A scheduling snafu led to the rescheduling of the 92kg Final X matchup between reigning world champion Trent Hidlay and top domestic challenger Michael Macchiavello.

One week before the nation's best freestyle wrestlers face off in Newark, New Jersey, Hidlay and Macchiavello will wrestle a best-of-three series on June 13 in Chantilly, Virginia.

This is one of the most unique scheduling situations in Final X history, as it was necessitated by USA Wrestling and Hidlay inadvertently scheduling Final X on the same weekend as Hidlay's wedding. Adding further peculiarity to the mix-up is the fact that Hidlay and Macchiavello are former teammates at NC State and remain close friends, close enough that Macchiavello will be attending Hidlay's wedding.

So Macch and Trent agreed to hold their wrestle-off a week earlier than the rest of Final X, and all's well that ends well. At least as far as the scheduling goes.

Key Credentials

Trent Hidlay

• Ranked #1 in the world at 92kg
• 2025 92kg World Champ
• 2025 & 2026 92kg Pan-Am Champ
• Four-time Ranking Series medalist
• 2022 U23 86kg silver medal
• 2019 U20 86kg bronze medal
• Four-time NCAA All-American

Michael Macchiavello

• Ranked #11 in the world at 92kg
• 2018 NCAA 197lb Champ
• Three-time US Open Champ
• 2025 Albania Ranking Series bronze medal 
• 2025 Henri Deglane Champ

Previous History

Zagreb Open, February 6, 2026

Trent Hidlay over Michael Macchiavello, 3-3

Trent Hidlay: Underhook Merchant

Hidlay is well known for his powerful underhooks, which he uses to confound opponents and gain an advantage in the neutral hand fight. If you watch Hidlay wrestle long enough, you'll undoubtedly see multiple underhooks slapped in from seemingly any distance. No hand position is safe once Hidlay decides he wants an underhook.

From his preferred position, you'll see the Pennsylvania native hit throw-bys and double legs with regularity. His firm grip on opponents' lats also enables Hidlay to win the positional battle, often leading to passivity calls against his adversaries.

Hidlay's cardio is also world-class, as evidenced by his come-from-behind victory in the gold-medal match at the 2025 World Championships in Zagreb, Croatia.

That LEGENDARY comeback for a world title can be viewed in the video below.

Trent was a one-man wrecking crew in Zagreb, scoring 55 points in five matches. He'll try to keep that momentum going in Virginia as he attempts to bulldoze his way onto a second consecutive World Team.

Mike Macch: Unrelenting Grit

Macchiavello has been a fixture on the senior circuit since graduating from NC State in 2018. The North Carolina native stayed in Raleigh after exhausting his eligibility, training with the Wolfpack RTC from 2019 through 2023.

The next stop for Macchiavello was Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and the Lehigh Valley Wrestling RTC, where he worked with the Lehigh Mountain Hawks while pursuing his competitive goals over the last three years.

More recently, Macchiavello was announced as the next Associate Head Coach at Army West Point, where he will join Troy Nickerson's Black Knight program this fall.

Macchiavello has reached the main stage of Final X before, falling in two straight matches to Zahid Valencia in 2023, also at 92kg. He stayed busy from 2023 through 2026, competing in nine international tournaments during that span. One of those events came on American soil at the 2024 Bill Farrell Memorial International in New York City, where Macchiavello finished as runner-up.

A challenging 2025 season carried over into 2026. At his most recent international competition, the Zagreb Open in February, Macchiavello lost three times, once to Hidlay in the match referenced above and twice to Dustin Plott.

Macchiavello got his revenge on Plott at the US Open, defeating him 4-3 in the finals after also knocking off Josh Barr and Cody Merrill in the semifinals and quarterfinals, respectively.

You can watch that US Open final, which came down to the wire, in the video below.

Macchiavello will once again have to rise to the occasion if he hopes to upset his former teammate and current friend in this unique Final X qualifier.

Team USA's Past Success at 92kg

America has won plenty of men's freestyle hardware at 92kg. In fact, since the non-Olympic weight class was added to the World Championships in 2018, Team USA has never failed to reach the podium. 

• 2018: J'den Cox - GOLD
• 2019: J'den Cox - GOLD
• 2021: J'den Cox - BRONZE
• 2022: J'den Cox - SILVER
• 2023: Zahid Valencia - BRONZE
• 2024: David Taylor - BRONZE
• 2025: Trent Hidlay - GOLD

Prediction

Trent Hidlay is one of the biggest favorites to win Final X this year. Macchiavello presents challenges for nearly everyone he faces, but Hidlay has proven himself to be one of the elite wrestlers in the world.

From their previous head-to-head result to their performances at common tournaments, Hidlay has demonstrated that he is operating at a higher level. That's not a knock on Macchiavello, whose persistence and steady improvement have kept him among the nation's best. He's also one of the more likable wrestlers you'll meet, though the same could certainly be said for Hidlay.

I think Hidlay wins two straight bouts, the first by decision and the second by technical fall. Then I think he'll go on to have a fantastic wedding, one that Macchiavello will be proud to be part of.