#WrestleZagreb

Zagreb Open: Tynybekova beats Motoki; Tosun, Losonczi stunned

By United World Wrestling Press

ZAGREB, Croatia (January 12) -- The Zagreb Open enters day three with Greco-Roman in 77kg and 87kg. The Women's Wrestling will continue in four weight classes with Sakura MOTOKI (JPN) hoping to avenge her World Championships final loss to Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ).

Watch the Zagreb Open live on UWW+ for free using promo code ZAGREB100.

WATCH LIVE | LIVE MATCH ORDER

The finals for the evening session

Women's Wrestling

62kg: Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ) vs Kayla MIRACLE (USA)
68kg: Forrest MOLINARI (USA) vs Feng ZHOU (CHN)

Greco-Roman

77kg: Zoltan LEVAI (HUN) vs Sanan SULEYMANOV (AZE)
87kg: Milad ALIRZAEV (AIN) vs Alireza MOHAMADIPIANI (IRI)

16:45: Alireza MOHAMADIPIANI (IRI) enters the 87kg final with a 2-1 victory over Alan OTSAEV (AIN). Mohamadipiani scored a stepout from par terre and then defended his par terre position to win 2-1 and enter the final.

16:35: Feng ZHOU (CHN) takes out the world silver medalist Delgermaa ENKHSAIKHAN (MGL) 9-5 in the semifinal at 68kg. Strong gut wrench in the action again as she built a 9-1 lead before a reversal and a gut closed the score to 9-4. A late passivity warning cost her a point but not the bout.

16:25: Sanan SULEYMANOV (AZE) enters the 77kg final against Zoltan LEVAI! He gets the better of Yunus BASAR (TUR) 3-3. Both wrestlers scored a turn from par terre but Suleymanov with the last-point criteria.

16:20: Absolute madness in that Milad ALIRZAEV (AIN)-Daniel HECHAVARRIA (CUB) semifinal at 87kg. Alirzaev scored a four-pointer from par terre and a takedown to lead 7-0. But Hechavarria made a comeback in the second period to tie it 7-7 before Alirzaev scored a reversal to lead 8-7 with 40 seconds remaining. He kept that lead.

16:05: Zoltan LEVAI (HUN) with a 3-1 victory over Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR) in the 77kg semifinals. Levai scored a turn from par terre in the second period to enter the final.

15:55: A big throw from Milad ALIRZAEV (AIN) saves him in the 87kg quarterfinal against Aleksandr KOMAROV (SRB). Alirzaev got the first par terre advantage and hit a four. In the second period, Komarov scored two turns from par terre and made it 5-5 with Alirzaev leading on criteria. The score and lead remained that way till the end.

15:50: Time for the big semifinal at 62kg. Sakura MOTOKI (JPN) and Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ) on Mat B. Tynybekova put on the activity clock. She fails to score and Motoki gets a takedown to lead 3-0 at the break. Remember Tynybekova defeated Motoki in the 62kg final at the World Championships. Motoki keeps stepping back in the second period and is hit with the 30-second activity period. Tynybekova catches Motoki off guard and scores exposure along with the activity period point to win 3-3. That was stunning from Tynybekova.

15:45: Zoltan LEVAI (HUN) ends world bronze medalist Nao KUSAKA's (JPN) run. He gets a reversal from par terre and then traps the arm to score a turn. A big lift and huge four plus another turn gives him a 9-1 victory at 77kg. In 87kg, Alireza MOHMADIPIANI (IRI) scores from par terre in the second period to beat Achiko BOLKVADZE (GEO) 3-3.

15:30: Yunus BASAR (TUR) gets the better of Ali ARSALAN (SRB) at 77kg. Basar was the better and more active wrestler. He won 8-1. A little later, Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR) won his 77kg bout with a fall.

15:15: Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ) continues her solid run and is now in the semifinal. She defeated Alina KASABIEVA (AIN) 7-3. She will face Sakura MOTOKI (JPN)

15:10: Iryna KOLIADENKO (UKR) with a takedown to open the scoring against Sakura MOTOKI (JPN) who managed to survive a pin as well. Motoki with a double-leg and takes a 2-2 criteria lead at the break. Motoki with another takedown and one point for the activity clock. She now leads 5-2. She wins and will wrestle Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ) in the semifinal.

14:55: Alan OSTAEV (AIN) and Exauce MUKUBU (NOR) put on a show! Mukubu opened with a big four-pointer and one stepout but Ostaev had a takedown, four-pointer and a stepout to lead 7-5. Mukubu added a takedown but that was not enough as Ostaev hit a huge four and won 11-8

14:40: World bronze medalist Nao KUSAKA (JPN) beats 72kg world champion Ibrahim GHANEM (FRA) 10-0 after a huge throw for four. Kusaka flexes to show his domination. On Mat C, Idris IBAEV (GER) has two big throws to win 10-0 against VIKAS (UWW).

