The particulars are set for the United States to select over one half of its roster for the World Championships.
The semifinal round for Group A at the 2026 Senior Greco-Roman World Team Trials began at 4:00pm local time from Las Vegas, Nevada (1:00pm ET) and streamed live on FLOWrestling.
Of the 12 athletes who prevailed during Thursday afternoon’s semifinal session, nine are previous finalists. They are:
— Max Nowry (NYAC/IRTC) and Brady Koontz (TMWC/Position) at 55 kg;
— Dalton Roberts (Army/WCAP) and Zane Richards (TMWC/IRTC) at 60;
— Xavier Johnson (63 kg, Army/WCAP);
— Otto Black (NYAC) and Peyton Omania (Orange County RTC) at 67 kg:
— Benji Peak (72 kg; NYAC/Position);
— and Aliaksandr Kikiniou (77 kg; NYAC).
The three competitors who on Friday will be participating in their first World Team Trials finals are Landon Drury (63 kg, NMU/NTS), Peyton Robb (72 kg, NYAC/Nebraska Wrestling TC), and Joel Adams (77 kg, Beaver Dam RTC).
Nowry, Koontz, Roberts, & ‘X’
Nowry’s decision to step back onto the mat was one of the main storylines heading into the tournament and the three-time World Team member displayed little to no rust as he raced through the top side of the 55 kg bracket. Nowry prevailed via technical superiority in each of three bouts on Thursday, defeating Nicholas Needham (Norse RTC) and Drew West (IA), respectively, before downing Fabian Gutierrez (Buies Creek WC) to earn a spot in his fourth World Trials best-of-three final. Prior to Thursday, Nowry’s last appearance was in the bronze-medal round of the ’22 World Championships.
Nowry, 36, began his full-time Greco-Roman career at Northern Michigan University in ’08. Four years later he advanced to the Olympic Trials finals and won a University World title. But when 55 kilograms was temporarily shelved in favor of 59, his ascension was disrupted. Nowry still garnered National Team honors in the proceeding quad, but struggled with the weight difference. When 55 kilograms was brought back for the ’17-’18 season, he won his first National crown and thereafter placed 2nd at the World Team Trials to Sam Hazewinkel. Nowry earned his first placement on a Senior World Team in ’19, and did so again in ’21 and ’22. In three World Championship appearances, Nowry participated in two bronze-medal rounds. With his return to active competition, Nowry is currently the only American Senior to have wrestled in a Senior World-level medal match more than once.
Nowry’s chief domestic rival amid his previous Senior run was Koontz — a pattern that will continue in Vegas. Koontz fell to Nowry at Final X: Rutgers in ’19 (as well as in the Bill Farrell Memorial that same year), the World Team Trials in ’21, and at Final X: Stillwater in ’22. The vast majority of their bouts had ended close on the scoreboard. Upon the dawn of Nowry’s hiatus after the ’22 campaign, Koontz quickly took over the weight division and commandeered the 55 kg World Team roster spot in both ’23 and ’24. He was expected to do so once more last season and cruised to the best-of-three finals at the ’25 Trials but hit a snag trying to make weight for Day 2 and the spot wound being awarded to Jayden Raney (NYAC/Cowboy RTC).
Like Nowry, Koontz sailed through his side of the bracket on Thursday and got past ’23 U23 World Team member Billy Sullivan (Army/WCAP) in the semifinals.
Roberts’ Reassertion
Multi-time World Team member/National champ Roberts — known as “The Swarm” for his absorbing, overwhelming style — came into this tournament as the #4 seed behind incumbent Max Black (NYAC/NTS), ’25 runner-up Richards, and Randon Miranda (NYAC). It had been a minute since Roberts was seeded lower than #1 or #2 in a 60 kg bracket, but that hardly made a difference in either his attitude or the result.
Roberts, in rather one-sided fashion, turned back Elijah Halton (Ohio Greco Boyz), fellow top contender Dylan Koontz (TMWC/Dubuque RTC), and surging Jace Koezler (Position) in the semifinal to set up a meeting with Richards, who himself was lights-out on Day 1. Richards defeated Abduallah Noori (United WC), Tregen Morin (Suples), and coveted prospect Paxton Creese (NYAC/Minnesota Storm), vanquishing each antagonist via VSU.
As most know by now on Friday, Black’s run was cut short by Koezler. Koezler caught Black early in the first period with a searing four-point arm throw before the sequence ended off the boundary. Black challenged the call, the ruling was upheld, and Koezler was up 6-0. Black fought to engineer a comeback, and indeed closed the gap, but Koezler stood his ground the rest of the way to triumph 8-5. On the bottom side of the bracket, Creese surprised Miranda by pocketing a 7-3 decision, this prior to his coming up short against Richards.
X vs. Drury
A year ago, Johnson — a World Team member in ’23 and Final X runner-up in ’19 — was in the 67 kg class and was usurped by Richard Fedalen. He has also had some injuries here and there. One other thing with Johnson is that his weight category is often a question mark. He has had success at both 63 and 67, he does seem to prefer veering lighter rather than heavier, yet his physical composition is such that “making” 63, on the surface at least, presumes to be a far more difficult undertaking. Questions permeated again in ’26 as to which weight division he might enter, but as the Trials approached it was clear that 63 would be his home and now he is knocking on the door of another trip to the Worlds.
