASAR (TUR)
Dmytro VASETSKYI (UKR)
Kamal BEY (USA)
Gurpreet SINGH (UWW)
Aram VARDANYAN (UZB)
Wuileixis RIVAS (VEN)

82kg
Stanislau SHAFARENKA (AIN)
Aues GONIBOV (AIN)
Samvel GRIGORYAN (ARM)
Aker SCHMID AL OBAIDI (AUT)
Michael WAGNER (AUT)
Rafig HUSEYNOV (AZE)
Halishan BAHEJIANG (CHN)
Bozo STARCEVIC (CRO)
Gela BOLKVADZE (GEO)
Idris Hanpasaevic IBAEV (GER)
Erik SZILVASSY (HUN)
Alireza MOHMADIPIANI (IRI)
Sultan Ali Mohd Damen EID (JOR)
Isami HORIKITA (JPN)
Shohei YABIKU (JPN)
Dias KALEN (KAZ)
Beksultan NAZARBAEV (KGZ)
Sejin YANG (KOR)
Mihail BRADU (MDA)
Jose Andres VARGAS RUEDA (MEX)
Branko KOVACEVIC (SRB)
Kristoffer Zakarias BERG (SWE)
Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR)
Yaroslav FILCHAKOV (UKR)
Spencer WOODS (USA)
SAJAN (UWW)
Mukhammadkodir RASULOV (UZB)

87kg
Kiryl MASKEVICH (AIN)
Savelii BORISOV (AIN)
Bachir SID AZARA (ALG)
Gevorg TADEVOSYAN (ARM)
Lukas STAUDACHER (AUT)
Islam ABBASOV (AZE)
Ronisson BRANDAO (BRA)
Semen NOVIKOV (BUL)
Haitao QIAN (CHN)
Carlos MUNOZ (COL)
Ivan HUKLEK (CRO)
Daniel GREGORICH HECHAVARRIA (CUB)
Mohamed METWALLY (EGY)
Andreas VAELIS (EST)
Toni METSOMAEKI (FIN)
Lasha GOBADZE (GEO)
Hannes WAGNER (GER)
Ilias PAGKALIDIS (GRE)
David LOSONCZI (HUN)
Naser ALIZADEH (IRI)
Mirco MINGUZZI (ITA)
Masato SUMI (JPN)
Yoji KAWAMURA (JPN)
Nursultan TURSYNOV (KAZ)
John OMONDI (KEN)
Azat SALIDINOV (KGZ)
Sanghyeok PARK (KOR)
Martynas NEMSEVICIUS (LTU)
Viorel BURDUJA (MDA)
Daniel VICENTE (MEX)
Marcel STERKENBURG (NED)
Exauce MUKUBU (NOR)
Arkadiusz KULYNYCZ (POL)
Nicu OJOG (ROU)
Mario VUKOVIC (SRB)
Ramon BETSCHART (SUI)
Alex KESSIDIS (SWE)
Azym ANNAMAMMEDOV (TKM)
Ali CENGIZ (TUR)
Zhan BELENIUK (UKR)
Zachary Kyle BRAUNAGEL (USA)
Manoj KUMAR (UWW)
Jalgasbay BERDIMURATOV (UZB)
Luis AVENDANO (VEN)

