Complete America's Cup Preview
Complete America's Cup Preview
America's Cup goes down on Wednesday and Thursday, February 10-11. Here's everything you need to know about this premier men's freestyle event.
On February 10 and 11, many of the nation's top freestylers and a few high level Canadian wrestlers will meet in a six-team dual tournament. Day 1 will feature two pools which will set the stage for a bracketed tournament that will take place on day 2. Here's a rundown of what to expect from this event.
Watch the 2021 America's Cup LIVE on FloWrestling
Wednesday & Thursday, February 10-11
The Teams
Here are the rosters for each of the six teams that will compete in the 2021 America's Cup. All six teams are named for trailblazing Black wrestling legends.
Team Kenny Monday
57 kg - Frank Perrelli, Titan Mercury WC/ Lehigh Valley RTC
65 kg - Yianni Diakomihalis, Titan Mercury WC/Spartan Combat RTC
74 kg - Quincy Monday, Sunkist Kids/Tar Heel WC
86 kg - Ryan Epps, Gopher WC
97 kg - Austin Schafer, New York AC
125 kg - Shawn Streck, Titan Mercury WC/Cowboy RTC
Alternate 65 kg - Josh Saunders, Titan Mercury WC/Spartan Combat RTC
Team Lloyd Keaser
57 kg - Josh Kramer, Sunkist Kids
65 kg - Evan Henderson, Titan Mercury WC/Spartan Combat RTC
74 kg - Chad Walsh, Wrecking Crew Academy LLC
86 kg - Jonathan Loew, Spartan Combat RTC
97 kg - Mike Macchiavello, Titan Mercury WC/Wolfpack RTC
125 kg - Nick Gwiazdowski, Titan Mercury WC/Wolfpack RTC
Alternate 86 kg - Chris Foca, Spartan Combat RTC
Team Lee Kemp
57 kg - Zach Sanders, Gopher WC
65 kg - Mitch McKee, Gopher WC
74 kg - Jasmit Phulka, Canada/Cyclone RTC
86 kg - Gabe Dean, Titan Mercury WC/Spartan Combat RTC
97 kg - Hayden Zillmer, Gopher WC
125 kg - Tanner Hall, Sunkist Kids
Alternate 86 kg - Max Dean, Titan Mercury WC/Spartan Combat RTC
Team Bobby Douglas
57 kg - Vito Arujau, Titan Mercury WC/Spartan Combat RTC
65 kg - Nahshon Garrett, Titan Mercury WC/Southeast RTC
74 kg - Elroy Perkin, Gopher WC
86 kg - Brett Pfarr, Gopher WC
97 kg - Scott Boykin, Titan Mercury WCSpartan Combat RTC
125 kg - Dom Bradley, Sunkist Kids/Tiger Style WC
Alternate 57 kg - Guesseppe Rea Villarroel, Ecuador/Lehigh Valley RTC
Team Simon Roberts
57 kg - Daniel DeShazer, Gopher WC
65 kg - Pat Lugo, Titan Mercury WC/Hawkeye WC
74 kg - Evan Wick, Titan Mercury WC/Wisconsin RTC
86 kg - Mark Hall, Titan Mercury WC/Pennsylvania RTC
97 kg - Ben Honis, Titan Mercury WC/Pennsylvania RTC
125 kg - Garrett Ryan, Sunkist Kids
Alternate 74 kg - Jevon Balfour, Canada/Spartan Combat RTC
Team Carl Adams
57 kg - Sean Russell, Gopher WC
65 kg - Ethan Lizak, New York AC/PRTC
74 kg - Josh Shields, Sunkist Kids
86 kg - Muhamed McBryde, New York AC/USOPTC
97 kg - J'den Cox, Titan Mercury WC/USOPTC
125 kg - Tony Nelson, Gopher WC
Alternate 74 kg - Julian Ramirez, Spartan Combat RTC
Pool Competition
During day 1 of competition, we'll see teams 1, 2, and 3 in pool A and teams 4, 5, and 6 in pool B. If each team uses all their starters, here are the pool matchups we can expect:
Team 1 vs Team 2
The biggest matchup in dual #1 looks to be a showdown between Spartan Combat teammates Yianni Diakomihalis and Evan Henderson. That bout could decide the dual. The two biggest favorites in this opening dual are Nick Gwiazdowski and Mike Macchiavello who will take on Shawn Streck and Austin Schafer respectively.
