Zane and Zac and Kamal and Wraustler Week! (With Updates)
UPDATES
We will be updating our Budapest Central with news from the ranking series tournament. This will be especially helpful for ILLINI and IRTC fans, as we plan to scout first-round opponents and each of the wrestler's brackets when available.
FIRST ROUND MATCHES FOR KAMAL, ZAC & JOE
KAMAL BEY
It looks like Kamal drew a live wire in the first round with Iran's Mohammad Aziz Naghousi, who, like Bey, was a Junior World Champion. He was also fifth in the 2021 U23 World Championship. Fivepointmov.com describes the Iranian as "one of Iran’s best young athletes and a potent scorer."
Beat Naghousi, and Bey would run into Oldrich Varga of the Czech Republic. Varga has 964 Instagram followers. Kamal Bey has 3,319, including me. Why don't you follow him?
Varga was a fifth-place finisher in the 2020 Individual World Cup. Additionally, the Czech wrestled at 82kg last year, so he's moving down in weight. Any advantage he might have had sitting out a round with a bye might be eaten up by that cut.
ZAC BRAUNAGEL
The Brawlnagel will have Rafig Huseynov of Azerbaijan in the first round. On paper, it is about the worst draw possible. Huseynov is the Godfather of Azerbaijani Greco with World, Olympic and Euro medals in his closet.
Father Time is creeping up on Huseynov, though, as he first wrestled internationally in 2011. He has the furrows in his brow and a slight paunch up at 82kg.
On the other hand, he seemed to have a better gas tank than his younger foes in the last couple of tournaments. He has to slow down eventually, though, right?
The Azerbaijani is your standard close-in-hand-fight stand-in-the-circle wrestler. He does like the front headlock if you lower your head. On the mat, he will try to lift and throw. He also has a fake reverse lift that he uses to throw a fellow to the mat for exposure.
Zac will need to brawl in this one. Even if he doesn't completely tire Huseynov out, at least the Azerbaijani might be too weak to lift Brawny. Also the ILLINI and ILLINI RTC athlete will want to scramble hard if put down. Huseynov likes to crawl and stick his butt really high in the air to complicate his opponent's guts and throws from the down position. That would be a good skill for the Brawlnagel to implement here.
JOE RAU
The Wraustler starts his tournament with the winner between a couple of young bucks. Markus Ragginger of Austria and Iran's Vahid Dadkhah Ghasem Abadi have won multiple age-group medals, and each of them have at least one age-group World Championship medal. Fivepointmove.com explains that the Rau side of the bracket is very contender heavy:
"It is a bit crammed on Rau’s side of the bracket. If he gets past either Ragginger or Ghasem Abadi, he could have the likes of Felix Baldauf (NOR), Tyrone Sterkenburg (NED), or Kristian Lukac (CRO) in the quarterfinal."
Baldauf won a Euro Championship in 2017 and a Gold at the 2022 Zagreb Grand Prix. Tyrone Sterkenburg has 115,000 followers on Instagram, including the Braunagel and Fiesta Cafe Champaign. He was a Junior World Championships Silver medalist in 2021. Croatia's Lukac only has 268 Instagram followers.
ZANE RICHARDS WINS BRONZE!
Zane went 3-1 on the day with wins over a dangerous Georgian, a tricky Iranian and a U23 medalist from Germany. Here is his first match against Beka Bujiashvili of Georgia. This fellow has the best arm throw series I have ever seen, and he tried to use it from his knees in this video, but Zane had an answer:
In the quarters, Zane faced Milad Valizadeh of Iran. Zane teched and probably pinned him, although the latter wasn't called by the ref. The final was 17-6 in favor of Richards:
In the semis, the IRTC athlete faced Kyrgyzstani Almaz Smanbekov, who had won the last ranking series tournament. Zane's rate of attack in this match was incredible, while Smanbekov blocked and kept his distance. In the end, the Kyrgyzstani wrestler came away with a 2-2 criteria win. Zane had a foot or ankle in his grasp about five or six times, but his foe was able to slip away each time.
In the Bronze Medal match, Zane faced Niklas Stechelle of Germany. The ILLINI RTC pro would win 5-2 and bag the Bronze as well as beaucoup ranking points for the next World Championships. The German reminds me of a big-for-his-age 23-year-old Thomas Gilman:
ZANE'S FIRST ROUND OPPONENT
In the first round of the ranking series tournament, Zane Richards will wrestle Beka Bujiashvili of Georgia. Certainly not the easiest possible draw, but also a guy the IRTC athlete can handle. We did a Moneyball look at this fellow before because he was a potential opponent for Zane at the World Cup.
They did not wrestle. Instead, Suriano handled him 6-3. Here is video of a match between him and Suriano in a ranking series event, which Suriano won 2-1. (Requires FloWrestling sub). He looks like a bearded Liam Cronin here.
THE GEORGIAN: BEKA BUJIASHVILI
This fellow must see a lot of his fellow countryman and former gold and silver World Championship medalist Beka Lomtadze, who won his medals at 61kg and most recently competed at 65kg.
