Alan Vera has been in the United States for nearly four-and-a-half years after defecting from Cuba. It happened in Frisco, aTexas city that boasts a population of approximately 200,000 -- and a place that hardly gets mentioned whenever the Lone Star State is brought up in conversation.

Frisco is actually quite something else. There is the National Videogame Museum, database software giant Oracle’s headquarters, seemingly 1,000 restaurants, and because it is ten minutes from Dallas (when traffic isn’t a problem), Frisco acts as a most-major hub for commuters and area town folk. 

If you want to simply blend in and cling to even the narrowest branch of American life, Frisco is a more than suitable place to get the job done. 

Which is what Vera did, at first. That is before he firmly and assuredly planted his roots in the Northeastern part of this country. But the truth is, of course, Vera never planned on hiding away in the shadows hoping to avoid notice. He wanted to start his life over, which he did, marrying multi-time World medalist Elena Perizkova and eventually settling in Jersey City. 

Due to a mountain of legal issues pertaining to immigration concerns, Vera had to bide his time. It’s not as easy as people think it is to become a citizen. There isn’t some automated process, and favoritism is virtually non-existent. No one -- not an INS rep, not a judge, court, or lawyer -- would see Vera’s name on a list and shuffle him to the front of an imaginary line of wannabe citizens and say, ‘Oh, I know that guy, he was a pretty good wrestler in Cuba!’ Just not how it works. 

He still got to wrestle occasionally, even during his first year stateside. What Vera could do on a mat, his verifiable skills, were the furthest thing from a secret. Either through direct competition, live go’s at camps, or the everyday banter which has a habit of generating magnanimous claims relative to one’s athletic viability, Vera’s looming presence as a potential Team USA representative was still the kind of item that elicited whispers, not shouts. No one knew when they would have to actually deal with him in a domestic event of consequence; and since that always seemed to appear way off into the future, hardly anyone in and around his weight range bothered to lose sleep over it. 

And now, all of those discussions are bereft of hypothetical nuance. 

Vera is not just here. He is, in fact, here.

Prior to the US Nationals last month in Iowa, few outside of the Greco-Roman community paid much attention to Vera’s status. As soon as that event concluded, the opposite became true. Despite Vera’s sporadic performances over the past three years, for better or worse, it is what he accomplished most recently that altered the dynamic. Vera not only earned his first National crown, to do so he defeated two-time World Team member Joe Rau in rather lopsided fashion. Vera had also snared a win against Rau at the ‘19 Dave Schultz. But that victory, which occurred in the semifinals, was mere filler for a footnote. A National final triumph at the expense of someone like Rau is an entirely different deal. Wrestling fans across the country saw their antennae raised over that one. 

As it currently stands, Vera isn’t entered in the Olympic Trials. The first hurdle he has to clear is receiving, once and for all, his US passport. When that happens, he becomes eligible for March’s Last Chance OT Qualifier, a tournament most expect him to win. The Trial bracket itself, should he indeed qualify, is not a shoo-in. Three-time World Team member Patrick Martinez and ‘15 Military World silver Jon Anderson (who has gone back-and-forth with Vera in competition) are both severe obstacles. There are others, too. It’s just that, for the moment at least, many are struggling to ruminate about anything other than how Vera looked during his October bout versus Rau, and what that might mean should they meet again with a trip to Tokyo on the line. 

It’s a good story. Too long to do it justice in what is supposed to be a preview of one match. 

Know what else is a good story? How for the past two weeks, G’Angelo Hancock has wanted nothing other than to cave Vera’s head inside out. 

Hancock

It’s not entirely personal. Hancock likes Vera. As mentioned previously, the pair have worked together plenty of times at various camps and they respect each other’s talents and abilities. And because we’re talking, essentially, about two USA Greco athletes, there is no choice but to accept a kinship of sorts. That’s how the US program is: regardless if athletes have love for one another or otherwise, there aren’t enough of them to go around. Bonding is almost a necessity. It has to be this way. Friends or not, rivals or not, same weight class or not -- it is a family dynamic that functions unlike any other, perhaps on the planet. 

So, Hancock has an affinity for Vera, and that’s great. And if they happen upon one another at a camp following Saturday night’s proceedings, they will certainly mesh very well just like they have before. 

Saturday night isn’t a live session at a camp. It is a competition. To Hancock, competition represents vicious battle, and his mind these days doesn’t have a whole ton of room to focus on whatever niceties about the opposition most feel compelled to observe. 