97kg
Abubakar KHASLAKHANAU (AIN)
Artur SARGSIAN (AIN)
Adem BOUDJEMLINE (ALG)
Artur ALEKSANYAN (ARM)
Markus RAGGINGER (AUT)
Arif NIFTULLAYEV (AZE)
Igor ALVES DE (BRA)
Kiril Milenov MILOV (BUL)
Yiming LI (CHN)
Filip SMETKO (CRO)
Gabriel ROSILLO (CUB)
Artur OMAROV (CZE)
Mathias BAK (DEN)
Mohamed GABR (EGY)
Richard KARELSON (EST)
Arvi SAVOLAINEN (FIN)
Roberti KOBLIASHVILI (GEO)
Peter OEHLER (GER)
Laokratis KESIDIS (GRE)
Kevin MEJIA CASTILLO (HON)
Tamas LEVAI (HUN)
Mohammadhadi SARAVI (IRI)
Nikoloz KAKHELASHVILI (ITA)
Yuta NARA (JPN)
Riku NAKAHARA (JPN)
Olzhas SYRLYBAY (KAZ)
Beksultan MAKHMUDOV (KGZ)
Seungjun KIM (KOR)
Mindaugas VENCKAITIS (LTU)
Tyrone STERKENBURG (NED)
Felix BALDAUF (NOR)
Gerard KURNICZAK (POL)
Luka KATIC (SRB)
Mihail KAJAIA (SRB)
Aleksandar STJEPANETIC (SWE)
Metehan BASAR (TUR)
Serhii OMELIN (UKR)
Josef RAU (USA)
Shailesh SHELKE (UWW)
Rustam ASSAKALOV (UZB)

130kg
Ilya YUDCHYTS (AIN)
Sergei SEMENOV (AIN)
David OVASAPYAN (ARM)
Daniel GASTL (AUT)
Beka KANDELAKI (AZE)
Eduard SOGHOMONYAN (BRA)
Yasmani ACOSTA (CHI)
Lingzhe MENG (CHN)
Oscar PINO (CUB)
Marcel ALBINI (CZE)
Abdellatif MOHAMED (EGY)
Heiki NABI (EST)
Matti KUOSMANEN (FIN)
Iakobi KAJAIA (GEO)
Jello KRAHMER (GER)
Dariusz VITEK (HUN)
Amin MIRZAZADEH (IRI)
Sota OKUMURA (JPN)
Yuma MIYAUCHI (JPN)
Alimkhan SYZDYKOV (KAZ)
Seungchan LEE (KOR)
Romas FRIDRIKAS (LTU)
Paul MORALES (MEX)
Oskar MARVIK (NOR)
Alin ALEXUC CIURARIU (ROU)
Boris PETRUSIC (SRB)
Aybegshazada KURRAYEV (TKM)
Riza KAYAALP (TUR)
Oleksandr CHERNETSKYY (UKR)
Cohlton SCHULTZ (USA)
Mehar SINGH (UWW)
Temurbek NASIMOV (UZB)

#WrestleUlaanbaatar

Ranking Series: Ulaanbaatar Open 2025 Preview

Monday, May 26, 2025 - 06:43 By Vinay Siwach

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ULAANBAATAR, Mongolia (May 23) -- While most Paris Olympic medalist have returned to action in either the first two Ranking Series or the recent continental championships, there are still who will be wrestling for the first time since Games in August 2024.

The Ulaanbaatar Open, the third stop of the Ranking Series, will see two such wrestlers -- AMAN (IND) and Uzur DZHUZUPBEKOV (KGZ).

Aman, the bronze medalist at 57kg in Paris, will mark his return to competition after dropping out from first two Ranking Series tournaments. Dzhuzupekov, who won bronze at Greco-Roman 97kg in Paris, will also be returning for the first time.

Barring those, a few world medalists are also wrestling in Ulaanbaatar. The tournament, which will see more than 200 wrestlers, throws up some top match-ups despite a several nations preparing for their domestic trials or national championships.

The tournament will run through May 29 to June 1 and will be live on UWW+ on uww.org and UWW App.

Freestyle

In a hugely viral clip of United World Wrestling, Zagir SHAKHIEV (UWW) is getting pinned by Shamil MAMMEDOV (UWW) who has Shakhiev in a cradle. That was January 2022 at the Yasar Dogu Ranking Series.

More than three years after his last international bout, Shakhiev is making a comeback. The 2021 world 65kg champion will take the mat at 70kg at the Ulaanbaatar Open as he tries to find a way back to the top in international wrestling.

However, it's won't be an easy journey. The 70kg in Ulaanbaatar will se Shakhiev clash with Tulga TUMUR OCHIR (MGL), Mohammadali AMOUZAD (IRI), Aliakbar FAZLI (IRI) and Viktor RASSADIN (TJK).