Not that it came easy. Johnson escorted Matthew Englehardt (Hilltopper) and Job Greenwood (GRIT) to early exits but certainly had his hands full against age-group-eligible star Pierson Manville (Southwest). Manville opened with ferocity, yet was warned for his head in the early-going. Johnson was dinged first but defended. Manville was warned again before the end of the first period
Not long into the second, Johnson executed a counter-throw on an incoming Manville to race out in front 4-1, which was updated to 5-1 upon a failed challenge by Manville. A subsequent exchange saw Johnson get bumped off the line — but Manville was also caution’ed for two on account of leading with his head. That made the score 7-1 for Johnson. Manville struck back with a takedown to trim his deficit but wound up being cited for another caution with just over a minute remaining to give Johnson a 9-3 lead that he would not relinquish. Certainly one of the more physical contests of the semifinal round.
But the most startling one arrived next. Carter Nogle (Air Force) — who had performed brilliantly Thursday — owned a 3-1 lead against two-time U20 World Team member Landon Drury (NMU/NTS) all the way until the very last second of the match. Drury was having his moments as far as generating motion but Nogle, assuredly, opened some eyes with his stout positioning and patience. And the bout was within his grasp as time raced off the clock. But with :02 to go, Drury made his move and at :01, his last-gasp attack had Nogle planted on the mat. However, the officials awarded no points to Drury, causing NMU to challenge the call. After the review, Drury received two points as he will now prepare to face the aforementioned Johnson Friday night.
67, 72, & 77
Reigning U23 World bronze Otto Black (67 kg, NYAC) will battle ’19 U20 World bronze/’21 Senior World Teamer Omania after both did their parts in maintaining the perceived integrity of the misguided seeding system put in place. Black, the top seed in the absence of injured Alston Nutter (Army/WCAP), defeated Jace Grizzle (Wichita WC), former NMU teammate Maddox Khalimsky, and Savyon Haywood (Iguana) to reach his second-straight Senior WTT final. Omania meanwhile had to get through Jamarius Koshko (BRAWL), Dante Rodriguez (KMWC), and Duncan Nelson (Air Force/WCAP).
Alex Sancho (72 kg, Army/WCAP) was the second returning World Team member from ’25 to go down early. Sancho was decisioned by Brett Back (Position) 4-1 in the quarterfinals. On the same side of that bracket, Peyton Robb (NYAC/Nebraska Wrestling TC), seeded #4th, did his part, which included going over Robert Perez III (Army/WCAP). Perez — Final X runner-up in ’23 as well as a previously-consistent age-group World rep — had been out of action for over a year due to his having joined the Army. Nevertheless, it was a strong and controlling win for the extremely-tough Robb, who went on to edge Back via criteria in their semifinal bout (note: the official score was 2-2 for Robb but Back had made a desperation scoring attempt that had caused him to fall to his back as time expired, therefore prompting the officials to award four more points to Robb’s tally).
“Mr. Fantastic” Benji Peak (NYAC/Position) was dominant throughout the day, which included a VSU in the semifinal over Aliaksandr Kikiniou Jr. (NYAC). The younger Kikiniou — a remarkably impressive prospect — was second to Sancho in this weight class a year ago. Peak was exemplary in his attacks on Thursday, looking crisp and in stronger condition than amid his trip to Europe this past winter.
The elder Kikiniou — a World bronze in ’09 and a US World Team member in ’24 — defeated Ethan Barr (Golden One RTC), Jake Fisher (Curby 3-Style), and recent U23 World Teamer Tyler Eischens (Tar Heel WC) to punch his ticket to Friday’s slate of finals. Kikiniou from top is simply too effective and efficient for many Americans to stop, and that continued on Thursday. Not that this is a new item for 46-year-old Kikiniou, but there will be a significant age gap in his best-of-three as he faces Adams, who only four years ago won the U17 Worlds. Adams in his semifinal was in trouble before snatching victory from the jaws of defeat at the expense of #2 seed Britton Holmes (Army/WCAP). Holmes had the lead for the majority of the match but Adams scored a four-pointer that swung the momentum, and the scoreboard, in his favor.
Notes:
- Jayden and Jordyn Raney — both of whom are recent U17 World champs, and both of whom were expected to be major contenders in their respective brackets this week — pulled out of the tournament on Wednesday night after having already arrived to Nevada. Both are commits to Oklahoma State, which is coached by David Taylor. It is currently unclear if Taylor or someone else affiliated with Oklahoma State caused the Raney brothers to withdraw the night before the tournament was scheduled to begin.
- Fisher had not competed since the ’23 Bill Farrell Memorial and went 2-1 on Thursday before medically forfeiting.
- Friday’s finals card includes eight prior/recent World Team members: Nowry, Koontz, Roberts, Johnson, Omania, Peak, and Kikiniou.
2026 US World Team Trials
Group A Finals (Friday, April 24)
55 kg: Max Nowry (NYAC/IRTC) vs. Brady Koontz (TMWC/Position WC)
60 kg: Dalton Roberts (Army/WCAP) vs. Zane Richards (TMWC/IRTC)
63 kg: Xavier Johnson (Army/WCAP) vs. Landon Drury (NMU/NTS)
67 kg: Otto Black (NYAC) vs. Peyton Omania (Orange County RTC)
72 kg: Peyton Robb (NYAC/Nebraska Wrestling TC) vs. Benji Peak (NYAC/Position WC)
77 kg: Aliaksandr Kikiniou (NYAC) vs. Joel Adams (Beaver Dam RTC)
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