57 kg - Frank Perrelli, Titan Mercury WC/ Lehigh Valley RTC vs Josh Kramer, Sunkist Kids
65 kg - Yianni Diakomihalis, Titan Mercury WC/Spartan Combat RTC vs Evan Henderson, Titan Mercury WC/Spartan Combat RTC
74 kg - Quincy Monday, Sunkist Kids/Tar Heel WC vs Chad Walsh, Wrecking Crew Academy LLC
86 kg - Ryan Epps, Gopher WC vs Jonathan Loew, Spartan Combat RTC
97 kg - Austin Schafer, New York AC vs Mike Macchiavello, Titan Mercury WC/Wolfpack RTC
125 kg - Shawn Streck, Titan Mercury WC/Cowboy RTC vs Nick Gwiazdowski, Titan Mercury WC/Wolfpack RTC
Yianni's victory over Olympic gold medalist Vladimer Khinchegashvili at the 2021 Henri Deglane
Team 1 vs Team 3
It will be interesting to see what Canadian Jasmit Phulka brings to the table. It appears as though Team 1 may be the favorite at the bottom three weights while Team 3 looks poised to take the top two. Phulka is a two-time World Team member Canada. He'll see Quincy Monday who's still fresh on the senior level scene for the US. The 74 kg matchup could be the key.
57 kg - Frank Perrelli, Titan Mercury WC/ Lehigh Valley RTC vs Zach Sanders, Gopher WC
65 kg - Yianni Diakomihalis, Titan Mercury WC/Spartan Combat RTC vs Mitch McKee, Gopher WC
74 kg - Quincy Monday, Sunkist Kids/Tar Heel WC vs Jasmit Phulka, Canada/Cyclone RTC
86 kg - Ryan Epps, Gopher WC vs Gabe Dean, Titan Mercury WC/Spartan Combat RTC
97 kg - Austin Schafer, New York AC vs Hayden Zillmer, Gopher WC
125 kg - Shawn Streck, Titan Mercury WC/Cowboy RTC vs Tanner Hall, Sunkist Kids
Team 2 vs Team 3
The key to this matchup just might be a 97 kg showdown between Hayden Zillmer and Mike Macchiavello. Zillmer took their last meeting at the RTC Cup, but Macch one when they battled in 2019 at the World Team Trials. If Mike Macch gets back to his winning ways, Team 2 should be in good shape. This will be another good test of how a less proven American, in this case Chad Walsh, will do against Jasmit Phulka who has competed twice for Canada at the World Championships.
57 kg - Josh Kramer, Sunkist Kids vs Zach Sanders, Gopher WC
65 kg - Evan Henderson, Titan Mercury WC/Spartan Combat RTC vs Mitch McKee, Gopher WC
74 kg - Chad Walsh, Wrecking Crew Academy LLC vs Jasmit Phulka, Canada/Cyclone RTC
86 kg - Jonathan Loew, Spartan Combat RTC vs Gabe Dean, Titan Mercury WC/Spartan Combat RTC
97 kg - Mike Macchiavello, Titan Mercury WC/Wolfpack RTC vs Hayden Zillmer, Gopher WC
125 kg - Nick Gwiazdowski, Titan Mercury WC/Wolfpack RTC vs Tanner Hall, Sunkist Kids
Zillmer and Macchiavello's match from the Quarterfinals of the RTC Cup
Team 4 vs Team 5
The first dual in Pool B should be a good one. Vito Arujau and Nahshon Garrett were opponents at the RTC Cup, but they're teammates here. They'll kick this off against Daniel DeShazer and Pat Lugo respectively. Vito's recent success makes him the favorite, and Lugo's size and power probably give him the edge against Nahshon. Team 5's credeitials at 74 kg and 86 kg make Wick and Hall the favorites over Perkin and Pfarr, but it's quite possible Boykin and Bradley will make this a 3-3 dual.