14:30: Aleksandr KOMAROV (SRB) is solid in par terre and Kiryl MASKEVICH (AIN) can't break his defense. Komarov moves into the quarterfinals at 87kg with a 6-2 win.

14:20: Ali ARSALAN (SRB) with a 9-0 win at 77kg over Antonio KAMENJASEVIC (CRO). He moves into the quarterfinals. On Mat C, Sanan SULEYMANOV (AZE) beats Aik MNATSAKANIAN (BUL) 2-0.

13:50: Clutch from Feng ZHOU (CHN)! Trailing 3-1 with 10 seconds on the clock, Zhou gets Wiktoria CHOLUJ (POL) in a headlock and rolls to get two points and wins 3-3 on criteria. Poland challenges, asking for two points for Choluj as well for exposure but that is not the case. A 4-3 win for Zhou.

13:40: Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ) is wrestling  Yaru WU (CHN) and trailing 5-0 at the break. On the adjacent mat, Sakura MOTOKI (JPN) is wrestling LILI (CHN) and leading 4-0. Tynybekova with a go-behind to cut the lead to 5-2. She picks a cross-ankle and takedown to make it 5-4 with a minute left. Wu with a one-on-two but Tynybekova slips out and scored a takedown to take a 6-5 lead. Wu with another attempt but Tynybekova held on for a 6-5 win. Motoki got a leg lace on Lili to stretch her lead to 8-0. A throw from Lili got her two but a reversal and two for Motoki who now leads 11-2 and will win with the same score.

13:15: Another world champion falls in the first bout! David LOSONCZI (HUN) falls 9-0 to Alan OSTAEV (AIN) in the first period itself. Ostaev with an arm spin for four and then a correct throw for two to lead 6-0. Losonczi tries to do the double-arm lock throw but falls on his back, giving Ostaev two more. Hungary challenges the call but it stands and Ostaev wins 9-0

13:00: Aleksandr KOMAROV (SRB), wrestling his first tournament for Serbia, with a quick 9-1 win over Spencer WOODS (USA) at 87kg. On Mat C, Exauce MUKUBU (NOR) took his own time to beat Ioannis NARLIDIS (CAN) 12-4.

12:30: Kiryl MASKEVICH (AIN) with a victory via fall over Yoan DIMITROV (BUL) at 87kg and then Istvan TAKACS (HUN) beats Islam ABBASOV (AZE) 3-2.

12:10: World champion Ibrahim GHANEM (FRA), Yunus BASAR (TUR), Ali ARSALAN (SRB) and VIKAS (UWW) all begin their tournament with convincing wins at 77kg.

11:50: Sanan SULEYMANOV (AZE) used a second period takedown to beat Ahmet YILMAZ (TUR) 3-1 at 77kg. Turkiye is trying to find their wrestlers for the Olympic qualifier and Yilmaz, with that loss, may well be out of that race.

11:30: World champion Buse TOSUN (TUR) gets rolled by Feng ZHOU (CHN) who has a solid gut wrench! Zhou with a 10-0 win at 68kg.

11:20: SONAM (UWW) has to forfeit her bout Iryna BONDAR (UKR) after she fell during the bout. Bondar declared winner by injury but seems like Sonam was had a bad weight cut.

11:10: Typical Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ) match there. She led 2-0 against Adaugo NWACHUKWU (USA) after two activity points and when Nwachukwu tried an attack in the final few seconds, Tynyebkova scored to win 4-0. 

11:00: A two-minute pin for Sakura MOTOKI (JPN) over Eniko ELEKES (HUN) at 62kg. Motoki and Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ) are on the path to meeting in the semifinals.

10:50: Milad ALIRZAEV (AIN) warms up with a 9-0 win over Martynas NEMSEVICIUS (LTU) Both passivities were won by Alirzaev and he gave little opening to Nemsevicius.

10:30: First big match of the day and world bronze medalist Nao KUSAKA (JPN) comes back from 3-0 down to win 8-7 against Stoyan KUBATOV (BUL) at 77kg. On Mat B, Jonni SARKKINEN (FIN) gets going with an 8-3 win over Khasay HASANLI (AZE).

10:00: Welcome to day three of the Zagreb Open with women's wrestling in four weight classes and two Greco-Roman weight classes.

#WrestleTirana

Breaking down freestyle battles at World Championships for Non-Olympic weights

By Vinay Siwach

TIRANA, Albania (October 15) -- Six months ago, no one had the Sadulaev-Taylor-Ghasempour three-way battle for world title on their bingo card. But it is about to go down in Tirana.

