Olympic Preview Series: 86 kg Freestyle
Over the last two years this weight has been ran by one man and I don't see that ending this Saturday. Abdulrashid Sadulaev is the best pound for pound wrestler in the world and at the age of 20 we haven't even seen him at his best yet.
Favorite:
Abdulrashid Sadulaev Russia- The two-time defending champion is just about unstoppable. He has given up less then ten points over the last three years and no one actually has film of him ever getting taken down. I have no idea how that is possible, but this young man is a treat to watch and I can't wait to see him get after it on Saturday.
Dark Horses:
Sharif Sharifov Azerbaijan: The defending Olympic champion has wrestled the majority of this quad at 97 kg and has had some success at that weight, but now he is back at his natural weight and looks to be firing on all cylinders once again. He will have to bring his best stuff to RIo to beat Sadulaev and even that might not be enough to get the job done.
Reineris Salas Cuba- The extremely talented Cuban has bounced back from a poor performance at last year's World Championships by being dominant at 97 kg this year. In the five tournaments that he has wrestled, Salas has looked as good as he ever has in his career. Coming into Rio at the age of 29, this could be Salas' last shot to snag an Olympic medal.
Selim Yasar Turkey- The 26 year old Turk has been on a roll of late earning medals at each of the last two World Championships and is looking to make it three world level tournaments in a row on Saturday. So far returning World finalists have benefited from good draws and Yasar will be looking to take advantage of that.
J’den Cox USA- What a pleasant surprise the young phenom out of Missouri has been for Team USA. Cox has went above and beyond all of my expectations for him at the international level so far and he has looked better and better with every match that he wrestles. He is one of the best athletes in this weight class and will be looking to shock the world in Rio this weekend.
Predictions:
Sadulaev will continue to keep a stranglehold on this weight once again this year. The guy does unbelievable things and will be an icon in the sport of wrestling. The man Sadulaev will beat in the finals is Reineris Salas. What happened in Las Vegas last year was a fluke and Salas is going to show everyone that. My two bronze medals will go to Sharifov and Cox. Sharifov has the knowledge and experience to get him back on the podium. For the sake of Team USA, Cox has to get on this podium. With hype man Ben Askren in his corner, I guarantee his head will be in the right place on Saturday.
Gold: Abdulrashid Sadulaev
Silver: Reineris Salas
Bronze: Sharif Sharifov
Bronze: J'den Cox
5th: Selim Yasar
5th: Alireza Karimimachiani