#WrestleIstanbul

Live Blog: Yasar Dogu, Vehbi Emre & Hamit Kaplan Day 1

By United World Wrestling Press

ISTANBUL, Turkey (February 24) -- The first day of the Yasar Dogu, Vehbi Emre & Hamit Kaplan Ranking Series event is here. Seven weight classes will be in action. There are 55kg, 60kg, 63kg, 67kg, 87kg, 97kg and 130kg. Riza KAYAALP (TUR), Zarubi DATUNASHVILI (SRB), Tadeusz MICHALIK (POL) will be in action Thursday.

LIVE STREAM | MATCH ORDER

14:30: Mahmud BAKHSHILLOEV (UZB) and Furkan YILDIZ (TUR) were in a cut-throat battle in the 67kg semifinals. Bakhshilloev leads 3-0 but then Yildiz leads 3-3 on criteria. The Uzbek doesn't give up and wins 4-3

1415: Felix BALDAUF (NOR) and Rustam ASSAKALOV (UZB) are on Mat A for their 97kg semifinal. Assakalov is up 6-0 in quick time and then is awarded 4 for a body throw. Challenge from Baldauf and he wins since it was a trip from Assakalov. It ultimately ends 7-1 for Assakalov

1410: Victor CIOBANU (MDA) is making his way to the 63kg final. He gets it done with two big points throws and wins 10-0.

14:05: Is that the upset of the tournament? Beka KANDELAKI (AZE) stuns local favourite and world champion Riza KAYAALP (TUR) with a pin in the quarterfinals.

13:55: Norway has two in the semifinals. Morten THORESEN (NOR) makes his way to the 67kg last four with a 5-3 win over Meiirzhan SHERMAKHANBET (KAZ).

13:50: Felix BALDAUF (NOR) and Murat LOKIAYEV (AZE) on Mat C. Baldauf with a 3-0 lead in the first period. He scores a stepout to start the second period. He keeps his calm to claim a 5-0 win

13:42: Ekrem OZTURK (TUR) had built a 5-0 lead over Eldaniz AZIZLI (AZE) in their 60kg quarterfinal but Azizli calls for a medical timeout. The medical staff rules out future competition for Azizli. Ozturk moves into the semifinals

13:33: We're going to roll right into the semifinals. They'll start first on Mat A. Mats B and C will follow once their quarterfinals conclude.

13::29: In champion-like fashion, Basar picked up the match-deciding takedown in the second period. He'll square off against fellow world champion Datunashvili for a spot in the finals.

13:22: Kulynycz has two-time world champion Basar in trouble. He spun behind the Turkish wrestler and picked up the first takedown of the bout. His opponent felt that he stepped out, but after further review, Kulynycz was awarded a point for the lost challenge. He leads, 3-1, after the opening frame.

12:49: Reigning world champ Datunashvili picked up his second victory of the day -- a 5-1 win over  Mehmetali KUCUKOSMAN (TUR) -- and pushed himself into the 87kg semifinals. He'll take on the winner of Arkadiusz KULYNYCZ (POL) and Metehan BASAR (TUR) (Mat C / Bout 78) for a finals berth.

 

Can you name a more important electric ⚡️ duo? #WrestleIstanbul

• Olympic? Elmurat TASMURADOV ??
• ?? Victor CIOBANU ?? pic.twitter.com/XHgVmVI39E

— United World Wrestling (@wrestling) February 24, 2022

 

12:44: Kayaalp, the four-time world champion, picked up a 4-1 win over Savenko in his opening round match. He'll wrestle Beka KANDELAKI (AZE) for a spot in the 130kg finals. 

On the other side of the 130kg bracket, Osman YILDIRIM (TUR) and Alimkhan SYZDYKOV (KAZ) will square off the second finals spot.

12:30: Riza KAYAALP (TUR) comes on the mat with loud cheers from the crowd. He is taking on Anton SAVENKO (KAZ) at 130kg

12:20: Tokyo bronze medalist Tadeusz MICHALIK (POL) and Mihail KAJAIA (SRB) on Mat A. Kajaia is warned for passivity. 1-0 for Michalik. Kajaia will lead 1-1 on criteria after Michalik is warned for passivity in the second period. Kajaia wins 1-1

12:00: Rustam ASSAKALOV (UZB) is going strong at 97kg. He beats Abdul CEBICEBI (TUR) 9-1 in the pre-quarterfinals. He gets in a front headlock position before getting two guts to finish the bout

11:30: World champion at 87kg is making his way to Mat B for his first bout of the dayEarly passivity call against Datunashvili and he is down 0-1 at the break. He levels it as he gets the activity point. 8 straight points and he wins 9-1

11:00: World champion Victor CIOBANU (MDA) gets going with a win as well. He has little trouble going past Abdurahman ALTAN (TUR). 

