Date of competition: Friday, September 11th

USA Wrestler: Jake Herbert is back! He made a big statement at the 2015 US Open and World Team Trials defeating 2014 World Team member, Ed Ruth. He also defeated 2013 World Team member, Keith Gavin, in the US Open finals. These were the first two major steps toward his goal of World and Olympic Gold.

Herbert started his competitive comeback in late 2014 at the Intercontinental Cup. A fifth place finish there was followed by less than stellar results at Ivan Yarygin and the Grand Prix of Paris. These results didn’t discourage Herbert as he shook off the rust of a two-year layoff. After that he was extremely impressive at the World Team Trials taking out Ruth in two consecutive matches. He believes the that we will see the best Jake Herbert that we ever have at the World Championships.

Since his last performance on the world stage at London in 2012, the landscape at 84kg has changed drastically. For starters, the weight is now 86kg. And Reineris Salas Perez has been back on the mat for Cuba winning silver medals at the past two World Championships after missing the 2012 Olympics. However, the biggest change of the landscape is the emergence of Abdulrashid Sadulaev (RUS).

In August of 2012 Sadulaev won a Cadet World title at 76kg. That was the same bracket where Chance Marsteller was injured in the semi-final opposite of Sadulaev. He is now the reigning World Champion, who is riding a thirty-five match win streak, and is considered by many to be the top pound-for-pound wrestler in the World. Salas Perez and Sadulaev are the biggest obstacles standing between Herbert and his goals for the next two years.



2014 World Placements:
1. Abdulrashid Sadulaev, Russia
2. Reineris Salas Perez, Cuba
3. Selim Yasar, Turkey
3. Mohammad Hossei Askari Mohammadian, Iran
5. Azlan Kakhidze, Kazakhstan
5. Gamzat Osmanov, Azerbaijan
7. Naresh Kumar, India
8. Michail Petrov Ganev, Bulgaria
9. Dato Marsagishvili, Georgia
10. Pedro Francisco Ceballos Fuentes, Venezuela

2013 World Placements (84kg):
1. Ibragim Aldatov, Ukraine
2. Reineris Salas Perez, Cuba
3. Ehsan Lashgari, Iran
3. Istvan Vereb, Hungary
5. Taymuraz Friev Naskidaeva, Spain
5. Murad Gaidarov, Belarus
7. Gabriel Seregelyi, Germany
8. Uitumen Orgodol, Mongolia
9. Serdar Boeke, Turkey
10. Dato Marsagishvili, Georgia

Title Contenders:
Sadulaev, Russia (UWW No. 1) - 2014 World Gold, 2014 Euro Championship Gold, 2015 Euro Games Gold, 2014 Yarygin Gold



Medal Contenders:
Salas Perez, Cuba (UWW No. 2) - 2013 and 2014 World Silver, 2014 Pan Am Championship Gold, 2015 Pan Am Games Gold

Karimimachiani, Iran (UWW No. 5) - 2014 Junior World Gold, 2015 Asian Championship Gold, 2015 Grand Prix of Paris Gold

Yasar, Turkey (UWW No. 10) - 2014 World Bronze, 2015 Ziolkowski Gold

Herbert, USA (UWW No. 19) - 2009 World Silver, 2015 Pan Am Games Silver

Contender Commentary:
Salas Perez and Sadulaev met for the title last year. If anyone is to get in the way of that rematch I think it will be Karimimachiani. He is very young and should have the steepest growth trajectory of anyone in the field. I was hesitant to put Herbert in the contenders field because of his lackluster results overseas. He seemed to improve dramatically as he got more mat time throughout the spring.

Who does Brock like to win?
Sadulaev was the only title contender for a reason. He hasn’t lost since November 2013 when he stumbled against Osmanov at the Golden Grand Prix. Earlier I predicted that Yazdani Charati could become an all-time great. Barring injury, Sadulaev will be an all-time great. If the May 9, 1996 birthdate is factual; he won his first World Title at 18. You have to think many more are in his future. If you believe the chatter, he already is the best Russia has at 97kg. You have to believe a 19 year old Sadulaev will soon grow into that weight category.

Check out the competion at some of the other weight classes here:
57kg UWW Senior World Championship Preview
61kg UWW Senior World Championship Preview
65kg UWW Senior World Championship Preview
70kg UWW Senior World Championship Preview