Day two in Nur-Sultan features the first Olympic weights of the 2019 World Championship. Three weights will be in action with deep, large Greco fields for 67kg, 87kg, and 97kg vying to not only earn medals, but also their nation's qualifying spot for the 2020 Olympic Games. 

67kg - Ellis Coleman vs. Meirzan Shermakhanbe (KAZ)

Entering his fifth Worlds/Olympics, Coleman is still looking for his first medal. He was 11th last year and draws returning Bronze medalist Shermakhanbe who is the #4 seed. Coleman lost in repechage to Sylla (FRA) last year before Shermankhanbe teched Sylla in the Bronze bout. 

Top Half Analysis: 

The top seed is Russia's returning World Champ Adam Surkov who beat Ellis in the Round of 16 last year. His top quad doesn't offer anything in the way of upset potential and, in fact the entire top half, while filled with experience, lacks any other recent World medalists outside of Shermakhanbe. In other words, you'd be pretty safe penciling Surkov into the semi's.

The second half of the top bracket (with Ellis) is better than Surkov's but not by much. Fredrik Bjerrehuus (DEN) was 7th at Worlds last year. David Dimitrov (BUL) won this year's Corneaunu.

All in all, it's a relatively clear picture, and about as good a half bracket as Ellis could hope for. 

Bottom Half Analysis: 

The bottom half is nothing short of obscene. Han-soo Ryu (KOR) ii the #2 seed and the 2017 World Champ. But his bottom quad is anything but friendly. In the second round he'll have Rio Bronze Rasul Chunavev (AZE). Then Yueksel (TUR), who won this year's Euro bracket with Surkov in it, awaits.

Three-time World Champion Frank Staebler (GER) has dropped to 67. He's among the world's pound-for-pound best but doesn't have the rankings points to be seeded. So he's thrown in the mix and will likely have a Round of 16 date with Cuba's Rio Gold Medalist Ismael Borrerro Molina. 

And that's just the far bottom. In the third quad, Sahakyan (POL) who was Bronze last year, sits as the #3 seed. He should be clear to the quarters in a match with either Euro Bronze Karen Aslanyan (ARM) or the winner between two former U23 World Champs Shmagi Bolkvadze (GEO) or Mohammed Elsayed (EGY).

Best Early Bout: Round of 32 - Ryu (KOR) vs. Chunayev (AZE)

Best Early Bout: Round of 16 - Staebler (GER) vs. Molina (CUB)

87kg - Joe Rau vs. Kumar Sunil (IND)

The bad news is that Rau is up top with #1 seed and 3x World finalist Zhan Beleniuk (SWE). The good news is that his path to reach him in the quarters is navigable. He should beat Sunil before getting the winner of Nikolai Stadub (BLR) and and Ramon Betschart (SUI), neither of whom medaled at Euro's.

Top Half Analysis: 

Beleniuk should cruise for a while. We about covered the entire top quarter above. The second quad has Islam Abbasov (AZE) as the #4 seed. He lost to Beleniuk in semi's last year and in Euro finals this year. They appear to be on a collision course yet again, provided he can get through Denis Kudla (GER) in the quarters. Kudla was Bronze in the Euro bracket where Abbasov lost to Beleniuk and the World Silver in 2017 when Beleniuk skipped Worlds.

Bottom Half Analysis: 

The #3 seed is veteran Viktor Lorincz (HUN) who's made a medal match four times and who finished Bronze at Euro Games. He has a nice path to the semi's with just Atabek Azisbekov (KGZ) in his way in R2. Azisbekov lost to Bacsi (HUN) at 82kg in the Bronze bout last year. 

Seeded at the bottom in the 2-slot is Turkey's Metehan Basar, winner of the last two World Championships at 85/87. He beat Beleniuk in finals last year. But he'll be tested early and often with a sneaky good match with Uzbek Rustam Assakalov in the second round followed by Russia's Junior World Champ Aleksander Komarov to get to quarters.

There aren't too many threats in the group to that feeds into Bahar's quarter. Maybe Gregorich of Cuba, who was 7th at Worlds last year.

Best Early Bout: Round of 16 - Assakalov (UZB) vs. Basar (TUR)

97kg - G'Angelo Hancock vs. Nikolai Krysov (UKR)

With finals appearances at Hungarian GP, Pan Ams, and Sassari, Hancock checks in at the #3 seed. His first bout gets him Ukraine's Nikolai Krysov who has good results (he won International Ukraine this year), but who has never wrestled at a World Championships of any kind. His second match will be France's Noumanvi or Norway's Baldauf who were 15h and 10th at Euro's respectively. In short, G has a really nice path to the semi's as no one that filters into him has ever come close to wrestling for a medal.

Top Half Analysis: 

The entire top side is odd in that the outside of the seeds, there are zero consistent performers. The two seeds should cruise.

Top seeded Musa Evloev (RUS) hasn't lost a match in 18 months, which includes beating Milov at Euro's and both Milov and 4x World Champ Artur Aleksanyan at Worlds. He cruises to semi's with no apparent threats in his quarter.

The #4 seed is Mikheil Akajaia (SRB), a returning Bronze.

Bottom Half Analysis: 

The Hancock path takes care of the third quad of the bracket so let's go to the very bottom one which is wicked.

Bulgaria's Kiril Milov has been on a very consistent run, winning Corneanu twice and finishing Silver at Worlds, Euro's (to Evloev), and Zagreb Open in the last 18 months. He's your #2 seed with a bye and likely gets last year's Junior World Champ Saravi (IRI) who is wrestling up a weight. Balasz Kiss (HUN) will likely meet Milov in what will be one of the best matches of R16; he's wrestled for a medal the last two years. Milov beat Kiss in last year's quarters.

Rounding out the quad will be one of the baddest men on the planet in Artur Aleksanyan (ARM) who won four straight titles from 2014 to 2017 before taking 5th last year. He'll start in a rematch of this year's Euro finals - with Cenk Ildem (TUR) who was Bronze in Rio, losing only to...you guessed it...Aleksanyan.

Best Early Bout: Round 1 - Aleksanyan (ARM) vs. Hrabovik (BLR)

Best Early Bout: Round of 16 - Kiss (HUN) vs. Milov (BUL)