Sportsmanship is super. It is also meaningless if it trumps the desire to break the other guy into pieces. They aren’t in Austin to shake hands and “put on a show”, at least Hancock isn’t. He flew into town to send a message --  to Vera and the audience at large -- that if everyone is going to gum about who the best upper-weight in the country is, such talk will begin and end with his name involved. 

But does any of that mean Hancock is supposed to steamroll Vera? Hardly. Vera is beholden to myriad physical and tactical assets for which Hancock has to account, lest he find himself in serious, serious trouble. 

Particulars

G'angelo Hancock

Alan Vera

This bout will occur at a catchweight of 103 kilograms, an amenable range for both athletes. 

On the Feet

Technique in terms of slickness and tempo favors Vera, but angles and attacks go in Hancock’s direction. Vera is a little linear, but seizes control often with two-on-one’s, and like most upper-weights, is more concerned with sneaking around the back off of drags, throw-by’s, etc. He has thrown from this position, too. He’ll take what he can get without forcing the issue and exposing vulnerabilities, of which there aren’t many because his footwork is sound.

Vera will play off of angles, that’s true, but Hancock negotiates entries to the side as well as any other 97 on Earth. In the past, which is to say, at Junior, Hancock could go straight ahead and wrap for bodylocks. Against higher-level opposition, that hasn’t been the case. So, he has adapted. Hancock will use push-pull to create requisite counter-pressure when necessary, and apply that towards working his angles. And it is those angles from which he can move into scoring position. 

It’s not a size thing, but a personality one. If there is going to be a throw, or multiple throws, that is Hancock’s game. Vera’s quickness and reliance upon change in dynamics might lead to scores, but chances are those would be takedowns or step-outs rather than a bomb.

Par Terre Top

This is a deadlock. Vera is cleaner. A one-motion side-lift is hard to come by, and he’s got one. It is a thing of beauty. Can he load Hancock to his core in a live setting? He can, but Hancock is used to defending against larger opposition, so at best this is a wash until the opportunity presents itself. Vera’s gut is a bilateral proposition in that he can go either direction if he has to. It’s feel for him. But he has more power towards the right usually. 

Hancock is versatile, too. He likes the lift. He has also added an assortment of other turns and variations. His gut, provided he doesn’t take his lock for granted, is seamless so long as he remembers his legs. Even against what will presumably be a lighter opponent, Hancock’s legs create the “get on a roll” motion that has resulted in so many tech wins. Will he try to go big here? Probably, but a collapse gut also works well for him. 

Par Terre Bottom 

The equalizer. Vera’s defense is excellent for the first heave or two, and usually that’s all an opponent gets from top PT, depending on the officiating. He won’t rush to move, and instead will wait for where he thinks the lock direction is headed. Vera doesn’t want to gamble here and bottom out mindlessly. He wants rapid response data before he definitively sets up his defensive posture. 

Hancock has not been turned on US soil in quite a while, but giving up turns internationally is tough to bypass at 97 and against the scope of opposition to which he has become accustomed. The best part about Hancock’s PT defense is that if it is successful, it is often successful immediately. He very rarely goes over after an adversary has already exhausted an attempt. There have been a few cases to the contrary, but again, those opponents are larger than Vera and these instances have occurred overseas where officials will sometimes give the top guy an awful lot of time to create a score. 

Conclusion

This match-up is give or take on multiple fronts. They aren’t precisely evenly-matched but share strengths in the three most important phases of Greco competition. Hancock exhibits more power in everything he does, which could negate many of Vera’s decisions with regard to movement in the pummel. If Hancock doesn’t want to settle into a specific position, it’s hard to picture him struggling to fight his way into a more advantageous spot. 

Shape matters. Endurance matters. For all of the talk about athletes contending with decreased availability to train, one thing no one wants to see or hear about is how one of these two isn’t at peak capacity. We all know these are difficult times for athletes. All we’re asking is for them to bring it as much as possible and fight it out like professionals. 

That is, make no mistake, important to acknowledge. Vera’s attrition is going to be a bulletpoint and the deciding factor in his ability to affect the outcome. Even if they are close in weight Saturday night, Hancock is still the larger individual and will wear on Vera throughout the course of their time together. If this match reaches the second period and the score is close, Vera will need to survive what is likely to by then become a brutal but prolonged pummel game. Such a development would strongly favor Hancock. 

This match has never happened before, and unless something changes down the road, we will never see it again. These cards are intended to offer wrestling “superfights”, and Hancock/Vera more than meets that description. Two World-class competitors, each at the primes of their respective careers, all while representing a discipline that keeps coming ever closer to mainstream wrestling acceptance in America? Nothing is on the line, yet everything is. How could you not want to watch something like that?

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