photos courtesy of Richard Immel; RImmelPics.com
In 2020 the wrestling world was introduced to the concept of having stand-alone, "fight card-type" events. 2021 will kick off with one of the best we've seen. Even though the initial headline bout, Jordan Burroughs versus David Taylor, was pulled off the card and rescheduled, this remains one of the deepest cards of this genre. It also is jam-packed with bouts that have the potential for fireworks and high scores. Of course, all the attention will be focused on the new main event and rightfully so. The two top active American women, Adeline Gray and Tamyra Mensah-Stock, will anchor the card and provide one of the best possible matchups. Even before we get to the ladies headlining the event, world champion J'Den Cox returns, along with two participants from the 150 lb bracket tournament, and a pair of age-group world medalist clashing. Oh yeah, and a couple of "old-timers" have come out of retirement for another go. There's plenty to watch; it will go down tomorrow night, on FloWrestling, and here's a look at the entire card along with predictions for each match.
155 lbs - Mitch McKee vs. Tristan Moran
What a way to get this card kicked off, with another chapter in the rivalry between Mitch McKee and Tristan Moran. The two both their collegiate careers last year at the Big Ten Championships, competing at 141 lbs. Over the years, McKee and Moran have met three times at the collegiate level, with Moran winning two of the three bouts. Each has an identical 7-6 win over the other; while , the former Badger, Moran, had a win by fall at the buzzer in a 2019 dual meet. Since this match will take place in freestyle, McKee has a slight edge. He was a Junior World silver medalist in 2017 and competed on the U23 team that same year. His chestwraps and creative exposures could probably be the difference.
TOM Pick: McKee
60 kg - Ronna Heaton vs. Desiree Zavala
We've already seen both of these women on cards this year and this has the potential to be a fun matchup. Ronna Heaton was recently victorious over Koral Sugiyama on Wisconsin's Underground 2 card. Desiree Zavala fell to Cadet World Champion Macey Kilty on FloWrestling's 195 lb 8-man bracket event on Halloween. She'll have to deal with another former Cadet World Champion, in Heaton. Coincidentally, both women competed at the 2020 U23 Nationals and took home titles in their respective weights. Heaton's was at 53 kg, while Zavala's was at 59. Since this will take place at 60 kgs, expect Zavala to have a bit of a size advantage.
TOM Pick: Zavala
215 lbs - Nate Jackson vs. Wynn Michalak
One of the more active wrestlers during this new-era of stand-alone wrestling cards has been Nate Jackson. Nate had an impressive showing at the 195 lb tournament finishing as the runner-up to Myles Martin. He also was a finalist at Senior Nationals and went 3-2 at the RTC Cup. One of the two losses at the RTC Cup was later avenged in the same event. Jackson's opponent Campbell Associate Head Coach Wynn Michalak, has dusted off the competition shoes and is ready to roll. Michalak was among the top wrestlers on the domestic ladder for two Olympic quads and was a US Open Champion in 2015. However, the last time Wynn competed at this level was when he took seventh at the 2019 US Open and even that was after a three-year layoff. At that time, Michalak proved he could come back and compete against high-caliber competition. Will he be able to replicate that feat? His chances are much better in a "one-off" match, as Keith Gavin showed recently.
TOM Pick: Jackson
61 kg - Seth Gross vs. Zane Richards
The popular pick for the evening's highest-scoring bout is probably this tilt between Seth Gross and Zane Richards. Gross provided some fireworks against rival Joe Colon at the Beat the Streets NYC event in 2020, then went on to go 3-1 at the RTC Cup. He recently got his hand raised after an odd win against World silver medalist Thomas Gilman in Wisconsin. The other half of this potentially dangerous bout is Zane Richards. Zane took part in the "Rumble on the Rooftop" and stole the show with a comeback win in a 13-11 barnburner against Zach Sanders. While Richards was third at the 2019 US Open, he still needs to qualify for the Olympic Trials and is one of the most notable 57 kg athletes seeking qualification status. Having this match at 61 kg is probably more beneficial for Gross, who is rather large for 61 kg.
TOM Pick: Gross
143 lbs - Ethan Lizak vs. Matt McDonough
This probably wasn't a matchup on most fans' minds when names were being thrown around for potential places on the card. That being said, why not. Ethan Lizak is a cog in a rapidly growing Penn RTC program that has become one of the country's best places to train. Lizak was a three-time All-American at Minnesota, including a finals run at 125 lbs in 2017. We've seen some interesting matches with Lizak against Iowa, so let's add two-time national champion for the Hawkeyes, Matt McDonogh, to the mix. McDonogh is another combatant that enters after a long layoff. The last time McDonogh took the mat was the 2015 World Team Trials. That year he also competed at the Grand Prix of Paris and the Ivan Yarygin. A year before, he was a bronze medalist at the World University Championships. McDonogh battled through some injuries during the end of his collegiate career and while training for freestyle, but perhaps the layoff has given him a chance to heal?