57 kg - Vito Arujau, Titan Mercury WC/Spartan Combat RTC vs Daniel DeShazer, Gopher WC
65 kg - Nahshon Garrett, Titan Mercury WC/Southeast RTC vs Pat Lugo, Titan Mercury WC/Hawkeye WC
74 kg - Elroy Perkin, Gopher WC vs Evan Wick, Titan Mercury WC/Wisconsin RTC
86 kg - Brett Pfarr, Gopher WC vs Mark Hall, Titan Mercury WC/Pennsylvania RTC
97 kg - Scott Boykin, Titan Mercury WCSpartan Combat RTC vs Ben Honis, Titan Mercury WC/Pennsylvania RTC
125 kg - Dom Bradley, Sunkist Kids/Tiger Style WC vs Garrett Ryan, Sunkist Kids
Team 4 vs Team 6
The 65 kg bout is especially fascinating here as Nahshon Garrett will be making another performance up in weight as he looks to build himself into a contender for the Olympic Trials. He'll see Ethan Lizak who recently knocked off Matt McDonough at FloWrestling 3: Adeline vs Tamyra. If this dual comes down to heavyweight as it very well could, we'll see a rematch of the 2019 Senior Nationals finals. Bradley got the better of that one, but Nelson won when the two met earlier in the year at the US Open.
57 kg - Vito Arujau, Titan Mercury WC/Spartan Combat RTC vs Sean Russell, Gopher WC
65 kg - Nahshon Garrett, Titan Mercury WC/Southeast RTC vs Ethan Lizak, New York AC/PRTC
74 kg - Elroy Perkin, Gopher WC vs Josh Shields, Sunkist Kids
86 kg - Brett Pfarr, Gopher WC vs Muhamed McBryde, New York AC/USOPTC
97 kg - Scott Boykin, Titan Mercury WCSpartan Combat RTC vs J'den Cox, Titan Mercury WC/USOPTC
125 kg - Dom Bradley, Sunkist Kids/Tiger Style WC vs Tony Nelson, Gopher WC
Dom Bradley's narrow victory over Tony Nelson at 2019 Senior Nationals
Team 5 vs Team 6
This dual looks like another potential 3-3 split as Russel, Cox, and Nelson are favored at 57 kg, 97 kg, and 125 kg while Lugo, Wick, and Hall are favored at 65 kg, 74 kg, and 86 kg. While Mark Hall's NCAA and age level freestyle credentials far outweigh Muhamed McBryde's, that match has the potential to be a lot of fun as McBryde has been training regularly with J'den Cox in Colorado Springs since finishing 5th at the 2019 U23 World Championships.
57 kg - Daniel DeShazer, Gopher WC vs Sean Russell, Gopher WC
65 kg - Pat Lugo, Titan Mercury WC/Hawkeye WC vs Ethan Lizak, New York AC/PRTC
74 kg - Evan Wick, Titan Mercury WC/Wisconsin RTC vs Josh Shields, Sunkist Kids
86 kg - Mark Hall, Titan Mercury WC/Pennsylvania RTC vs Muhamed McBryde, New York AC/USOPTC
97 kg - Ben Honis, Titan Mercury WC/Pennsylvania RTC vs J'den Cox, Titan Mercury WC/USOPTC
125 kg - Garrett Ryan, Sunkist Kids vs Tony Nelson, Gopher WC
The Bracket
The duals above are just the ones we know we'll see, but don't forget that these bouts all build toward Thursday's bracketed tournament. The first place finishers in each pool will have a bye to the semis while the second place finisher from each pool will wrestle the third place finisher from the opposite pool in the quarterfinals.
It's worth noting that these teams will be competing for $60,000 in prize money, so the stakes on day 2 are quite a bit higher than they will be on day 1.