The 2023 Senior World Championships are set to go down in Belgrade, Serbia, September 16-24. The men’s freestyle portion of the tournament will take place from September 16-19. Check out the below article for a complete breakdown with predictions for the 65 kg weight class at the 2023 World Championships.

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65 kg World Championship Ranking

Check out the top 10 wrestlers ranked at 65 kg who will compete at the 2023 World Championships. These rankings are based on head-to-head results between these competitors.

View all of our 2023 World Championship Rankings here.

The Favorite

World and Olympic champion Takuto Otoguro is back after taking 2022 off from competition and should be considered the favorite to win 65 kg in Belgrade. Otoguro had an incredible performance at the Tokyo Olympics winning gold with victories over Tulga Tumur-Ochir (6-3), Ismail Musukaev (4-1), Gadzhimurad Rashidov (3-2), and Haji Aliyev (5-4). Otoguro is one of the most athletic wrestlers in the world and has lightning-quick attacks to both sides of the body. 

Beyond his Olympic performance in 2021, Otoguro also won a world title in 2018 with notable wins over Russia’s Akhmed Chakaev and India’s Bajrang Punia. However, Otoguro did show vulnerabilities in 2019 at the world championships when he placed 5th losing to Gadzhimurad Rashidov and Haji Aliyev. 65 kg is a deep weight and Otoguro will be tested, but for now, he’s the man to beat in Serbia.

Otoguro's win in the 2018 World Finals over Bajrang Punia:

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The Contenders

The top 4 contenders highlight the depth of 65 kg. Iran's Raman Amouzad is the defending 65 kg world champion. Azerbaijan's Haji Aliyev is a 3-time world champion and won an Olympic silver medal two years ago. Mongolia's Tulga Tumur-Ochir is a world bronze medalist and has wins in the past year over Ismail Musukaev, Nick Lee, Joey McKenna, along with a number of other top-ranked wrestlers. Then there’s Shamil Mamedov - Russia’s representative who defeated Gadzhimurad Rashidov this year and won an amazing 65 kg Russian Nationals in June. 

Tulga Tumur-Ochir's win over Nick Lee from the Budapest Ranking Series Event in July:

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Of those contenders, Amouzad and Mamedov appear to be the biggest threats to take out Otoguro. Amouzad won gold at last year’s world championships with impressive wins over Yianni Diakomihalis, Haji Aliyev, and Ismail Musukaev. Amouzad is uncharacteristically long for 65kg and has one of the best underhooks in the world. Amouzad is also undefeated since he made the move up to 65 kg going unbeaten at 4 major tournaments - 2 Asian Championships, the World Cup, and the World Championships.

Amouzad's win over Yianni Diakomihalis in the 2022 World Finals:

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As mentioned, Shamil Mamedov has taken over the helm as Russia’s best 65 kg wrestler after winning Russian Nationals by defeating the likes of Gadzhimurad Omarov and Ibrahim Ibragimov. Beyond that performance, Mamedov also has wins in the past year over Haji Aliyev and Tulga Tumur-Ochir. Mamedov has also won the Yarygin in both 2022 and 2023 and was a U20 World Champion in 2021. 

Mamedov's win in the finals of the 2022 Yasar Dogu over fellow Russian Zagir Shakhiev:

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Sleepers And Darkhorses

Ismail Musukaev might be the biggest wildcard in this entire field. He has the potential to defeat anyone in the world at 65 kg but he’s also taken some head-scratching losses over the past year. Musukaev has losses in 2023 to Tulga Tumur-Ochir (two), Evan Henderson, and Ikromzhon Khadzhimurodov. However, Musukaev also teched Nick Lee this year and has impressive career wins over the likes of Haji Aliyev, Takuto Otoguro, Vladimer Khinchegashvili, Yianni Diakomihalis, and a number of other top-ranked wrestlers in the world. Musukaev is also a two-time world bronze medalist proving that regardless of some odd losses, he is able to wrestle his best on the biggest stages.

Musukaev's win over Takuto Otoguro in the bronze medal match at the 2019 World Championships:

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Nick Lee took out 2022 world silver medalist Yianni Diakomihalis in two straight matches to make Team USA. Lee is still relatively inexperienced on the senior level and has only wrestled a handful of international tournaments. With his inexperience comes highs and lows in his results. As mentioned above, he was teched by Ismail Musukaev in February at the Zagreb Open. Then, in July, Nick Lee made the finals of the Budapest Ranking Series tournament with tough wins over Alibek Osmonov (KGZ) and Islam Dudaev (ALB by way of Russia). Then in the finals, Lee was teched by Mongolia’s Tulga Tumur-Ochir. Lee isn’t a favorite to win 65 kg but he could be a dangerous opponent for some of the more veteran wrestlers in the bracket and has the potential to make a run to a medal match.

Nick Lee's win over Islam Dudaev at the Budapest Ranking Series Event in July:

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Ikromzhon Khadzhimurodov (KGZ) and Abdulmazhid Kudiev (TJK) are the final two wrestlers to keep an eye on at 65kg. Kudiev is a transfer from Russia and even has a win over Russia’s rep Shamil Mamedov. Khadzhimurodov won bronze medals at two ranking series tournaments this year highlighted by wins over Agustin Destribats, Lachlan McNeil, and Ismail Musukaev. Like Nick Lee, neither Khadzhmurodov nor Kudiev are favorites to win 65 kg but have the potential to make some noise and reach a medal match.

Kudiev's win over Shamil Mamedov:

65 kg 2023 World Championship Predictions

With three past world champions, a number of other world medalists, and a deep field - 65 kg might be the most challenging weight in Belgrade to predict. However, for as deep as 65 kg is, I’d be surprised if anyone other than Takuto Otoguro, Rahman Amouzad, or Shamil Mamedov came away with gold. Those three wrestlers have proven to be at the top of this field and will likely have razor-thin matches with one another.

It feels a little like throwing a dart at a board here but Takuto Otoguro is my pick to come away with 65kg gold. Otoguro has proven to be the most complete wrestler in this field and the combination of his athleticism, dynamic offense, and consistency gives me the confidence he can win this outstanding bracket. 

65 kg Medal Predictions

Gold - Takuto Otoguro, JPN

Silver - Rahman Amouzad, IRI

Bronze - Shamil Mamedov, AIN (RUS)

Bronze - Tulga Tumur-Ochir, MGL

Nick Lee’s Chance To Qualify The Weight For The Olympics

It’s also worth noting that 65 kg is an Olympic weight class with the top 5 wrestlers in the weight qualifying their countries for the 2024 Olympics. All true 5th place matches will take place after the medal ceremonies every night. Nick Lee will need to defeat a number of accomplished wrestlers if he hopes to reach a medal match. Lee will be an underdog against Otoguro, Amouzad, Mamedov, Tumur-Ochir, Musukaev, and Aliyev meaning he’ll need to wrestle better than he ever has in order to get the job done in Belgrade.