10:45: Mihail KAJAIA (SRB) was down 0-3 but scores 7 unanswered points to win 7-3 against Ibrahim TIGCI (TUR) at 130kg

10:30: We are beginning with the matches here in Istanbul. The Greco-Roman wrestlers are ready and warmed-up

#WrestleIstanbul

Wrestling's 2022-'23 Ranking Series explainer

By Vinay Siwach

ISTANBUL, Turkey (February 18) -- United World Wrestling has updated the point allocations for the '22 Ranking Series events, starting with next week's #WrestleIstanbul Yasar Dogu.

The top eight wrestlers who acquire the most points from the four Ranking Series events and the Continental Championships will earn a seed for September's World Championships, which will be held in Belgrade, Serbia. As of now, wrestlers who competed, and subsequently earned points from the Tokyo Olympic Games and Oslo World Championships, fill out the top-20 in the rankings heading into Istanbul.

Updated Ranking Series Point Distribution:
1st - 8000
2nd - 6400
3rd - 5200
5th - 4000
7th - 3520
8th - 3200
9th - 2800
10th - 2480
11th - 800
12th - 100
13th - 75
14th - 50
15th - 25
16th - 13

Additionally, the number of points awarded at a competition will also be impacted by the number of wrestlers entered in each bracket. In weight categories with 2-5 competitors, ranking points will be reduced in half and only the top three finishers will be awarded points. In brackets that feature 6-12 participants, no additional points will be added. For weight categories with 13-16 entries, an additional 3000 points will be given. For categories with 16+ wrestlers entered, an additional 5000 will be awarded.

Additional points
1 participant - no ranking or additional points
2-5 participants - ranking points reduced in half and only the first three will be awarded
6-12 participants - no additional points
13-16 participants - 3000 additional points to all wrestlers
16+ participants - 5000 additional points to all wresters

*This article is according to the new point structure which will be displayed on the UWW website after the Yasar Dogu tournament.

Jordan BURROUGHSWorld champion Jordan BURROUGHS (USA) can consolidate his top rank at 79kg in Istanbul. (Photo: UWW / Tony Rotundo)

FS 57kg (18 participants)

Who can improve their ranking the most?:
No. 4 Alireza SARLAK (IRI)
No. 8 Horst LEHR (GER)

Alireza SARLAK (IRI) and Horst LEHR (GER) are the two guys who have a shot at making the most noise at 57kg. Currently, Sarlak and Lehr are ranked fourth and eighth, respectively, and both can break into the top three with medal-winning performances in Turkey.

Sarlak heads into the Yasar Dogu with 37000 points from his silver-medal finish in Oslo. A gold medal in Istanbul would give him 8000 points. As the bracket sits, there are more than 16 wrestlers entered, which means he'll get an additional 5000 points.

A total of 13000 points would give Sarlak 50000 points, which is more than the current third-place wrestler, Ravi KUMAR (IND) [41400]. 

Lehr is in a similar situation, but he'll need to win the competition to move above Sarlak and Kumar. If he wins, he'll jump from 31000 to 44000 points.

65kg (28 participants)

Who can improve their ranking the most?:
No. 2 Zagir SHAKHIEV (RWF)
No. 3 Tulga TUMUR OCHIR (MGL)

It'll be a two-way battle at 65kg.

World champion and No. 2 Zagir SHAKHIEV (RWF) can overthrow top-ranked Olympic champion Takuto OTOGURO (JPN) with at least a 10th place finish. Currently, the Russian has 45000 points, and with a 10th-place finish, Shakhiev will get 7480 points, bringing his overall total to 58000 points. That'd be enough to overtake Otoguro, who has 51000. 

Third-ranked Tulga TUMUR OCHIR (MGL) is at 44500 points and can grab the top-ranking with a 10th-place finish. That will take his tally to 51980 points, while gold will take him to 57500 points.

