Kamal Bey (82 kg, Army/WCAP) might have had to work for it in the second round but the result still translated to his earning the right to appear in a Senior World Championships for a fifth time.
The best-of-three finals for Group B (82, 87, 97, & 130 kg) at the 2026 World Team Trials began at 6:00pm local time from Las Vegas, Nevada (9:00pm ET) and streamed live on FLOWrestling.
The opening round of the four finals series took place earlier on Saturday with Bey, ’24 U23 World silver Beka Melelashvili (87 kg, NYAC), Timothy Young (97 kg, Army/WCAP), and Cohlton Schultz (130 kg, Atreus WC) all coming away with wins leading up to the evening session. Bey downed Fritz Schierl (NYAC/Minnesota Storm) in two straight, just as Schultz swept ’18 World silver and oft domestic rival Adam Coon (NYAC/Cliff Keen) via pair of decisions. But the other two series necessitated a third and decisive match as Young was defeated by Arian Khosravy (CA) while Melelashvili was decisioned by fellow reigning World Team member Payton Jacobson (NYAC/NTS).
Melelashvili vs. Jacobson
24-year-old Melelashvili was able to convert a gutwrench following passivity in the first period of Match 1 against Jacobson to earn a 3-1 nod. In Match 2 earlier tonight, it was Jacobson who found success thanks to his own from par terre top. He had locked around Melelashvili and opted for a misdirection gut that aided in his collecting the 4-3 decision that kept their series alive. As is so often the case, one pivotal sequence determined the outcome. Midway through the first in Match 3, Melelashvili uncorked a four-point headlock; Jacobson, also 24, instantly popped out and covered Melelashvili on the back-end of the sequence to net a point in return but the score was 4-2 for the opposite corner. The officials called Jacobson for passivity in the second period, and he defended the follow-up from par terre bottom, but Melelashvili held on through the remainder to triumph by a score of 5-2 and take the series two matches to one.
Melelashvili made his first Senior World Team in ’25 after getting past Jesse Porter (NYAC) via injury default in what was an abbreviated series. As for Jacobson, Saturday marked the first time in three tries that he has come up short in a Senior-level best-of-three following tournament victories at both the ’24 Olympic Trials and last year’s World Team Trials, both of which saw him take on multi-time World Team member Spencer Woods (Army/WCAP).
Bey & Young
As reported previously, Bey caught Schierl in the first period of Match 1 at 82 kg when the Storm wrestler attempted a reverse lift, only to have Bey reverse position and catch Schierl on his back for a fall. Match 2 was significantly tighter. Schierl benefited from the first passive call but Bey displayed staunch defense from bottom PT. A step-out for Bey followed prior to the end of the first period to give him the lead on criteria. The passives flipped in the second to give Bey a 2-1 advantage, though Schierl could not be budged. Later in the frame, Bey zeroed in on a body attack that he converted into a takedown to update the board to 4-1, which capped the scoring. Bey, 28, is now a five-time World Team member (’18, ’22, ’23, and ’25) as well as an Olympian from ’24.
Young’s series against talented prospect Khosravy started with a bang. In their opening round affair, Khosravy had just taken a 5-2 lead late in the first period due to a takedown and his follow-up gutwrench was thwarted by Young, who stepped over and held Khosravy in place to record a stunning pin. Match 2 was drastically different, as Khosravy piled on points — including two takedowns and a trapped-arm gutwrench from par terre — to emerge victorious 8-2. That set the table for one more showdown.
Not long into the first period of Match 3, Khosravy was dinged for passive, giving Young the opportunity to perhaps make an early dent. He did much more than that, as it were. From top PT, he locked for a lift and hoisted Khosravy up and over to acquire four-points. However, the Army corner felt as though Khosravy might have committed a defensive leg foul. Upon review, it was discerned that a caution was indeed in order, thus distributing to Young two more points along with another chance from par terre top. The score had become 6-0 for Army, meaning one more turn would end matters. On the whistle, Young locked a trapped-arm gut and rotated Khosravy once, which was all he needed, and then once more. The match was over, as was the series, and Young had earned his first-ever placement on a US World Team. At the bout’s conclusion, Khosravy was both irate and exasperated regarding the caution that ignited the match-ending sequence.
With Young having secured the spot at 97 kg, Army has four World Team members in ’26: Dalton Roberts (60 kg), Xavier Johnson (63 kg), Bey, and Young.