Beka Bujiashvili has been less successful.
He is still a very good and dangerous wrestler. In terms of height and weight, he looks like a Caucasus region brother of Zane Richards. He is well-muscled, though not as well-defined as Zane, not particularly tall and has quite a head of hair.
He's been around forever, having first wrestled internationally in 2009. He won a bronze medal in 2013 in the Junior World Championships. Since then, he's won a weight class at the Henri Deglane tournament.
The Georgian finished 12th in the 2022 World Championships beating an over-matched Spaniard, but then losing to Hasagawa of Japan. He had a fifth-place finish at Matteo Pellicone, but that entailed one win and two losses, though he seemed injured in at least two of his matches (lower back). He did finish third in this year's Russia-less European Championships, which entailed two wins and one loss. Finally, he finished second at Yasar Dogu with a four-and-one record.
SPECIAL: Bujiashvili has used a head in leglace, which has been successful. At other times, even when he falls into them after a successful double, he just doesn't seem to know where to begin. He will lead with his right leg even when shaking hands. He will usually use his right leg to gain ground as well. On occasion, he will wrestle from one knee.
His arm throw is fast and dangerous. One of the best I've ever seen.
He'll roll into it without tying up first. Beka will take a two-on-one and sit through for a very interesting takedown attempt, kicking his opponent over him. He'll also go for a high crotch from the two-on-one. He will often shoot on the whistle.
Be ready to defend his incredible arm throw and two-on-one, and you should have success against him. Here are his Moneyball stats:
FIVEPOINTMOVE
One of the best wrestling media sites on the internet is fivepointmove.com. I have to thank these fellows for helping me to learn some Greco. They also do a great job covering IRTC stars like Kamal Bey here, here and here.
And Zac Braunagel here, here and here. I had to throw in that last article because it is from back in the day when the Braunagel with the largest head won a Fargo title.
Fivepointmove.com has also covered our IRTC-adjacent friend Joe "The Wraustler" Rau. You can find some of those articles about the comedian/wrestler here, here and here.
The first link for each of the wrestlers is the latest on their journeys to Budapest and a few words about Final X. So give these guys a follow on social media, they are certainly following the ILLINI RTC!
NEWER VIDEO
Here is Zac Braunagel winning a tough man contest against Alan Vera at Final X. I especially love the slow motion segment in this one. Total bad-***!
NEW VIDEO
But first, a new video featuring Zane Richards on the defense and on the attack during Final X:
The ILLINI RTC athlete used a brilliant high crotch to take the lead in match two of the best of three. He also displayed some flexible defense. This short video showcases those techniques. Video credit to USA Wrestling and FloWrestling. Audio credit to RG Piano with the Theme from Rocky, while outro music was created by Audio Beats. Photo credits in the outro sequence to FightingILLINI.com, NCAA.com, uiaa.org, wrestlingchangedmylife.com, ILLINOISMatmen.com, flowrestling.com, intermatwrestle.com. This video is not to be monetized.
NEW PHOTO
NEW INFORMATION
We have learned that all of the wrestlers in the ranking series will be given a 2kg weight allowance. This should make it a little easier cut for Zane, and he will be a big 57kger when the medal matches roll around.
This doesn't explain why Zelimkhan Abakarov, the fellow who won 57kg Gold at last year's World Championships, beating Thomas Gilman in the process, registered for 61kg at this tournament.
___________________
They have a big week ahead of them!
The IRTC will have a strong presence in Budapest, Hungary for a United World Wrestling ranking series tournament that will include Freestyle and Greco. A good finish at this tournament could lead to a good seed at the World Championships. Additionally, this will be great experience.
VIDEO BREAK
Here's a quick hitter featuring Zane Richards from Final X, in which he provides a practical lesson in hitting a technique with 100% of your mind and body:
SCHEDULE
ZANE RICHARDS
Thursday, July 13 at 3:30 am (Central) -- Everything but Medal Matches
Thursday, July 13 at 10:00 am (Central) -- Medal Matches
ZAC BRAUNAGEL, KAMAL BEY & JOE RAU
Sunday, July 16 at 3:30 am (Central) -- Everything but Medal Matches
Sunday, July 16 at 10:00 am (Central) -- Medal Matches
BROADCAST/STREAMING
FloWrestling is advertising live coverage. Here's how to watch the 2023 Ranking Series #4 broadcast on FloWrestling. The 2023 Ranking Series #4 broadcast starts on Jul 13, 2023 and runs until Jul 16, 2023. Stream or cast from your desktop, mobile or TV. Now available on Roku, Fire TV, Chromecast and Apple TV. Don’t forget to download the FloSports app on iOS or Android! If you can’t watch live, catch up with the replays! Video footage from the event will be archived and stored in a video library for FloWrestling subscribers to watch for the duration of their subscription.