FS 70kg (21 participants)

Who can improve their ranking the most?:
No. 2 Ernazar AKMATALIEV (KGZ)
No. 3 Zurabi IAKOBISHVILI (GEO)

Similar to 65kg, the current second and third-placed 70kg wrestlers can be the top movers. World silver medalist Ernazar AKMATALIEV (KGZ) is ranked second with 37000 points. He can fly past top-ranked Magomedmurad GADZHIEV (POL), who has 45000 points.

A gold medal will take Akmataliev to 50000 points, while silver would be good for 48400. The lowest he can finish and still reach the top spot is 8th. That will give him 8200 points.

Zurabi IAKOBISHVILI (GEO), who is also entered, sits third with 31000 points. He can move up to the second rank with a tournament win, as that will take him to 44000 points.

FS 79kg (24 participants)

Who can improve their ranking the most?:
No. 1 Jordan BURROUGHS (USA)

Top-ranked world champion Jordan BURROUGHS (USA) can cement his place further with a medal-winning performance in Istanbul. Burroughs enters the Yasar Dogu with 45000 points. He can add 13000 points for gold, 11400 points for silver and 10200 points for bronze.

FS 86kg (22 participants)

Who can improve their ranking the most?:
No. 7 Azamat DAULETBEKOV (KAZ)

David TAYLOR (USA), Hassan YAZDANI (IRI) and Artur NAIFANOV (RWF) have taken an enormous lead at the top from the rest of the field at 86kg. Since the three are not entered, Azamat DAULETBEKOV (KAZ) can be the biggest mover if he wins the gold in Istanbul.

The Kazak wrestler is currently in the seventh spot with 25000 points, and a medal in Istanbul can move him to the fourth spot.

FS 97kg (17 participants)

Who can improve their ranking the most?:

No. 9 Mahamed ZAKARIIEV (UKR)

Mahamed ZAKARIIEV (UKR) can break into the top-three at 97kg if he can finish ninth or above. He currently has 31000 points and a ninth-place finish would take him past Suleyman KARADENIZ (TUR), who has 38500 points.

Batzul ULZIISAIKHAN (MGL), placed 11th with 25000 points, can jump up to fifth in the rankings with a gold medal. That'd put him at 38000 points.

Rafiq HUSEYNOVWorld champion Rafiq HUSEYNOV (AZE), left, and Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR) are number one and two at 82kg. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

GR 63kg (12 participants)

Who can improve their ranking the most?:

No. 6 Taleh MAMMADOV (AZE)

Taleh MAMMADOV (AZE) is currently ranked sixth at 63kg with 25000 points. He can jump up to the third spot with a gold or silver medal in Istanbul.

Since there are only 12 wrestlers are entered at 63kg, no entry points will be awarded.

Mammadov will get 8000 points for winning gold and 6400 points for silver. Both would be good enough to take him past both third-placed Lenur TEMIROV (UKR) and fourth-placed Kensuke SHIMIZU (JPN). They both have 31000 points.

GR 72kg (14 participants)

Who can improve their ranking the most?:

No. 3 Kristupas SLEIVA (LTU)
No. 6 Cengiz ARSLAN (TUR)

Kristupas SLEIVA (LTU) and Cengiz ARSLAN (TUR) could be the biggest movers at this weight. Sleiva has 31000 points and is currently ranked third. A gold-medal finish will give him 11000 points [14 participants] and take him to 42000. He'd move ahead of current second-ranked Sergei KUTUZOV (RWF) who has 37000 points. Even if he finishes as low as eighth, the Lithuanian will be ahead of Kutuzov.

Arslan has 25000 points but could jump three spots to third place. A gold-medal finish would take him to 36000 points. That'd move him ahead of Sleiva who needs at least a 10th place finish to remain ahead of Arslan. The Turkish wrestler will be guaranteed fourth if he can finish eighth or above.

GR 77kg (13 participants)

Who can improve their ranking the most?:
No. 5 Sanan SULEYMANOV (AZE)

World silver medalist Sanan SULEYMANOV (AZE) is currently ranked fifth with 37000 points. He can break into top-three with a medal finish. A bronze would take him past third-placed world champ Roman VLASOV (RWF) who has 45000 points.

GR 82kg (8 participants)

Who can improve their ranking the most?:

No. 1 Rafig HUSEYNOV (AZE)
​​​​​​No. 2 Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR)

Rafig HUSEYNOV (AZE) and Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR) met in the finals at the World Championships and are ranked first and second, respectively. The two are expected to consolidate their ranks in Istanbul. Huseynov has 45000 points, while Akbudak has 37000 points. Akbudak cannot jump above Huseynov even with a gold medal.

