The 2024 Zagreb Open is the first Ranking Series Event of the year and is set to go down January 10-14. The men’s freestyle portion of this event will take place on the first two days of the tournament and will feature some of the best wrestlers in the world. Check out the below article to see a breakdown of the top 5 potential matches we hope to see in Zagreb.

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Schedule | Full Entries | Team USA

125 kg: Mason Parris vs Amir Zare, IRI

The rematch between Mason Parris and Amir Zare is one I’ve wanted to see for almost 5 years! Parris defeated Zare back in the 2019 Junior World Championships finals with a pin in the first period off of his patented dump. Since then, Zare has established himself as the best heavyweight in the world (outside of Gable Steveson) by winning bronze at the Tokyo Olympics and two world championships (2021 and 2023). 

Mason Parris finally got his chance to wrestle at the Senior World Championships in 2023 and took home a bronze medal losing only to heavyweight legend Geno Petriashvili (8-6). It’s worth noting that Zare went on to tech Petriashvili in the world finals making a statement with the 11-0 win. Even though Parris holds the win over Zare from 2019, Zare is the man to beat in Zagreb and the favorite to win Olympic gold in 2024. This will be a great opportunity for Parris to get a look at Zare to see where he measures up against the standard at 125 kg.

Parris’ win over Zare at the 2019 Junior World Championships:

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It’s also worth noting that this heavyweight field is LOADED with talent and an entire preview could be written just on this weight alone. Check out some of the credentialed wrestlers registered at 125 kg:

• Geno Petriashvili, GEO - 3X World Champion, Olympic Silver Medalist, Olympic Bronze Medalist, 2X World Silver Medalist, 3X World Bronze Medalist
• Amirreza Masoumi, IRI - 2X Junior World Champion, U23 World Champion
• Zhiwei Deng, CHN - World Silver Medalist, World Bronze Medalist
• Nick Gwiazdowski, USA - 2X World Bronze Medalist
• Givi Matcharashvili, GEO - 2X World Bronze Medalist

57 kg: Thomas Gilman vs Zane Richards

A potential Final X rematch could go down at 57 kg with both 2023 world team member Zane Richards and 2021 World Champion Thomas Gilman entered in the weight class. Richards shocked everyone last summer when he took out Gilman at Final X and now Gilman will be looking for some revenge in Zagreb. 

This tournament has a 2-kilogram weight allowance which could be a huge advantage for Gilman who’s known for being a big 57 kg wrestler. Regardless of who has the advantage or who wins, this match will set the stage for the quickly approaching Olympic Trials.

Richards’ win over Gilman to make the 2023 World Team:

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97 kg: Kyle Snyder vs Kamran Ghasempour, IRI

Two-time 92kg world champion Kamran Ghasempour is officially making the move up to 97 kg in an attempt to make Iran’s Olympic team. His performance in Zagreb, and potential match against Kyle Snyder, will tell us how close he is to replicating his success at 92 kg at the heavier weight class.

As a 9-time world and Olympic medalist, Kyle Snyder has proven to be one of the best in the world regardless of weight class. In fact, Snyder holds a win over Ghasempour from the 2022 World Cup when Iran bumped Ghasempour from 92 kg to try and win the dual over Team USA. Snyder controlled that match from start to finish to win a decisive 5-0 decision with a shot-clock point, two stepouts, and a takedown. Has Ghasempour put on the necessary size to compete with Snyder? Can he make the necessary adjustments to close the gap? Those are the questions to be answered when/if the two meet in this super match.

Snyder’s win over Ghasempour at the 2022 World Cup:

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86 kg: Zahid Valencia vs Azamat Dauletbekov, KAZ

After medaling at 92 kg at the 2023 World Championships, Zahid Valencia is making the move back down for a run at the Olympics at 86 kg. The biggest obstacle in Valencia’s way in Zagreb will be Kazakhstan’s 2-time world bronze medalist Azamat Dauletbekov. Dauletbekov’s bronze medals came at the last 2 world championships where he lost only to David Taylor both years and recorded impressive wins over Myles Amine and Russia’s Arslan Bagaev. While Dauletbekov isn’t Taylor or Yazdani, he represents the next tier at 86 kg and will be a great litmus test for Zahid.

Dauletbekov’s win over Myles Amine at the 2022 World Championships:

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74 kg: Jason Nolf/ Quincy Monday vs Georgios Kougioumtsidis, GRE

Jason Nolf and Quincy Monday are Team USA’s two reps at 74 kg so I included them both in this potential matchup. Nolf and Monday met in November at the Bill Farrell where Nolf won a tight, 1-point match over Monday. After that loss, Monday went on to win Senior Nationals in impressive fashion highlighted by a 14-2 tech fall win over Alex Marinelli in the finals. Both Nolf and Monday are capable of winning the 74 kg bracket but their biggest test will be against Greece’s Georgios Kougioumtsidis.

Kougioumtsidis announced himself at the 2023 World Championships when he defeated Olympic silver medalist Magomedkhabib Kadimagomedov (BLR) and two-time world silver medalist Tajmuraz Salkazanov (SVK) to make the semi-finals against Kyle Dake. Kougioumtsidis lost a competitive 4-1 bout to Dake but proved he’s one of the best 74kg wrestlers in the world with his performance in Belgrade. A match against Kougioumtsidis for Nolf and/or Monday will be an incredible test for both and will tell us just how close they are to challenging Kyle Dake for the 74kg Olympic spot.

Kougioumtsidis’ win over Kadimagomedov at the 2023 World Championships:

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