A year ago, Team USA brought back a nice chunk of the Cadet Freestyle World Championship hardware, including gold medals from Kurt McHenry, Yianni Diakomihalis, and Gable Steveson. Diakomihalis and Steveson both won their second straight titles last year, and now McHenry will be looking to do the same.

The 42kg champion is registered to compete at 46kg at this weekend's Cadet World Team Trials in Akron, Ohio, in hopes of making his second world team. Also returning to this year's cadet tournament is bronze medal winner Travis Wittlake.

While both McHenry and Wittlake are front-runners to make the world team once again this year, it will definitely not be easy as they are both in weight classes that are riddled with top talent.

42kg

Blaine Brenner, WI
Blake Noonan, MI
Jett Strickenberger, CO
Kase Mauger, ID
Chance Lamer, OR
Cole Skinner, OH
Drake Ayala, IA

Commentary: There are plenty of first-year cadets here who are looking to make the world team. Kase Mauger is the lone returner this year after placing seventh a season ago. Mauger and fellow Fargo All-American Cole Skinner are the front-runners in this weight class. Mauger was eighth in Fargo last year, while Skinner was fourth at the same weight (88lbs). Outside of Mauger and Skinner, the other two guys to keep an eye on are Chance Lamer and Jett Strickenberger.

Holmes' picks: 1. Skinner  2. Mauger  3. Strickenberger  4. Lamer
Smalls' picks: 1. Skinner  2. Mauger  3. Lamer   4. Ayala

46kg

Kurt McHenry, VA
Andrew Chambral, MI
Jeremiah Reno, MO
Brendan Chaowanapibool, WA
Cullan Schreiver, IA
Paxton Creese, MN
Wyatt Yapoujian, CO
Carter Young, OK
Dylan Ragusin, IL
Jacob Moran, IN
Gary Steen, PA
Ryan Crookham, PA
Jacob Moran, IN
Richard Figueroa, CA

Commentary: This weight is seriously loaded. Last year, McHenry and Reno met in the best-of-three finals, with McHenry taking the series 2-1. Reno defeated Chambral a year ago in the semifinals before finishing as the runner-up. Reno was also the Fargo champ, while Chambral finished fifth. Chaowanapibool is a bit of an ironman. In Fargo, he wrestled in both the cadet and junior freestyle and Greco divisions and claimed All-American status in three of the four with runner-up finishes in both the cadet and junior Greco divisions. Schreiver is a Fargo champ and was probably one of the most talked-about junior high wrestlers coming up. Creese is all about throws, and if you're not careful, you'll be flying through the air before you know it. Ragusin impressed in Fargo as well, coming away with a Greco title and freestyle third.

Holmes' picks: 1. McHenry  2. Reno  3. Ragusin  4. Latona
Smalls' picks: 1. McHenry  2. Schreiver  3. Reno  4. Young

50kg

Anthony Clark, NJ
Caden McCrary, GA
Julian Tagg, OH
Lucas Byrd, OH
Trevor Mastrogiovanni, NJ
Riley Weir, OK
Steele Dias, NV
Matt Ramos, IL 
Hunter Lewis, WI
Sam Latona, AL
Angelo Rini, OH

Commentary: McCrary was sixth at 46kg last year. Byrd and Tagg have had some battles in folkstyle including a close one at Ironman won by Tagg. Mastrogiovanni showed off his freestyle chops at the World Classic, where he was tossing guys all around. He will be an interesting guy to watch. Clark is a strong competitor who had a pretty nice freshman season. Sam Latona opened some eyes in Fargo, so keep him on your radar. I've never been to a tournament where I wasn't impressed with how Byrd performs. He's got some highlight-reel throws, which will also be on display during the Greco tournament as well and seems to get tougher each time out. I'm expecting him to make the finals with another hard-fought battle with Tagg on the way there. There's something about Mastrogiovanni that has me looking to him to have a breakout performance.

Holmes' picks: 1. Mastrogiovanni   2. Byrd   3. Tagg  4. Latona
Smalls' picks: 1. Clark  2. Mastrogiovanni  3. Tagg  4. Latona

54kg

Brody Teske, IA
Chris Cannon, NJ
Gabe Tagg, OH
Robert Howard, NJ
Ridge Lovett, ID
Justin Hoyle, WA
Aaron Cashman, MN
Ben Kamali, MI
Gabriel Hixenbaugh, AL
Jakob Camacho, CT
Eric Barnett, WI
Joey Otero, NM
Nick Masters, GA
Christian Nunez, CA

Commentary: What do I need to say that hasn't been said about this group of guys. I think that this will be one of the most exciting weights to watch because of how each one of these guys likes to attack and really mix it up. Howard is one of my favorites. Overlooking him is never smart. And Teske, well, when he's on, he's a nightmare. Lovett was a double Fargo finalist last year, winning Greco with a win over Byrd and taking second to Julian Tagg in freestyle. Cashman is the returning world team member, but it's going to be tough for him to repeat again this year. He relied a lot on his defense last year to earn the spot, which ultimately worked out for him, but that could be tough to duplicate against his field of attackers.

Holmes' picks: 1. Teske 2. Tagg  3. Cashman  4. Lovett
Smalls' picks: 1. Cashman  2. Tagg  3. Camacho  4. Teske

58kg

Andrew Alirez, CO
Beau Bartlett, PA
Jesse Vasquez, CA
Nick Raimo, NJ
Carson Manville, MN
Jordan Decatur, OH
Alex Cruz, WA
Bryce Andonian, OH
Josh Saunders, MO
Matt Lee, IN
Ryan Moore, KY
Job Greenwood, CO

Commentary: The list may not be long, but it's tough as nails. Four-time Fargo champ Nick Raimo is the guy to beat here. But we all know what Jordan Decatur is bringing and it can be very deadly. In my opinion, Beau Bartlett isn't far behind, and neither is Carson Manville from what we saw at the World Classic when he met Raimo. Manville's staunch defense was pretty tough for Raimo to breakdown. These bouts are going to be close, and I am really hoping that Raimo opens up more with some attacks of his own. But I will say this, beware of his head pinch. He did some serious damage with it last year in Akron. Saunder is always so close. He's right there, but he's still growing fundamentally.

Holmes' picks: 1. Decatur 2. Raimo 3. Bartlett 4. Manville
Smalls' picks: 1. Raimo  2. Decatur 3. Vasquez 4. Alirez

How To Watch

ON TV: Now available on Roku & Apple TV
STREAMING: Available only on FloWrestling. JOIN NOW.