Schultz Over Coon
Schultz’s win against Coon in Match 1 was not entirely bereft of suspense. Although Schultz spent most the bout unthreatened, Coon did seem to re-engage momentum as the bout drew to a close by managing a takedown. Schultz had pocketed the 4-3 decision but, given their prolonged history at this juncture, the concept of a three-match series was not difficult to imagine.
But that would not happen on this evening. Schultz coaxed Coon off the line for a point to settle in and soon after engaged an off-balance that gave way to a takedown. Coon defended from bottom and a reset was ordered. More snug mini skirmishes arose before passivity was introduced to the equation with Coon the one knocked. From top, Schultz looked to work for a lock but Coon had not cleared his right arm. A caution was levied on Coon, providing two additional points to Schultz, whose lead had expanded to 6-0. Schultz could not muster offense from top on the restart, and there was no further scoring through the remainder of either the period of the bout itself. Like Bey, Schultz, who turned 25 in September, is a Senior World Teamer for a fifth time (’21, ’22, ’23, and ’25).
Notes:
- There are only three athletes on the ’26 roster who also competed at the ’25 Worlds: Bey (77 kg last year), Melelashvili (82 kg last year), and Schultz.
- Three wrestlers are World Team members for the first time: Otto Black (63 kg, NYAC), Joel Adams (77 kg, Beaver Dam RTC), and Young.
- In addition to Bey, Melelashvili, and Schultz, three other wrestlers were also World Team members previously: Max Nowry (55 kg, NYAC/IRTC), Roberts, Johnson, and Benji Peak (72 kg, NYAC/Position).
- The first competition featuring the ’26 US World Team will be the Pan-Am Championships in Coralville, IA early next month.
2026 World Team Trials
Group B Finals Results
82 kg: Kamal Bey (Army/WCAP) vs. Fritz Schierl (NYAC/Minnesota Storm) 2 matches to 0
Match 1: Bey def. Schierl via fall
Match 2: Bey def. Schierl 4-1
87 kg: Beka Melelashvili (NYAC) def. Payton Jacobson (NYAC/NTS) 2 matches to 1
Match 1: Melalashvili def. Jacobson 3-1
Match 2: Jacobson def. Melelashvili 4-3
Match 3: Melelashvili def. Jacobson 5-2
97 kg: Arian Khosravy (CA) vs. Timothy Young (Army/WCAP)
Match 1: Young def. Khosravy via fall
Match 2: Khosravy def. Young 8-2
Match 3: Young def. Khosravy 10-0, TF
130 kg: Cohlton Schultz (Atreus WC) vs. Adam Coon (NYAC/Cliff Keen)
Match 1: Schultz def. Coon 4-3
Match 2: Schultz def. Coon 6-0
2026 USA Greco-Roman World Team
55 kg: Max Nowry (NYAC/IRTC)
60 kg: Dalton Roberts (Army/WCAP)
63 kg: Xavier Johnson (Army/WCAP)
67 kg: Otto Black (NYAC)
72 kg: Benji Peak (NYAC/Position)
77 kg: Joel Adams (Beaver Dam RTC)
82 kg: Kamal Bey (Army/WCAP)
87 kg: Beka Melelashvili (NYAC)
97 kg: Timothy Young (Army/WCAP)
130 kg: Cohlton Schultz (Atreus WC)
Full 3rd Place/National Team Results
55 kg: Billy Sullivan (Army/WCAP) def. Kenny Crosby (NYAC/NTS) via forfeit
60 kg: Jace Koelzer (Position) def. Paxton Creese (NYAC/Minnesota Storm) 3-3 (criteria)
63 kg: Carter Nogle (Air Force RTC) def. Pierson Manville (Southwest WC) via fall
67 kg: Duncan Nelson (Air Force/WCAP) def. Dylan Gregerson (NYAC/UVRTC) 7-5
72 kg: Brett Back (Position) def. Aliaksandr Kikiniou Jr. (NYAC) 6-2
77 kg: Britton Holmes (Army/WCAP) def. RaVaughn Perkins (NYAC) 9-0, TF
82 kg: Adrian Artsisheuskiy (NYAC) def. James Foy (NYAC/Minnesota Storm) 9-0, TF
87 kg: Zac Braunagel (NYAC/Navy WC) def. Mike Altomer (NYAC/Curby 3-Style) 9-1, TF
97 kg: Ryder Rogotzke (TMWC/Ohio RTC) def. Quinlan Morgan (Jackrabbit WC) 8-4
130 kg: Aden Attao (NYAC) def. Courtney Denzel Freeman (Marines) 3-3 (criteria)
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