GR 87kg (13 participants)

Who can improve their ranking the most?:

No. 1 Zurabi DATUNASHVILI (SRB)
No. 7 Arkadiusz KULYNYCZ (POL)

World champion Zurabi DATUNASHVILI (SRB) sits atop the 87kg pile with 79200 points. A win would bring his point total to 90200.

Arkadiusz KULYNYCZ (POL) is currently ranked seventh (31000 points) but has a shot at breaking into the top three. He needs to win gold, as that would take his tally to 42000 points, 800 points more than Viktor LORINCZ (HUN).

GR 97kg (21 participants)

Who can improve their ranking the most?:

No. 4 G'Angelo HANCOCK (USA)
No. 6 Tadeusz MICHALIK (POL)

Tadeusz MICHALIK (POL) has a good chance to be in the top four if he can pull out a gold-medal win at the Yasar Dogu. He's currently ranked sixth with 34200 points, but he could jump to fourth with 13000 points. That will raise his tally to 47200 points.

G'Angelo HANCOCK (USA) also has 47200 points and is ranked fourth. To break the tie, the rank at the Olympics will be the trumping factor. In this scenario, Michalik would prevail over Hancock as he won bronze in Tokyo, while the USA wrestler finished seventh.

GR 130kg (14 participants)

Who can improve their ranking the most?:

No. 7 Riza KAYAALP (TUR)

Greco-Roman star and former world champion Riza KAYAALP (TUR) can reach the fourth spot from his current seventh place with a gold-medal finish at his home turf. He has 34200 points, and the addition of an 11000-point gold medal will give him 45200 points. That'd place him 200 points ahead of the current fourth placer, Aliakbar YOUSOFI (IRI).

Bolortuya BAT OCHIR (MGL)Bolortuya BAT OCHIR (MGL) can well be the top-ranked wrestler at 53kg. (Photo: UWW / Martin Gabor)

WW 50kg (25 participants)

Who can be big movers:

No. 5 Miglena SELISHKA (BUL)
No. 7 Otgonjargal DOLGORJAV (MGL)
No. 8 Nadezhda SOKOLOVA (RUS)
No. 11 Alina VUC (ROU)

The top three positions at 50kg will remain unchanged, but there are four wrestlers who have a chance to break into the fourth spot of the rankings with a gold medal finish. Miglena SELISHKA (BUL) [31700 points], Otgonjargal DOLGORJAV (MGL) [31000 points] and Nadezhda SOKOLOVA (RUS) [31000 points] can replace SUN Yanan (CHN) [41400 points] with a silver-medal finish.

Depending on how the aforementioned trio of wrestlers finish, Alina VUC (ROU) could move up to fourth. She has 29600 points and is ninth in the rankings.

WW 53kg (20 participants)

Who can improve their ranking the most?:

No. 4 Iulia LEORDA (MDA)
No. 6 Bolortuya BAT OCHIR (MGL)
No. 9 Katarzyna KRAWCZYK (POL)

Olympic bronze medalist and currently third-ranked Bolortuya BAT OCHIR (MGL) can topple Mayu MUKAIDA (JPN) from the top spot if she can finish eighth or better in the 20-wrestler bracket. As of now, she has 43200 points. In any case, she will replace Akari FUJINAMI (JPN), who has 45000 points.

World silver medalist Iulia LEORDA (MDA) can improve from sixth to second if she wins the gold. But that's a long shot, as Bat Ochir would have to finish outside the top-10. Leorda currently has 37000 points.

Katarzyna KRAWCZYK (POL) [31000 points] can also make a significant jump in rankings -- from ninth to fourth. She has to win a gold medal and hope that Leorda fails to finish in the top-10.

WW 55kg (15 participants)

Who can improve their ranking the most?:
No. 3 Oleksandra KHOMENETS (UKR)

Third-ranked Oleksandra KHOMENETS (UKR) can replace Nina HEMMER (GER) with a strong showing in Turkey. Khomenets has 29000 points and an eighth-place or better finish will take her past Hemmer's 35000 points.