The World Championships in non-Olympic weight classes is returning after eight years. Despite the fact that none of the Paris Olympic participants were allowed in the tournament, it still has a host of stars hoping to become world champions.

Abdulrashid SADULAEV (AIN), a two-time Olympic and five-time world champion, did not participate in the Paris Olympics and is going down a weight class to 92kg in a bid to earn his sixth world title. Three-time world champion David TAYLOR (USA) jumped from 86kg to 92kg in a bid to compete at the World Championships. He now gets a shot at Sadulaev. Two-time world champion at 92kg Kamran GHASEMPOUR (IRI), who has been moving up and down in weight classes, has somehow been made the challenger.

Ghasempour participated in the 97kg weight class in the Zagreb Open but lost to Kyle SNYDER (USA). He was in line for Iran's 86kg spot for Paris but later opted out of a trial against Hassan YAZDANI (IRI).

Sadulaev lost a bout for the second time in his career and first in six years when he lost to Akhmed TAZHUDINOV (BRN) at the 2023 World Championships. Taylor lost to Aaron BROOKS (USA) in the U.S. Olympic trials and Ghasempour barely scraped through in the trials for the world team in Iran.

Yet, the three will be the favorite for the gold medal and it will only be a surprise if any of them miss out on the podium in Tirana.

Jordan BURROUGHS (USA)Jordan BURROUGHS (USA) is eyeing his seventh world title. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

Six-time world champion Jordan BURROUGHS (USA) is also chasing history. If he wins, he will win his seventh world title, making him the most successful American wrestler at the World Championships. He missed out on competing at the 2023 World Championships but stormed back in 2024, winning the trial in the United States.

But his path to gold won't be an easy one. Two-time U23 world champion Magomed MAGOMAEV (AIN), former world silver medalist Avtandil KENTCHADZE (GEO), three-time world medalist Mohammad NOKHODI (IRI) and Asian champion Kota TAKAHASHI (JPN) are also in the fray.

Nokhodi and Burroughs have wrestled in two back-to-back World Championships finals with the latter winning both. But Burroughs suffered his first loss to an Iranian in 2022 when Ali SAVADKOUHI (IRI) defeated him at the World Cup and Nokhodi will draw confidence from there.

All the big names will be looking to hand Burroughs his first World Championships loss since 2019.

Vitali ARUJAU (USA)Vitali ARUJAU (USA) is the defending world champion at 61kg. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

Another Olympic champion eyeing a world title will be Zavur UGUEV (AIN) as he last won the second of two titles in 2019. Uguev won gold at the Tokyo Olympics at 57kg but finished fifth at the 2023 World Championships. He will be at 61kg in Tirana hoping to deny defending world champion Vitali ARUJAU (USA) a second world title.

Arujau won his first world gold medal in 2023 by beating Abasgadzhi MAGOMEDOV (AIN) in a tense final. He won the team trials in the U.S. to confirm his name for the World Championships in Tirana.

An interesting name entered is Azamat TUSKAEV (SRB). The former European champion will turn out for Serbia at 61kg but it is unlikely that he will be challenging for gold.

Masanosuke ONO (JPN), however, can be a big threat for the gold medal given his style and pace of wrestling. He rocked the competition at the U20 World Championships last month and won gold at 61kg. It will be interesting to see how he fares at his first senior World Championships.

Asian Championships silver medalist UDIT (IND) and Taiyrbek ZHUMASHBEK UULU (KGZ) have some good wins under their belts over the past two years and they would like to make a mark in Tirana.

Inalbek SHERIEV (AIN)Inalbek SHERIEV (AIN) and Yoshinosuke AOYAGI (JPN) wrestled in the U23 World Championships final last year. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

U23 world and European champion Inalbek SHERIEV (AIN) will be making his senior international debut at 70kg in Tirana and will be the favorite to win the gold medal. However, the field has other top contenders like Amirmohammad YAZDANI (IRI), Yoshinosuke AOYAGI (JPN) and James GREEN (USA) among others.

Yazdani lost the final at 70kg last year to Zain RETHERFORD (USA) but will look to make amends this year. He won the Asian Championships over Aoyagi in a high-scoring final. Yazdani's 13-9 win over Aoyagi was not convincing and the Japanese will look to change the result if the two meet in Tirana. Aoyagi was in the final against Sheriev but dropped the final 9-3. He finished eighth at the World Championships in 2023.

Former U20 world champion for Iran, Peiman BIABANI (CAN) will be turning out for Canada. He finished second at the Pan-Am Championships and the World Championships will be a big test for him. 2023 bronze medalist Ramazan RAMAZANOV (BUL) will look to change the color of his medal this year.