Why 79kg Is The Best Jr Freestyle Weight At The Open

At the US Open, the 79kg bracket will be the one to watch with an amazing amount of talent.

Apr 18, 2018 by Ryan Holmes

Why 79kg Is The Best Jr Freestyle Weight At The Open

Will this be the year that Aaron Brooks takes out Travis Wittlake? Does Wittlake reign supreme over another tough field? Mikey Labriola had an impressive redshirt year at Nebraska, but what does he bring to a bracket filled with experienced freestyle talent?

All of those questions will be answered next week in Las Vegas as some of the top men's junior freestyle wrestlers in the country vie for the 79kg title at the 2018 U.S. Open on April 27-28.

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Let’s start with Cadet world champ, Brooks. Though he ended up winning the world title, he didn’t win the spot a year ago, as he was downed in two straight matches by Wittlake. Both have put on some serious size and, in my mind, are the top contenders to win it all.

Watch match one of Wittlake vs Brooks:

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However, there are a few other dynamics at play here, especially with Anthony Mantanona and Labriola coming off of some pretty stellar redshirt years at Oklahoma and Nebraska, respectively.

Mantanona has a few stop signs in his trophy case already and is a wild card on the mat. Labriola defeated some pretty tough competitors this year at open tournaments. Some of those opponents went on to qualify and even make the podium at NCAAs.

Watch Labriola defeat NCAA All-American David Kocer: