#WrestleMorelia

Ayyoub de Canada Gana el Botin de Oro en #WrestleMorelia

By Taylor Miller

MORELIA, Mexico – En el último día del Campeonato Panamericano de Cadetes, Ismail AYYOUB (CAN) ganó el Botín de Oro en estilo libre masculino después de un día exitoso en Morelia, México.

Ayyoub ganó el título en 80 kg, derrotando a John BEST (USA) en la final, 10-3.

USA ganó las otras nueve medallas de oro, de Daniel Sheen con 45 kg, Joey Fischer con 48 kg, Nico Provo con 51 kg, Jacob Rundell con 55 kg, Jesse Mendez con 60 kg, Robert Pérez III con 65 kg, John Best con 71 kg, Michael Misita con 92 kg y Braxton Mikesell con 110 kg.

Sheen, Fischer, Méndez, Pérez, Best, Misita y Mikesell ganaron sus segundos oros este fin de semana al reclamar títulos en Grecorromana el viernes.

En la clasificación por equipos, USA ganaron con 245 puntos, seguidos de México con 138 puntos y Canadá con 134 puntos.

Team standings
1. USA – 245
2. Mexico – 138
3. Canada – 134
4. Peru – 83
5. Brazil – 65
6. Ecuador – 61
7. Guatemala – 57
8. Argentina – 46
9. Colombia – 38
10. Panama – 38

45 kg
GOLD – Daniel SHEEN (USA)
SILVER - Esteban MORALES MAYANCHA (ECU)
BRONZE - Carlos HERNANDEZ PEREZ (MEX)

48 kg
GOLD – Joseph FISCHER (USA)
SILVER - Treye TROTMAN (CAN)
BRONZE - Helisson QUEIROZ BRESSON (BRA)

51 kg
GOLD – Nico PROVO (USA)
SILVER – Enrique HERRERA HUACRE (PER)
BRONZE - Luisaldo CORTEZ GARCIA (MEX)
BRONZE - Marlon GODINEZ PEREZ (GUA)

55 kg
GOLD – Jacob RUNDELL (USA)
SILVER - Fotis PAPADOPOULOS (CAN)
BRONZE - Miguel GASPAR RIVAS (ECU)
BRONZE - Erick BARROSO BAUTISTA (MEX)

60 kg
GOLD – Jesse MENDEZ (USA)
SILVER - Jan LOPEZ SOLIS (MEX)
BRONZE - Peter MCCRACKIN (CAN)

65 kg
GOLD – Robert PEREZ III (USA)
SILVER - Stone LEWIS (CAN)
BRONZE - Jonnathan PEREZ CASTELLANOS (GUA)
BRONZE - Matias MUNOZ RAMIREZ (CHI)

71 kg                                                                       
GOLD – John BEST (USA)
SILVER - Lautaro SEGHESSO (ARG)
BRONZE - Carlos SEVILLANO GONGORA (ECU)
BRONZE -  Malhcon PINEDA CUNIL (GUA)

80 kg
GOLD - Ismail AYYOUB (CAN)
SILVER – Jack DARRAH (USA)
BRONZE - Juan ITURRIZA RUIZ (MEX)

92 kg
GOLD – Michael MISITA (USA)
SILVER - Jorge DE LA O OLAN (MEX)
BRONZE - Gabriel DE SOUSA SILVA (BRA)

110 kg
GOLD – Braxton MIKESELL (USA)
SILVER - Axel ORTEGA LUNA (MEX)
BRONZE - Diego NOLE AZABACHE (PER)

#WrestleBudapest

Ranking Series: Tazhudinov Shows No Rust on His Way to Gold

By Vinay Siwach

BUDAPEST, Hungary (July 17) --  Akhmed TAZHUDINOV (BRN) gave an early preview to what to expect from him at the World Championships in September.

The Paris Olympic champion won the gold medal in the 97kg weight class at the Budapest Ranking Series, outscoring his opponents 44-2 in four bouts and never appearing in trouble on the mat.

"I feel very good," Tazhudinov said. "I'm very happy to be back on the mat. It’s been almost a year I haven’t been competing  and it’s such a pleasure for us when you come back and win a gold medal."

The final Ranking Series event of the season kicked off in Budapest on Thursday with several familiar names winning gold medals. Asian champion Takara SUDA (JPN), world silver medalist Yoshinosuke AOYAGI (JPN), world U20 champion Luke LILLEDAHL (USA) and SUJEET (IND) were among the gold medalists on day one.

But none were as dominant as Tazhudinov.

The Bahrain star returned to competition for the first time since Paris Olympics competing last week in Madrid, where he won gold at the Grand Prix of Spain. In Budapest, he followed it up with another flawless run, claiming his second gold medal in as many weeks.

"Overall I’m satisfied with my performance. I would say I’m not yet in full form, so I’m pleased with how I did. I’ll reach 100% form by the World Championships," he said.

Wrestling in just his third career Ranking Series, Tazhudinov capped the day with an 11-0 technical superiority win over veteran Zbigniew BARANOWSKI (POL) in the final.

He opened the tournament with a 14-2 win over Adlan VISKHANOV (FRA), who clearly looked smaller for the weight class and had trouble matching Tazhudinov in every aspect of the game.

Tazhudinov hit a big double-leg attack for four points but Viskhanov got two points for exposure. But that was only opening Tazhudinov allowed for the rest of the bout. Viskhanov tried a few leg attacks but Tazhudinov scored a takedown and two turns to be up 10-2 before an arm-bar attempt turned into takedown for his win.

In the quarterfinals, Tazhudinov needed just one minute to defeat Aliaksandr HUSHTYN (UWW). In the semifinals, he dispatched Merab SULEIMANISHVILI (GEO) in 1:48, winning 10-0.

Despite the dominant performance in Budapest, Tazhudinov admitted the World Championships would present a tougher challenge. He’s expected to defend his 97kg world title in Zagreb.

"We’ll have two training camps leading up to the World Championships, and I think after those camps I’ll be fully ready," he said. "There will be very strong, tough opponents. So I’ll prepare thoroughly and focus on performing even better."