WW 57kg (22 participants)

Who can improve their ranking the most?:
No. 2 Evelina NIKOLOVA (BUL)
No. 4 Iryna KURACHKINA (BLR)

Olympic bronze medalist Evelina NIKOLOVA (BUL) will consolidate her second position in the ranking. She has 51200 points, but cannot move past Helen MAROULIS (USA) [79200 points] even if she wins a gold medal.

Tokyo silver medalist Iryna KURACHKINA (BLR) is currently fifth with 41400 points. She can jump up to the third spot if she finishes with a medal in Istanbul.

WW 59kg (18 participants)

Who can improve their ranking the most?:

No. 3 Sarita MOR (IND)

World bronze medalist Sarita MOR (IND) is ranked third with 31000 points. She needs to finish in the top-10 in Istanbul to overtake Akie HANAI (JPN) for the second spot. She, however, won't be able to replace Bilyana DUDOVA (BUL) from the top even if she finishes with gold.

WW 62kg (29 participants)

Who can improve their ranking the most?:

No. 1 Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ)

World champ Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA'S (KGZ) top ranking will remain untouched. She already has 86400 points but is looking to add to that total in Istanbul.

Taybe YUSEIN (BUL), who has 34200 points, can jump to third place from fifth if she manages to at least reach a medal bout at the Yasar Dogu.

Lais NUNES DE OLIVEIRA (BRA) is ranked eighth-ranked with 29600 points. However, a  fourth rank is realistic if she wins the gold and hope that Yusein fails to finish in top-seven.

WW 65kg (19 participants)

Who can improve their ranking the most?:

No. 3 Forrest MOLINARI (USA

Forrest MOLINARI (USA) has a chance to be second-ranked at 65kg if she finishes in the top 10 wrestlers of the weight class. The world bronze medalist currently has 31000 points and can overtake Miwa MORIKAWA (JPN). Top-ranked Irina RINGACI (MDA) won't be affected.

WW 68kg (15 participants)

Who can improve their ranking the most?:

No. 2 Meerim ZHUMANAZAROVA (KGZ)
No. 3 Blessing OBORUDUDU (NGR)

Meerim ZHUMANAZAROVA (KGZ) is all set to be the top-ranked wrestler at 68kg. All she has to do is step on the mat in Istanbul. Currently, she's ranked second with 77200 points. The defending world champion will overtake Olympic champion Tamyra MENSAH STOCK (USA), who has 80000 points.

Olympic silver medalist Blessing OBORUDUDU (NGR) is ranked third with 56400 points and can only reduce the gap to the top. A gold medal will take her to 67400 points.

WW 72kg (11 participants)

Who can improve their ranking the most?:

No. 2 Zhamila BAKBERGENOVA (KAZ)
No. 3 Anna SCHELL (GER)
No. 4 Buse CAVUSOGLU TOSUN (TUR)

Zhamila BAKBERGENOVA (KAZ) is ranked number two with 35000 points. If she wins the gold, she will be awarded 8000 points, which would tie her with top-ranked Masako FURUICHI (JPN). As Furuichi finished with gold at the World Championships and Bakbergenova had silver, the Kazak wrestler will remain at the second spot.

World bronze medalist Anna SCHELL (GER) and Buse CAVUSOGLU TOSUN (TUR) both have 29000 points each. If they reach the final and Bakbergenova finishes outside the top-10, the gold winner will take the second spot and the silver medalist will be third.

But in most likelihood, it will be a battle of third-place between Schell and Cavusoglu Tosun.

WW 76kg (22 participants)

Who can improve their ranking the most?:

No. 3 Epp MAEE (EST)
No. 4 Aiperi MEDET KYZY (KGZ)
No. 5 Samar HAMZA (EGY)

A fact: no wrestler will be able to displace Adeline GRAY (USA) from the top spot in Istanbul.

Aiperi MEDET KYZY (KGZ) [54000 points] and Epp MAEE (EST) [52000 points] will battle it out for the second spot at the Yasar Dogu tournament. If Maee reaches the final, Medet Kyzy needs to win at least the bronze medal to retain her second place.

If Maee manages a bronze, the Kyrgyz wrestler needs to finish eighth or above. Maee, a world silver medalist, will not be able to overtake Medet Kyzy if she finishes below the ninth spot. For that, Medet Kyzy needs to be 11th or lower.

World bronze medalist Samar HAMZA (EGY) has 43300 points and can overtake Olympic champion Aline FOCKEN (GER) for the fourth spot if she can finish ninth or above. She, however, cannot go better than fourth even if she wins gold in Istanbul.