TOM Pick: Lizak
65 kg - Nahshon Garrett vs. Joey McKenna
Speaking of the Penn RTC, one of Lizak's new teammates, Joey McKenna, will be in action at 65 kg. McKenna was supposed to compete in Flo's recent 150 lb bracket, but had to withdraw. He has been active in the past couple of months, placing third at Senior Nationals. His most notable win was a 10-0 tech over Jaydin Eierman in the consolation semis. Joey had already qualified for the Olympic Trials by virtue of his runner-up finish at Senior Nationals in 2019. His opponent, Nahshon Garrett, is getting ready to make his second appearance competing for the Southeast RTC. At the RTC Duals, Nahshon was down at 57 kg (plus a 3kg weight allowance) and had his moments. Though he lost his first two matches, Garrett ended up defeating Zach Sanders and Seth Gross. He also pushed Vito Arujau in their second meeting. Remember, it was only two-plus years ago that Garrett earned a spot on the 2018 World Team, yet had to pull out and Joe Colon took his place.
TOM Pick: McKenna
51 kg - Emily Shilson vs. Erin Golston
This has the potential to be a match we see somewhere down the line at the Olympic Trials. Between Emily Shilson and Erin Golston, they own five age-group world medals (three for Golston; two for Shilson), plus Emily has a gold from the Youth Olympic Games. Shilson also won titles at U23 and Junior Nationals, giving up only six points in nine matches. While Golston has more experience at the Senior-level, she is still looking to break through and make a world/Olympic team at the Senior-level for the first time. Both have wrestled on recent cards, Shilson defeating Stefana Jelacic, while Golston has grabbed wins at the Hawkeye Showdown Open and Wisconsin's Underground 2. Recently, Golston announced that she would be training out of Wisconsin's RTC.
TOM Pick: Golston
152 lbs - James Green vs. Pat Lugo
Here's a match between two of the participants of the 150 lb bracket tournament. Both James Green and Pat Lugo suffered their only losses at the event at the hands of Bajrang Punia. Lugo had a hard-fought loss in the opening round, while Green was dropped in the finals. Both have been relatively busy of late. Lugo notched wins at the Rumble on the Rooftop (Luke Pletcher) and the Hawkeye Showdown Open (Matt Kolodzik). Both of Lugo's wins came against possible 2020 NCAA Champions. James Green has also seen action at the RTC Cup where he defeated Anthony Echemendia and had a pair of narrow losses on criteria to Yianni Diakomihalis. Lugo is someone who has grown by leaps and bounds over the past year, so this match is probably closer than it may appear on paper. Of course, Green has the longer resume with a pair of world medalists to his name.
TOM Pick: Green
97 kg - J'Den Cox vs. Hayden Zillmer
We finally get to see the return of J'Den Cox. J'Den has not been a part of any stand-alone cards and was slated to participate in the RTC Cup until he came down with COVID-19. Thankfully, Cox has recovered and is ready to compete. He'll do so at a new weight class, as he's been at 92 kg's for the past two-plus years. Provided he's fully recovered from COVID, I wouldn't expect size/strength to be an issue for J'Den at the higher weight. The two-time World Champion doesn't have an easy road back as Hayden Zillmer is his first opponent. Zillmer and Cox met in Final X 2018, which led to the first of J'Den's two world titles. Zillmer was recently 3-1 at the RTC Cup and a third-place finisher at Senior Nationals. In 2019, he won that tournament with an excellent comeback against Kollin Moore in the finals.
TOM Pick: Cox
76 kg - Adeline Gray vs. Tamyra Mensah-Stock
Ever since the idea of these "one-off" stand-alone cards became a reality, the most anticipated women's match to be made has been Adeline Gray against Tamyra Mensah-Stock. That fantasy-match will become a reality Saturday night as the two world champions will collide at 76 kg. That is the weight class that has been dominated by Gray for almost a decade. From 2011-2019, Gray made and World/Olympic team each year except for 2017, when she was injured. Not only did Adeline make these teams, but she also has placed herself among the all-time greats of USA Wrestling. Gray has won seven world medals and became the only American wrestler to claim five world titles after doing so in 2019. During this time, she has been rarely tested by domestic opponents. Could Mensah-Stock be the one who pushes Gray and possibly defeats her? These two squared off in 2017 and Adeline dominated; however, Mensah-Stock has grown exponentially since that time. She captured a world bronze medal in 2018, before her gold in 2019. Tamyra also made her own piece of US Wrestling history in 2019, when she became the first American to win the Ivan Yarygin three times. But, all of these achievements came at 68 kgs. Will she be able to move up in weight and challenge one of the all-time greats???
TOM Pick: Gray
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