#WrestleBirmingham

Commonwealth Games, Birmingham Day 1 finals set

By Vinay Siwach

COVENTRY, England (August 5) -- The Commonwealth Games are moving towards the business end and wrestling will be one of the sports to be highlighted at the Games. At the Coventry Arena, wrestlers will be eyeing to win the gold medals in 12 freestyle and women's wrestling. On day one, six weight classes in action, three freestyle and three for women's.

MATCH ORDER

15:15: The finals for the night are set

FS 65kg:  Lachlan MCNEIL (CAN) vs. Bajrang PUNIA (IND)
FS 86kg:  Deepak PUNIA (IND) vs. Muhammad INAM (PAK)
FS 125kg: Zaman ANWAR (PAK) vs. Amarveer DHESI (CAN)

WW 57kg: Anshu MALIK (IND) vs. Odunayo ADEKUOROYE (NGR)
WW 62kg: Ana GONZALEZ (CAN) vs. Sakshi MALIK (IND)
WW 68kg: Blessing OBORUDUDU (NGR) vs. Linda MORAIS (CAN)

14:54: Deepak PUNIA (IND) will wrestle for the 86kg gold after beating Moore 3-1 in the semifinals. Dhesi with a technical superiority 12-2 win over Grewal. He will wrestle the 125kg gold 

14:51: Two India-Canada semifinals. At 86kg, Deepak PUNIA (IND) is wrestling Alexander MOORE (CAN) and leading 3-0. At 125kg, Mohit GREWAL (IND) and Amarveer DHESI (CAN) have exchanged takedowns with Dhesi leading 2-2 on criteria.

14:45: Blessing OBORUDUDU (NGR) is back in the 68kg final at Commonwealth. At 57kg, Odunayo ADEKUOROYE (NGR) is up against Hannah TAYLOR (CAN) and begins with a double for four. A takedown makes it 6-0. A takedown before the break and one after gives her a 10-0 win and a place in the final against Anshu MALIK (IND)

15:42: Bajrang PUNIA (IND) with another top win. He beats George RAMM (ENG) 10-0 in the 65kg semifinal and will be defending his gold from four years ago. 

15:10: Anshu MALIK (IND) and Sakshi MALIK (IND) are the two finalists for India. At 57kg, Anshu has made it 10-0 while at 62kg, Sakshi also blanks her opponent 10-0

15:05: Lachlan MCNEIL (CAN) is going into the 65kg finals. He beats Inayat ULLAH (PAK) 11-0 and is a win away from being crowned as the Commonwealth champion. On Mat B, 86kg defending champion Muhammad INAM (PAK) is into the semifinals

14:50: The first semifinal of the night is Esther KOLAWOLE (NGR) and U23 world champion Ana GONZALEZ (CAN) at 62kg. Gonzalez takes the first takedown but Kolawole blasts a double to lead 2-2 on criteria. Just before the break, Gonzalez is quick to score a takedown and lead 4-2. Another slow start but Gonzalez with a counter and go behind to extend her lead 6-2. Single leg counter from Kolawole and she trims the lead to 6-4. A minute left in the bout. Gonzalez gets her takedown and a turn to make it 10-4. That will be the end of this semifinal she will wrestle for gold at 62kg

14:45: Edward LESSING (RSA) with a huge five! He blanks Syerus ESLAMI (ENG) 10-0 in the 86kg and will wrestle for the spot in the finals

14:35: Former world champion Linda MORAIS (CAN) has jumped up to 68kg and she begins her campaign with a fall and will wrestle in the semifinal here in Birmingham.

14:26: A top bout at 68kg on Mat A. Olympic silver medalist Blessing OBORUDUDU (NGR) up against Divya KAKRAN (IND). The two begin cautiously but Oborududu scores a stepout to lead 1-0. The Nigerian wrestler has raced to a 5-0 lead at the break after adding two takedowns. Kakran tries going for the far leg but Oborududu manages to keep her away and counters with two takedowns. She finishes things with another takedown and win 11-0 

14:25: Mohit GREWAL (IND) and Alexios KAOUSLIDIS (CYP) battle it out for six minutes but it's Grewal who keeps it under control and wins 10-1 at 125kg. Bajrang PUNIA (IND) moves into the semifinals at 65kg with another fall

14:10: Mandhir KOONER (ENG) was warned for passivity against Mohamed BUNDU (SLE) and looked like Bundu will make a move against Kooner. But the England wrestler pulled off a four-pointer and then secured the fall and the crowd enjoyed that

14:08: Defending champion at 86kg Muhammad INAM (PAK) gets going with a 10-0 win against Kieran MALONE (SCO). He will now wrestle in the 86kg quarterfinals

14:04: World silver medalist Anshu MALIK (IND) up against Irene SYMEONIDIS (AUS) for her 57kg quarterfinals. She begins with a go behind and turns to lead 8-0 in 36 seconds. Malik will close the bout with a takedown and win in a minute and four seconds

14:01: Returning bronze medalist at 86kg Syerus ESLAMI (ENG) trailed Charalampos CHOIRAS (CYP) for five minutes and 30 seconds but scored a takedown to claim a 6-4 lead and win his 86kg quarterfinals. The crowd has gone ecstatic.