THE WRESTLERS AT THE RELEVANT WEIGHTS
57kg FREESTYLE ZANE RICHARDS
Weiyu LI (CHN), Wanhao ZOU (CHN), Gamal MOHAMED (EGY), Valentin DAMOUR (FRA), Beka BUJIASHVILI (GEO), Roberti DINGASHVILI (GEO), Horst LEHR (GER), Niklas STECHELE (GER), Yasin REZAEIAGHOUZGOLEH (IRI), Ahmad MOHAMMADNEZHADJAVAN (IRI), #16 Meirambek KARTBAY (KAZ), Abzal OKENOV (KAZ), Mukhamed BALGABAY (KAZ), #15 Bekzat ALMAZ UULU (KGZ), #14 Almaz SMANBEKOV (KGZ), Sunggwon KIM (KOR), Zanabazar ZANDANBUD (MGL), Suraj SINGH (NZL), Gayan EKANAYAKA MUDIYANSELAGE (SRI), #13 Suleyman ATLI (TUR), Kamil KERYMOV (UKR), Andrii YATSENKO (UKR), #4 Zane RICHARDS (USA)
There are no Russians entered, but there are two wrestlers from Iran, China and Georgia to spice up the tournament. Additionally, the Mongolian Zandanbud won a Bronze in last year's World Championships and faced Zane in the World Cup. Suleyman Atli of Turkey is another big name. The rankings listed next to some of the names above are from FloWrestling.
77kg GRECO KAMAL BEY
Sanan SULEYMANOV (AZE), Aik MNATSAKANIAN (BUL), Halishan BAHEJIANG (CHN), Rui LIU (CHN), Oldrich VARGA (CZE), Mohamed KHALIL (EGY), Jonni SARKKINEN (FIN), Akseli YLI HANNUKSELA (FIN), Mikko PELTOKANGAS (FIN), Iuri LOMADZE (GEO), Sachino DAVITAIA (GEO), Zoltan LEVAI (HUN), Attila TOESMAGI (HUN), Mohammad NAGHOUSI (IRI), Maxat YEREZHEPOV (KAZ), Kaharman KISSYMETOV (KAZ), Azat SADYKOV (KAZ), Daekun PARK (KOR), Alexandrin GUTU (MDA), Exauce MUKUBU (NOR), Juan AAK (NOR), Viktor NEMES (SRB), Aleksa ILIC (SRB), Per Albin OLOFSSON (SWE), Yuksel SARICICEK (TUR), Kamal BEY (USA), Ravaughn PERKINS (USA)
The Azerbaijani is a World Silver, and he won a European Championship Gold Medal. Zoltan Levai and Iuri Lomadze won Silver Medals at the same Euro event, but Lomadze also had another Euro medal stripped for PEDs. Ravaughn Perkins is the other American in the bracket, and he has international experience with Pan Am and a 17th place in the 2018 Worlds.
87kg GRECO ZAC BRAUNAGEL
Bachir SID AZARA (ALG), Lukas STAUDACHER (AUT), Islam ABBASOV (AZE), Sosruko KODZOKOV (BRA), Semen NOVIKOV (BUL), Haitao QIAN (CHN), Fei PENG (CHN), Matej MANDIC (CRO), Mohamed METWALLY (EGY), Andreas VAELIS (EST), Lasha GOBADZE (GEO), Gurami KHETSURIANI (GEO), Istvan TAKACS (HUN), David LOSONCZI (HUN), Nursultan TURSYNOV (KAZ), Azamat KUSTUBAYEV (KAZ), Yevgeniy POLIVADOV (KAZ), Sanghyeok PARK (KOR), Byeongcheol SHIN (KOR), Martynas NEMSEVICIUS (LTU), Marcel STERKENBURG (NED), Mario VUKOVIC (SRB), Alex KESSIDIS (SWE), Zachary BRAUNAGEL (USA)
Lasha Gobadze of Georgia is a World Medalist. David Losonczi is one as well. Islam Abbasov of Azerbaijan won a Euro medal and represented his country at the Olympics. Metwally is a veteran campaigner for Egypt. Tursynov of Kazakhstan is another veteran, and he's won a couple of Asian Championships.
97kg GRECO JOE RAU
Markus RAGGINGER (AUT), Daniel GASTL (AUT), Murat LOKIAYEV (AZE), Arif NIFTULLAYEV (AZE), Igor ALVES DE QUEIROZ (BRA), Yiming LI (CHN), Vinko PRODANOVIC (CRO), Kristian LUKAC (CRO), Artur OMAROV (CZE), Mathias BAK (DEN), Mohamed GABR (EGY), Arvi SAVOLAINEN (FIN), Tamas LEVAI (HUN), Alex SZOKE (HUN), Vahid DADKHAH GHASEM ABADI (IRI), Nikoloz KAKHELASHVILI (ITA), Yerulan ISKAKOV (KAZ), Olzhas SYRLYBAY (KAZ), Seungjun KIM (KOR), Seyeol LEE (KOR), Mindaugas VENCKAITIS (LTU), Tyrone STERKENBURG (NED), Felix BALDAUF (NOR), Luka KATIC (SRB), Mihail KAJAIA (SRB), Aleksandar STJEPANETIC (SWE), Josef RAU (USA)
Alex Szoke of Hungary is a recent World Silver Medalist. Mihail Kajaia is a World Bronze.
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