Tim Hands, founder and senior editor of Five Point Move, recaps the second UWW Greco-Roman ranking series event, the Hungarian Grand Prix.

If you consider yourself a potential World or Olympic medalist, winning the Hungarian Grand Prix is a pretty good idea. 

G’Angelo Hancock (97 kg, Sunkist) knew that.

So he won it. 

On a weekend that saw nine other USA Senior Greco-Roman athletes put in the effort only to come up short in the results department, Hancock wowed observers by dispatching four suitably tough opponents to reel in his first gold medal at one of Europe’s most challenging tournaments. The task in front of him wasn’t always easy, but that comes with the territory. 

Hancock carried some momentum into Hungary following his bronze in Zagreb two weeks ago. On his way to that bronze, he had engaged in a frustratingly tight contest with former Junior World silver/2012 Olympian Lee Se-Yeol (KOR). It was a typical drawn-out affair where one guy wanted to press the action (that was Hancock), while the other was just focused on survival. Lee didn’t want to make it easy on Hancock in Croatia, and he didn’t, although the American still managed to walk away with a 5-1 decision. 

As luck would have it, Lee was Hancock’s first opponent on Saturday. And he did not survive this one. Hancock got started early and easily ran Lee right out of dodge to the tune of an 8-0 tech. China’s Abudourexiti Alimujiang was next on the docket. There wasn’t a lot of drama involved, but the scoreboard didn’t exactly light up, either. Nevertheless, Hancock blanked Alimujiang 4-0 to move onto the semifinals. 

The first real moments of trepidation for Hancock and the US arrived in the second period against Iran’s Hassan Ali Aryanezhad. 

Ali Aryanezhad had just gone up 2-1 on a passivity and was to take his shot from top par terre. When the Iranian locked and began to rotate on his turn, Hancock shuffled, adjusted, and reversed to take a 3-2 lead. Ali Aryanezhad was wearing down by then, though he still tried bringing a little last-gasp heat. Inconsequential. Hancock held position firmly and punched his ticket to the final -- opposed by another athlete with whom he was already familiar. 

Two-time University World Champion Fatih Baskoy (TUR) and Hancock initially exchanged pleasantries in the qualification round of the 2017 Paris Worlds. That was a fun match; not big on points, but certainly entertaining if you’re a USA fan. Hancock eagerly went at Baskoy in that bout and wore on him repeatedly to where much of the groundwork had been laid by the middle of the second period. 

This time around, it was a little different. 

Hancock energetically clashed inside at first contact and immediately took command of the pace. He was looking for attacks, anything he could get. Snap drags, cuts to go-behinds, and hard-charging pummeling defined the early stages. Thus it was no surprise when Hancock received the first passivity/par terre chance of the final, only he was unable to capitalize further with a lift or gut from the tarp. 

The second period provided a requisite amount of drama. Baskoy was more than just a willing participant, but at the same time, he wasn’t fighting his way into what you might define as “actionable attempts”. Did he come out for the second with more urgency? Sure, but that’s all part of playing to the rules. Because -- although passivity is not automatically given to both wrestlers under the current rule-set, it still usually is, regardless of optics. Hancock hadn’t all the sudden started hanging in control ties or lowering his tempo, but since Baskoy showed just enough zeal, the officials gave him his point. 

Baskoy locked around Hancock and straightened his arms to hoist a side lift. As he went to elevate, Hancock scrambled out of trouble. However, when Hancock found his feet, he slipped and touched down off the line. The call on the mat was two points, thanks in large part to Turkey’s heated protests, which temporarily provided Baskoy with a 3-1 cushion. But the US corner challenged the call -- and won -- so the score was adjusted to 2-1 instead. 

Still, it was a deficit, and those can be unkind to high-profile American athletes doing business in an overseas final. That after the reset Baskoy got behind Hancock and collapsed him off the line for another point only served to underscore the matter. 

The reason why Hancock won is because he didn’t bother to waste time thinking. For on the very next restart, he blitzed Baskoy, wrapped the body, and brought him down for two points. Whatever wind was in the Turk’s sails had all but disappeared. With the seconds quickly falling off the clock, Hancock expertly kept Baskoy in check to the whistle, collecting perhaps his biggest Senior tournament win to date. 

Now it’s about the points

The Hungarian Grand Prix, just like the Zagreb Grand Prix, was a United World Wrestling “Ranking Series” event. Hancock earned 12 points with his bronze at Zagreb. The gold in Hungary is good for eight points -- plus another ten for having more than 20 participants in the bracket. That means 30 is Hancock’s new tally, and until the Continental Championships pop up this spring, he should be elevated to #3 in United World Wrestling’s top-20 rankings. 

Other Noteworthy US Performances

Out of the nine US wrestlers in Hungary, seven picked up first-round victories, but only two of those seven managed to win two or more -- Hancock and RaVaughn Perkins (NYAC). 

For the second tournament in a row, Perkins was up at 77 kilograms. Croatia was a one-and-done deal, so he wanted to make a better impression this time around.

Mission accomplished. 