13:55: Lachlan MCNEIL (CAN) with a figure-4 and he moves past Ross CONNELLY (SCO) with a 10-0 technical fall. He will wrestle in the 65kg semifinals

13:45: Blessing OBORUDUDU (NGR) with a fantastic warm-up win against Blandine NGIRI (CMR). She used a series of takedowns to win 10-0

13:30: The referees and fans are ready. The bouts are resuming and set for the quarterfinals of the 6 weight classes

13:00: We had a longer delay than expected but seems like we should be back on track in the next 15 minutes. We will be resuming action at 13:30 local time

11:00: We are experiencing a small technical delay in the competition but we will be back soon. We are expecting a delay of an hour. Wrestling will resume at 12:15 local time.

10:55: Mandhir KOONER (ENG) with another win for England. The crowd loves it as Kooner beats Aaro LEHAULI (TGA) at 125kg. At 86kg, Deepak PUNIA (IND) also begins with a win.

10:50: George RAMM (ENG) absolutely puts the crowd on its feet. Mostafa REZAEIFAR (AUS) tried his best to break Ramm's defense but the England wrestler hangs on for 3-0 win

10:45: India's Tokyo Olympic bronze medalist Bajrang PUNIA (IND) with a quick pin over  Lowe BINGHAM (NRU) at 65kg. He is the defending champion as well

10:40: Inayat ULLAH (PAK) starts with a dominating win over Adam VELLA (MLT) and Ross CONNELLY (SCO) beats Brahm RICHARDS (NZL) at 65kg.

10:30: Welcome to day one of the Commonwealth Games. Inayat ULLAH (PAK) and Adam VELLA (MLT) will begin the proceedings on Mat A at 57kg. Brahm RICHARDS (NZL) vs Ross CONNELLY (SCO) in the 65kg quarterfinals.

#WrestleBudapest

Grace Bullen Move: Outside Trip That Defines European Champ

By Vinay Siwach

BUDAPEST, Hungary (July 9) -- Grace BULLEN (NOR) lost the most important match of her career while attempting her trademark outside trip, trying to finish the bout with a fall. It came in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games semifinal against Sakura MOTOKI (JPN), who countered with a neck bridge, tossing Bullen over for the fall.

UWW+

Despite the mixed results the move has produced over the years, Bullen did not hesitate to use it in the 2026 European Championships final against Amina TANDELOVA (RUS). Trailing 9-0, Bullen hooked her left foot behind Tandelova's heel and brought her down for the fall.

Three months after their epic European 62kg final, Bullen and Tandelova will be at the Budapest Ranking Series from July 15 to 19, the last stop to gain ranking points before the World Championships.

They will be joined by a strong field that includes former world champion Qi ZHANG (CHN), world bronze medalist Esther KOLAWOLE (NGR), and European medalists Johanna LINDBORG (SWE) and Solomiia VYNNYK (UKR).

The field also includes Ana GODINEZ (CAN) and former U20 world champion Eniko ELEKES (HUN), who will have the backing of the home crowd. Two Indians, MANSI (IND) and SAVITA (IND), are also entered among others.

Grace BULLEN (NOR)Grace BULLEN (NOR) performs the outside trip against Amina TANDELOVA (RUS) during the 62kg final at the European Championships. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

The same move also rescued Bullen at the Tirana Ranking Series, where she trailed Mansi before winning 6-5.

Speaking after winning European gold, Bullen acknowledged both the risk and the reward of the move.

"I know it's my go-to when I'm down, but I also lost in that situation, the same place," Bullen said. "I know how it is being on the receiving end, also being an attacker in that situation. But glad it worked out for me.

"It's more risky that way and just locking the leg and going forward it's much less risky, especially for me."

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by Grace Bullen (@gracebullen7)

 

A pivotal career decision saw Bullen relocate her training base to Georgia under coach Zurabi IAKOBISHVILI. Since moving to 62kg, she has won world and Olympic medals and established herself as one of the division's most dangerous wrestlers. The demanding training in Georgia and the move up in weight have transformed her wrestling and her mindset, even if the results have occasionally fluctuated.

"I'm also getting older," she said. "I have to be wise with how I train and so I keep my shape."

That experience has also made Bullen more patient than she was five years ago.

"I've years of experience in wrestling," she said. "I take losses with a greater smile than I ever did before. Just knowing that this year I was in two ranking series competitions and only won one match, I am more patient with everything. I know that even though I lose, I can win in the future."