Tumur Ochir will be looking avenge his 4-4 loss to Shakhiev from that 2021 World Championships, a match which had all the drama in the final minute. How Shakhiev comes out now is yet to be seen.

Asian silver medalist Viktor RASSADIN (TJK) can trouble Shakhiev and so can Mohammadali AMOUZAD (IRI) and Aliakbar FAZLI (IRI) with their gas-tanks.

For Tumur Ochir, it will be a perfect opportunity to perform in front of his home crowd and regain some form before the World Championships in September.

Mongolia will be keen on its wrestlers finishing on podium at the home tournament. Their biggest hope, apart from Tumur Ochir, will be Lkhagvagerel MUNKHTUR (MGL) at 125kg.

The Asian silver medalist will have DINESH (IND),Hakan BUYUKCINGIL (TUR), Dzianis KHRAMIANKOU (UWW) and Abdulla KURBANOV (UWW) as some of his opponents but is expected to finish better than them. 

At 57kg, Aman may be the only Olympic medalist entered but the field seems challenging for anyone. European U23 champion Lev PAVLOV (UWW) brings a lot of craft with him and Aman will like face him if he wants to win another Ranking Series gold medal. Then there is Pan-Am champion Roman BRAVO YOUNG (MEX) who too is coming off a good run in Monterrey.

Kyrgyzstan is sending two wrestlers -- Abdymalik KARACHOV (KGZ) and Almaz SMANBEKOV (KGZ) -- and both can trouble their opponents. The hosts Mongolia is banking on Davaabandi MUNKH ERDENE (MGL).

Asian silver medalist UDIT (IND) will be another top name in Freestyle but his weight class also has quite a few challengers. Bekzat ALMAZ UULU (KGZ) and Bekbolot MYRZANAZAR UULU (KGZ) will be there from Kyrgyzstan along with Artem GOBAEV (UWW), who won the European U23 Championships gold last year.

Another Asian silver medalist Deepak PUNIA (IND) will continue to be at 92kg and not 86kg, his previous weight class. Punia made his return from surgery at the Asian Championships and won silver medal at 92kg, only dropping the final to Amirhossein FIROUZPOUR (IRI).

He will be put to further test in Ulaanbaatar and Askhab SAADULAEV (UWW) may emerge as his biggest competitor.

At 74kg, Iran is sending three wrestlers in the hope of finding the best for the World Championships. Amirmohammad YAZDANI (IRI), who recently moved up from 70kg and won the Takhti Cup, will be challenged by Yones EMAMI (IRI) and Hossein ABOUZARI (IRI).

To win gold, Yazdani will also face competition from JAIDEEP (IND), Orozobek TOKTOMAMBETOV (KGZ) and former world medalist Soner DEMIRTAS (TUR), who Yazdani defeated in a club competition in Iran recently.

European bronze medalist Osman GOECN (TUR) will be Türkiye chance to win gold medal at the Ranking Series. Gocen will largely be unchallenged at 86kg given his experience and style.

At 65kg, Kyrgyzstan is trying to find its best bet for a medal at the World Championships as both Taiyrbek ZHUMASHBEK UULU (KGZ) and Ikromzhon KHADZHIMURODOV (KGZ) are entered.

Greco-Roman

Kyrgyzstan and Türkiye are bringing strong teams for the Ranking Series. Kyrgyzstan will be led by Olympic bronze medalist Dzhuzupbekov while Turkiye has European champion Kerem KAMAL (TUR) and former world champion Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR). Barring those, only India is sending a full team for the tournament.

Iran has two wrestlers namely Mohammad KESHTKAR (IRI) and Danial SOHRABI (IRI) at 63kg and 72kg respectively.

Kamal, who has found a lifeline since switching to 63kg from 60kg, won the European Championships gold medal in spectacular fashion and is now out to win his second Ranking Series gold of the year.

He has Keshtkar in his weight class along with Doolotbek CHOIBEKOV (KGZ), Asian medalist Hanjae CHUNG (KOR) and Aref MOHAMMADI (QAT). However, Kamal remains the favorite. Akbudak should have an easy path to gold at 82kg.

European silver medalist Hamza BAKIR (TUR) at 130kg is also unlikely to face much challenge in the competition at the highest weight class.

The Kyrgyzstan vs Turkiye may emerge as the theme of the tournament in Greco-Roman for the rest of the weight classes.

Paris Olympian Enes BASAR (TUR) may have to navigate a stronger field at 60kg with former world U17 champion SURAJ (IND) and two of Kyrgyzstan's rising stars Akyl SULAIMANOV (KGZ) and Kurmanbek ZHAPAROV (KGZ).

Kyrgyzstan's Razzak BEISHEKEEV (KGZ), who won gold at Muhamet Malo and silver at Asian Championships, will be the favorite at 67kg despite the presence of Murat FIRAT (TUR).

Same goes for Yryskeldi MAKSATBEK UULU (KGZ) who won gold at 77kg in Albania and later a bronze medal at the Asian Championships. His battle with European bronze medalist Ahmet YILMAZ (TUR) will be one to watch out for.

At 87kg, two former age-group world champions will be fighting it out. Former world U20 champion Asan ZHANYSHOV (KGZ) had a rather disappointing Asian Championships as he finished seventh and will be looking to win gold in Ulaanbaatar to regain confidence.

Alperen BERBER (TUR), who has all age-group world titles, has not wrestled this year in any Ranking Series or Championships and will be test at 87kg.

Sohrabi, who won the Asian title at 72kg in Amman, will start as the favorite but has to be careful with Yryskeldi KHAMZAEV (KGZ) who can upset the Iranian.

Women's Wrestling

India, Turkiye and Mongolia are in a three-way battle in Women's Wrestling. A few UWW wrestlers are also in the fray in the tournament but not in all weight classes. The Indian and Turkish teams have some of their continental medalists and will make for an exciting clash in the respective weight classes.

No weight class in Women's Wrestling is expected to have eight wrestlers and will be competed in Nelson or round-robin format.  That throws big match ups in most weight classes.

At 62kg, Asian champion MANISHA (IND) will be clashing with Tserenchimed SUKHEE (MGL), Orkhon PUREVDORJ (MGL), Saruul ERDENEBILEG (MGL) and Alina KASABIEVA (UWW).

Sukhee, a former world champion, is known for her big moves and can easily reach the top of the podium in Ulaabaatar. But Purevdorj, who surprisingly missed the Asian Championships, will be keen on displaying her skills and reclaim the top spot in the weight class.

Kasabieva, world silver medalist at 65kg, has to face the Asian challenge and style and a good performance in Ulaabaatar can work wonders for her future tournaments.

Asian bronze medalist ANTIM (IND) will be the favorite at 53kg but has to step up against the likes of Namuuntsetseg TSOGT OCHIR (MGL) andNatalia MALYSHEVA (UWW).

Similarly, NEELAM (IND) may find it tough against European silver medalist Evin DEMIRHAN (TUR) and European U23 champion Natalia PUDOVA (UWW). A direct India-Turkiye battle is expected at 57kg as European silver medalist Elvira KAMALOGLU (TUR) will be tested by world U20 bronze NEHA (IND).

In most other weight classes, Mongolia is likely to have podium finishes as it has three wrestlers in each weights. 

Former world silver medalist Khulan BATKHUYAG (MGL) is at 55kg along with Dulguun MUNKHBOLD BOLORMAA (MGL) and 2023 world silver medalist Delgermaa ENKHSAIKHAN (MGL) is the favorite at 68kg despite her bronze-medal finish at the Asian Championships.

At 72kg, European U23 champion Kristina BRATCHIKOVA (UWW) will test herself against the Asian style of wrestling. Former U17 world champion HARSHITA (IND) will be her biggest test.