World Team Trials preview at 85 kg/187 lbs. in Greco-Roman

Ben Provisor at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Photo by John Sachs, tech-fall.com

Two-time Olympian Ben Provisor returns to defend his title as the best in the nation at 85 kg/187 lbs. next week in Las Vegas at the World Team Trials.

 

A three-time Junior World Team member, Provisor has been impressive in both his age-group and Senior careers. However, he has yet to make a Senior World Team.

All that could change as he is coming off his second-consecutive Olympic showing at the 2016 Olympics in Rio and several solid outings in other international tournaments.

In February, Provisor earned his second Dave Schultz Memorial International championship, coming back from a falling short at the 2017 U.S. Senior Nationals in December, where he took third as the No. 1 seed.

He followed up his 2017 Dave Schultz title with a fifth-place finish at the respected Grand Prix Zagreb Open in Croatia in March.

Provisor is poised to make a run at the World Team spot, but there are a few standing in his way.

Two-time World Team member Patrick Martinez is up a weight from his usual 80 kg/176 lbs. and seeks to make his third-straight World Team.  

Recently announcing his move up to 85 kg for good, Martinez won the 2016 World Team spot at 80 kg, giving him the opportunity to represent the U.S. at the World Championships in Budapest, Hungary, in December.

In addition to making the World Team, Martinez, who trains at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo., secured four international bronze medals from the Pan-American Championships, Spanish Grand Prix, Hungarian Grand Prix and Pytlasinski International in 2016.

This won’t be his first attempt at a World Team spot at 85 kg. Last June, Martinez beat out Khymba Johnson in a best-of-three finals series for the 85 kg University World Team spot. Unfortunately, the U.S. did not compete at the University World Championships.

Don’t count Johnson out. He could create some chaos at 85 kg as he’s done in the past.

In December, the Northern Michigan athlete had an exciting road to the U.S. Senior Nationals finals, stunning Provisor in the semifinals, 3-2. He met up with Kevin Radford in the finals, where he fell, 4-1, to walk away with silver.

It was his second top-four finish at the U.S. Open, with his first coming in 2015, where he finished fourth.

To secure his first international medal, Johnson finished third at the Dave Schultz Memorial International in February.

Greco newcomer Kevin Radford has the confidence to win the Trials, capturing the 2017 U.S. Senior Nationals championship last December in Vegas, improving on his fifth-place finish in 2016.

In his short Greco career, Radford, a former Arizona State wrestler, has made big jumps as a part of Sunkist Kids.

Like Johnson, Radford earned his first international medal earlier this year, claiming silver at the Dave Schultz Memorial.

Another name to look out for is WCAP’s Lucas Sheridan, the 2017 Armed Forces champion and 2016 Armed Forces runner-up.

With limited Senior international experience, he owns a bronze medal from the 2016 Bill Farrell International.

Sheridan is also a two-time Junior World Team member, who recorded a top-10 finish at the 2012 Junior World Championships in Pattaya, Thailand.

He is on the verge of achieving success on the national level, putting together fourth-place finishes at the 2016 and 2017 U.S. Senior Nationals. This year, he fell to Provisor in the third-place match.

Other notable qualifiers include Dan Olsen, Ryan Hope and Jeff Palmeri.

College names to look out for at the weight include two-time NCAA champion and Junior bronze medalist Gabe Dean of Cornell, two-time All-American Kyle Crutchmer of Oklahoma State and Matt Reed of Oklahoma.

The World Team spot at 85 kg will be determined April 29, along with 59 kg, 71 kg and 75 kg at the 2017 U.S. Greco-Roman World Team Trials in Las Vegas.

2017 World Team Trials qualifiers at 85 kg/187 lbs.
’16 Olympian – Ben Provisor, Colorado Springs, Colo. (New York AC)
’16 University Nationals runner-up – Khymbahky Johnson, Sacramento, Calif. (New York AC/NMU-OTS)
’16 Bill Farrell medalist – Lucas Sheridan, Colorado Springs, Colo. (U.S. Army WCAP)
’17 U.S. Senior Nationals champion – Kevin Radford, Fayetteville, N.C. (Sunkist Kids)
’17 U.S. Senior Nationals fifth place – Dan Olsen, Algoquin, Ill. (Thunder Wrestling)
’17 U.S. Senior Nationals sixth place – Jeff Palmeri, Rochester, N.Y. (New York AC)
’17 U.S. Senior Nationals seventh place – Ryan Hope, Carol Stream, Ill. (New York AC)
’17 Armed Forces Championships runner-up – Sherwin Severin, Cheyenne, Wyo. (U.S. Air Force)
’17 Armed Forces Championships third place – Vaughn Monreal-Berner, Camp Lejeune, N.C. (U.S. Marines)

*NOTE: 2017 NCAA Division I qualifiers, ’17 NCAA Division II All-Americans, ’17 NCAA Division III All-Americans, ’17 NAIA All-Americans, ’17 Junior College All-Americans and ’17 NCWA finalists are all qualified for Greco-Roman World Team Trials

2017 U.S. Senior Nationals results at 85 kg/187 lbs.
1st - Kevin Radford (Sunkist Kids) dec. Khymba Johnson (NYAC), 4-1
3rd - Ben Provisor (New York AC) dec. Lucas Sheridan (U.S. Army WCAP), 3-1
5th - Dan Olsen (Unattached) tech fall Jeff (New York AC), 8-0
7th - Ryan Hope (New York Athletic Club) tech fall Austin Chaon (NMU-OTS), 8-0 

2016 Olympic Team Trials results at 85 kg/187 lbs.
1st - Ben Provisor (Colorado Springs, Colo./New York AC) dec. Jacob Clark (Minnesota Storm), two matches to none
Provisor dec Clark, 2-0
Provisor pin Clark, 2:30
3rd– Hayden Zillmer (Crosby, Minn./Crosby Hay) dec. Patrick Martinez (Colorado Springs, Colo./Army WCAP), 2-1