Match of the Day: Hassan Yazdani and Aaron Pico wrestle in the 2014 Junior World finals
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by USA Wrestling
Two young stars collided in the 2014 Junior World Championships when Aaron Pico of the United States and Hassan Yazdani of Iran wrestled for gold. At the time, Pico was a 2013 Cadet World champion and Yazdani was a 2011 Cadet World runner-up and a 2014 Junior Asian champion.
After this match, Pico would take bronze at the 2015 Junior World Championships and finish runner-up at the 2016 Olympic Team Trials to Frank Molinaro, who would go on to finish fifth at the Rio Games. Pico then transitioned from wrestling to mixed martial arts and signed with Bellator, where he currently competes, sporting a 6-3 record.
Yazdani finished runner-up at the 2015 World Championships at 70 kg and would take gold at the Rio Olympics at 74 kg. He claimed World titles at 86 kg in 2017 and 2019. In 2018, Yazdani took bronze at the World Championships after falling to David Taylor in the opening round. Taylor would go on to win gold.
Watch Pico and Yazdani wrestle below:
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