Perkins out-hustled and out-defended 2016 World bronze Ilie Cocojari (ROU) in his first bout 4-0 before tech’ing out US teammate Patrick Smith (Minnesota Storm) in the round-of-16. In the quarters stood Olympic and World champ Kim Hyeon-Woo (KOR). Perkins and Kim had first met in the finals of the 2017 November Dave Schultz Memorial in what was a runaway tech win for the Korean. 

Perkins wasn’t supposed to win that match, he just wasn’t. But it gnawed at him, not just for the way it ended, but because deep down, Perkins believes he’s on Kim’s level. And as such, he had been looking forward to another shot at the champ. He got it today and very nearly made it count. 

The first passive went to Perkins, and he did a better than admirable job both before and after when it came to understanding how to navigate Kim’s pressure and angles. Perkins weaved into the pummel and set his feet deliberately, moving well and with confidence. 

The lead, albeit of the tenuous 1-0 variety, belonged to Perkins into the second frame. It was an eventuality that Kim would be rewarded with the next passive, and he was. Perkins impressively defended from bottom and back to the feet they were. Kim needed to engineer a scoring opportunity, something he knows how to do very well. He put pressure on Perkins’ head, ignited a scramble, and got behind whilst also trapping an arm. Perkins might have been dead to rights if he didn’t instantly work to free that arm. Kim then went to gut, went to lift. No dice on both accounts. The USA curiously challenged the takedown sequence, and lost, resulting in another point for Kim in what wound up as a 4-1 decision victory. 

The score didn’t work out in Perkins’ favor -- nor did the fact that 2017 World Champion Viktor Nemes (SRB) blocked and bailed to victory against Kim in the semis -- but the Olympic Training Center athlete still took a positive away from his performance. 

“He had a trap-arm when he took me down in the second period,” Perkins said later on Sunday. “I got out of that. He went for a lift, I got my hips back down. I tried to stay in there, but Kim is Kim. I wanted to win that match 100%, and I felt like I could win it right now, not just in 2020. Now he knows I’m coming and he’s going to be looking out for me. A lot of guys will be. I’m going to keep coming until I beat the best guys.”

2016 Olympian Robby Smith (130 kg, NYAC) was back in action on Sunday for the first time in seven months and emerged victorious in his first bout. Smith bullied Muminjon Abdullaev (UZB) around through most of their round-of-16 matchup, it’s just the scoreboard didn’t reflect the busy work in what was a 1-1 criteria decision. In the next round, Smith flashed several high-octane attempts against eventual bronze Marko Koscevic (CRO) and was still put down for passivity in the first period. Koscevic converted on a gut wrench and then surprised Smith with a four-point arm throw once they returned standing. In the end, it was a 7-1 loss for Smith that kept him out of the money. 

But like Perkins, he was much more inclined to lean towards the positive and also referenced the training camp leading up to the event as a reason why he’s excited to be back in the hunt. 

“I was moving my feet well, I controlled the ties, and dominated my first match even though the score was 1-1,” Smith explained after the tournament. “The second match, it wasn’t as bad as it looked on the scoreboard, I pushed the pace on the feet and defended well. It took him three attempts -- they usually stand you up after that. When he was on his side, I took a risk to pop over and it backfired.

“I’m trying to score points, that’s the name of the game and I don’t want to disappoint the fans. I thought I had plenty of time to score points, but he shut down and I didn’t have the chance. 

“But I don’t look at this loss as a negative. I’m pleased about the two weeks I’ve spent here, this has been a learning experience. Now I’ll go back, watch film, critique it, and come back strong.”

Quick Facts

Kamal Bey (77 kg, Sunkist) put on a laser show against Leos Drmola (SVK), throwing up an adrenalizing 11-0 tech. In his next bout, Bey was ousted by 2016 World bronze Laszlo Szabo (HUN) 4-2. 

2018 World Team member Dalton Roberts (60 kg, NYAC/OTS) earned a very nice win at the expense of Estonia’s Helary Maegisalu to start off his tournament, but in the proceeding match, that good feeling was wiped away on a non-call. Roberts was in the midst of a heated battle with Di Hu (CHN) and had countered a headlock before seemingly having Hu pinned. The ensuing officials' conference did little to help matters, and Roberts never fully recovered, ultimately dropping a 10-4 decision. 

Travis Rice was in a bronze-medal match for a second consecutive “Ranking Series” tournament. A victory via injury default over Tamas Nad (SRB) put Rice into the semifinal opposite Erbatu Tuo (CHN), who got past the American 9-0. Tuo’s countryman, World bronze Salike Walihan, represented Rice’s opposition in the bronze round and prevailed 9-0, as well. 

Two of the United States’ best at 87 kilos were also in the mix on Sunday: the returning Ben Provisor (NYAC/NLWC) and 2018 World Teamer Patrick Martinez. Both had top-tier opponents in their opening bouts; Provisor faced off with Hungary’s Erik Szilvassy and Martinez battled ‘18 World bronze Robert Kobliashvili (GEO. And, unfortunately for the US, both lost. 

Provisor put a scare into Szilvassy during their entertaining slugfest only to drop a 7-5 decision. Martinez pressed Kobliashvili plenty in the pummel, but still fell 3-1.