#WrestleIstanbul: Greco-Roman Bracket Breakdown

Wednesday, February 23, 2022 - 16:47 By Eric Olanowski & Vinay Siwach

ISTANBUL, Turkey (February 23) -- The Yasar Dogu, Vehbi Emre & Hamit Kaplan Ranking Series tournament gets underway with the eight weight classes Greco-Roman. The draws for all 10 GR weight classes were released Wednesday in Istanbul.

Turkey and Kazakhstan have the highest number of participants after the draw with 30 and 28 wrestlers respectively. They are followed by Azerbaijan (12), Uzbekistan (10) and India (9).

The bracket breakdown of the draw explains the possible match-ups and the ranking points on offer at the tournament.

Turkey will have selection bouts at seven weights -- 60kg, 63kg, 77kg, 82kg, 87kg, 97kg, and 130kg -- to select the third wrestler in each of those weights. These bouts will take place before the start of the tournament scheduled for 1030 hours local time.

55kg

55kg (7 entries)

Gold: 8000 points
Silver: 6400 points
Bronze: 5200 points

Turkey’s Adem UZUN and Dogus AYAZCI highlight the seven-wrestler Nordic-style bracket. Uzun was last year’s U23 world bronze medalist, while Ayazci is looking to win his Ranking Series.

A third guy to keep an eye on in the 55kg bracket is Amangali BEKBOLATOV (KAZ). The last time he competed was the ’20 Henri Deglane, where he captured a gold medal.

60kg

60kg (10 entries)

Gold – 8000 points
Silver - 6400 points
Bronze - 5200 points

At 60kg, Ekrem OZTURK (TUR) and Eldaniz AZIZLI (AZE) could clash in a second-round matchup.

The Azeri, who won the ’18 world title at 55kg, would have to get past F. TUKHTAEV (UZB) in his first-round matchup to setup the matchup of ’21 European top-three finishers.

63kg

63kg (12 points)

Gold: 8000 points
Silver: 6400 points
Bronze: 5200 points

Reigning 60kg world champion Victor CIOBANU (MDA) is moving up a weight and sits on the top side of the chart. If he wins his first bout, he’ll square off with Lithuania’s Justas PETRAVICIUS for a spot in the semifinals.

Ciobanu will likely have defending Asian champion Aidos SULTANGALI (KAZ) or Turkey’s ’21 U23 world silver medalist Ahmet UYAR (TUR).

On the bottom side, Taleh MAMMADOV (AZE) will square off against two-time Ranking Series champion Islomjon BAKHRAMOV (UZB). Mammadov 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.

67kg

67kg (12 points)

Gold: 8000 points
Silver: 6400 points
Bronze: 5200 points

The top half of the 12-man bracket is highlighted by 2020 European champion Morten THORESEN (NOR) is likely to make a safe passage to the final. His biggest threat would be former Asian silver medalist Meiirzhan SHERMAKHANBET (KAZ).

Another Kazakhstan wrestler who can show up big time is 63kg Asian champion Sultan ASSETULY (KAZ). A second-round bout against Moldova veteran and continental bronze Donior ISLAMOV (MDA) could be his biggest test to make the final.

72kg

72kg (14 entries)

Gold: 11000 points
Silver: 9400 points
Bronze: 8200 points

Third-ranked Kristupas SLEIVA (LTU) opens up his day on the top side against last year’s Vehbi Emre runner up Murat DAG (TUR).

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.

Other guys to pay attention to on the top side are Ulvi Ganizadeh (AZE) and Ensar KARABACAK (TUR).

Ganizadeh is a young stud who finished last year’s U23 World Championships with a bronze medal while Karabacak is looking to improve on his bronze-medal finish from last year’s Vehbi Emre.

On the bottom side of the bracket, the most credentialed guy is Poland’s Mateusz BERNATEK. Last year, he fell to Tokyo Olympian Mate NEMES (SRB) in the European finals and finished with a silver medal.

77kg

77kg (13 entries)

Gold: 11000 points
Silver: 9400 points
Bronze: 8200 points

The top side of the bracket will be highlighted by the opening round matchup between Victor NEMES (SRB) and Aram VARDANYAN (UZB). The Serbian was a world champion in ’17 and a world bronze medalist in ’18, while the Uzbekistan wrestler was on the losing end of the world finals in Nur-Sultan.

The bottom side of the chart is highlighted by fifth-ranked Sanan SULEYMANOV (AZE). Last season, the Azeri fell in the world finals to two-time Olympic champion Roman VLASOV (RUS) and enters into the competition with 37000 Ranking Series points. He can break into top-three with a medal finish. A bronze would take him past third-placed Vlasov, who has 45000 points.

But to do so, he’ll have to get through India’s SAJAN. If he’s successful in that matchup, it would set up a colossal matchup of world runner-ups, where he’ll go toe-to-toe with Kazakhstan’s Demeu ZHADRAYEV.

The winner of Suleymanov and Zhadrayev will likely clash with last year’s world bronze medalist Gevorg SAHAKYAN (POL) in the finals.

82kg

82kg (10 entries)

Gold: 8000 points
Silver: 6400 points
Bronze: 5200 points

World champion Rafiq HUSEYNOV (AZE) headlines the 11-man bracket. He could meet Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR) in the semifinals which will be a rematch of the '21 World Championships from Oslo. Emrah KUS (TUR), who had defeated Akbudak at the Turkey national championships, is also on the same side of the bracket.

Huseynov and Akbudak are ranked first and second with 45000 and 37000 points, respectively. Akbudak cannot jump above Huseynov even with a gold medal.

87kg

87kg (12 entries)

Gold: 8000 points
Silver: 6400 points
Bronze: 5200 points

Olympic bronze and world champion Zarubi DATUNASHVILI (SRB) looks like a clear favorite to reach the final in Istanbul. His biggest threat could be 82kg Asian champion Jalgasbay BERDIMURATOV (UZB). The two are likely to meet in the semifinals.

Datunashvili will be consolidating his top position with gold as he increases his ranking points to 90200.

Arkadiusz KULYNYCZ (POL) can also improve his rank from seventh (31000 points) to top-three if he wins gold.

The lower side of the bracket can see a Sunil KUMAR (IND) vs Nursultan TURSYNOV (KAZ) bout with the former hoping to avenge his Asian Olympic Qualifiers loss from 2021.

97kg

97kg (19 entries)

Gold: 13000 points
Silver: 11400 points
Bronze: 10200 ppints

The biggest bracket of Greco-Roman, 19 wrestles, has veteran wrestler Rustam ASSAKALOV (UZB) wrestling European silver medalist Nikoloz KAKHELASHVILI (ITA) in the first round. The winner will likely be up against former European champion Felix BALDAUF (NOR) in the semifinal.

Tokyo Olympic bronze medalist Tadeusz MICHALIK (POL) and fifth-place wrestler Arvi SAVOLAINEN (FIN) can be the likely semi-finalists from the lower side of the bracket.

The Poland wrestler has a good chance to be in the top four if he can pull out a gold-medal win. He's currently ranked sixth with 34200 points but could jump to fourth with 13000 points. That will raise his tally to 47200 points.

130kg

130kg (14 entries)

Gold: 11000 points
Silver: 9400 points
Bronze: 8200 points

Home star and 10-time European champion Riza KAYAALP is the favorite to win the category. He is likely to face Mantas KNYSTAUTAS (LTU) in the quarterfinals, a rematch from the Tokyo Games which Kayaalp won 5-1. Kayaalp, however, should have a smooth-sailing to the gold medal bout.

A gold in Istanbul can give the Tokyo bronze medalist can help him jump from the seventh spot in rankings to fourth. 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).

#WrestleZagreb

Rising Star Hendrickson Aims to Make Splash in Senior Worlds Debut

Friday, September 12, 2025 - 17:23 By Ken Marantz

ZAGREB, Croatia (September 12) -- Sitting on the opposite end of the dais from the reigning world champion, Wyatt HENDRICKSON (USA) expressed confidence that they will be meeting again soon, but in much closer quarters.

If all goes according to plan for both wrestlers, Hendrickson will face Amir Hossein ZARE (IRI) in the semifinals of freestyle 125kg when the World Championships get started on Saturday in Zagreb.

"This is my first senior-level World Championships and I'm very grateful for that," Hendrickson said at a press conference on Friday that was also attended by Zare. "But I also think that the opportunity presented itself because I have grown as a wrestler. I've risen to the level of my competition, and I'm ready to test myself against the best in the world."

It doesn't get much better than Zare when talk of the heavyweights comes up. The two-time Olympic medalist is gunning for his second straight world title and third overall, all still at the tender age of 24.

Hendrickson, also 24 (in fact, he is three days older than Zare), may lack the experience on the senior level, but in recent years, he has raised his game enough to join the handful of foes with the potential to knock of the great Zare.

The American said his aim is to "continue to not only just wrestle at the highest level, but prove I'm meant to be here. Wrestling is something I've been doing since I was 5 years old and all that wrestling has brought me to be here today in Zagreb."

After placing fifth at the 2021 world juniors (U20), Hendrickson struck gold at the world U23 in 2023. In May this year, he capped his senior-level debut with a victory at the Pan-Am Championships.

But his most impressive triumph, and one that made the world take notice, came in a different format of the sport. In March, he stunned Tokyo Olympic champion Gable STEVESON (USA) in the final of the NCAA Championships, denying him a third title and ending his 70-match winning streak.

Even Zare said he was aware of the upset. "I would like to congratulate you for the win over Gable, he's one of the best in this weight category," Zare said. "Some of the seconds of your match are in my mind, I remember that. But originally, I don't have too much information about this American wrestler."

Hendrickson acknowledges he has been cultivated in the American folkstyle. But he feels confident of the transition he has made to freestyle.

"I've been training to wrestle foreign styles," he said. "The majority of my wrestling has been in [American] folkstyle. But the transition I've been able to make the past couple of months has shown that I'm prepared for this. I'm ready to wrestle the best in the world."

Helping in Hendrickson's preparations has been one of the sport's legends. Hendrickson originally attended and competed collegiately at the Air Force Academy, but transferred last year to Oklahoma State, where he came under the wing of former Olympic and three-time world champion David TAYLOR (USA).

Hendrickson is one of three USA wrestlers who are members of the Cowboy RTC, the wrestling club affiliated with Oklahoma State. (Five others will be wrestling in Zagreb with three of them for other nations.)

"Coach David Taylor is very, very excited to be coaching and share with us the knowledge he has learned in the great sport of wrestling," Hendrickson said. "The knowledge that he has been able to bring to me, it's just day and night. I never understood some parts of wrestling and he filled in all of the gaps. Where I maybe have fallen short in the past at some of these tournaments, those gaps are now filled. And I just have nothing but confidence."

The draw for the freestyle weight classes came out a short time before the press conference, and Hendrickson was asked about a possible clash with Zare in the semifinals.

"I love it," he said. "Zare is an excellent wrestler. But -- I don't want to brag on myself -- but I'm also a pretty great wrestler. That's most likely the match we're going to see tomorrow evening."

Hendrickson, however, is not one to get ahead of himself, and contends that he does not concern himself with such details as his opponents in the draw. Nor does he have a certain foe whom he particularly looks forward to facing.

"I'm excited to go through every single person in this bracket," he said. "Obviously there's no one specific because I don't care what my placement is in the bracket. That's not what I look at.

"What I look at is the next opponent ahead of me. One match at a time, one point at a time, one second at a time on the wrestling mat. I'm prepared, I'm ready and tomorrow I'm going to make a splash at the World Championships."

Zare, who has taken over the leadership mantle of the Iranian team in the absence of injured star Hassan YAZDANI (IRI), has competed just once this year, winning the Tirana Ranking Series title in February.

"I have done my best during the last 13 months to be prepared and I am focused on my goal, which is to be champion of this competition," Zare said.

And should Hendrickson or any of the other top competitors, such as European champion Giorgi MESHVILDISHVILI (AZE) or two-time world medalist Lkhagvagerel MUNKHTUR (MGL), make things difficult, then all the better.

"Finally, I want to say that when the competition is tough, it's going to be more joyful for everyone," Zare said.

#WrestleIstanbul: Greco-Roman Bracket Breakdown

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Rising Star Hendrickson Aims to Make Splash in Senior Worlds Debut