Otto Black (67 kg, NYAC/NTS) won three matches before coming up just short of making the finals — and Ildar Hafizov (63 kg, Army/WCAP) and Alston Nutter (67 kg, Army/WCAP) provided surges of adrenaline although both will ultimately miss the medal rounds.
Day 2 of Greco-Roman at the 2026 Muhamet Malo “Ranking Series” tournament began at 10:30am local time from Tirana, Albania (4:30am ET) and is streaming live on FLOWrestling.
Black — U20 World runner-up in ’24 and a bronze at the U23 World Championships this past fall — went on a searing run this morning that included more than several moments in which his obvious talent was on full display. It all started when he blitzed right past Ankit Ankit (IND) in the qualification round by way of technical superiority; but that win for Black, as anticipated, resulted in a showdown with ’24 World silver medalist Yerzhet Zharlykassyn (KAZ), a potentially-sizable hurdle. Except Black right leapt over it. Soon after having managed a quick counter-score takedown in the first period, Black converted a crash-gutwrench for two more points. Zharlykassyn would net one point in return before the match was over, but Black remained otherwise unscathed and collected an impressive 4-1 decision at the expense of one of his bracket’s most formidable competitors.
In the quarterfinal, Singh Karanjit (IND) had no answer for Black’s offense as the American overwhelmed him in the opening period. Initially there was brief cause for consternation, for Black required a look from the training staff following the match’s first skirmish. But all concerns quickly evaporated once the contest resumed. Nearly as soon as the wrestlers achieved the next contact, Black found a crease and dragged behind Karanjit to bomb a four-point lift — and he did not allow his opponent to settle into a defensive posture. As is so often preached by coaches, the best time to try and score from top is instantly; therefore, Black hastily cinched for a lift and executed a pair of crash-guts to end matters prematurely by recording his second VSU of the tournament.
With the win, Black had advanced to the semifinal round against ’24 U23 World silver Diego Chkhikvadze (GEO), who had defeated Russian Erzu Zakriev (UWW) and Nutter earlier in the day. And he started hot again, too. Black demonstrated zero trepidation when locking up with Chkhikvadze, as evidenced by his lasering of a throw-by to score the bout’s first points. After a reset, Black was there with a salto that cut Chkhikvadze for two more points and his was a 4-0 lead entering the break. But — Chkhikvadze happened upon a comeback. The second period saw him wrangle a takedown at the edge; and then with time a factor, he scored two more from an exchange to eek ahead on criteria. Black threatened in the match’s waning seconds, but it was Chkhikvadze who took the decision along with a trip to the finals.
In the bronze-medal round (scheduled for 6:00pm local/12:00pm ET on FLO), Black will face Zakriev, who in the repechage round defeated Nutter.
Hafizov & Nutter
As mentioned, the Army duo of Hafizov and Nutter found themselves in their respective brackets’ repechage rounds.
Multi-time World Team member/two-time Olympian Hafizov was downed in the round-of-16 by Sakit Guliyev (AZE); but because Guliyev made the final, Hafizov had a second chance to pursue a medal through the repechage and squared off against Bakytzhan Kabdyl (KAZ). Kabdyl had gotten off to a 5-0 lead heading into intermission, but that lead would not last. After receiving his own passivity/par terre opportunity in Period 2, Hafizov used his high-gut waterfall to rake Guliyev for six points. Up 7-5, Hafizov appeared to be in command of the proceedings until a curious sequence changed the complexion of the contest. Guliyev yanked back on a hold near the boundary, and yet Hafizov had appeared to step-over and score his own exposure points. The aftermath gave way to a prolonged challenge process, at the end of which Guliyev was awarded four plus one extra for the call being upheld. Hafizov eventually fell by a score of 12-7.
Nutter could not have had a much more promising start to his day at the tournament as he piled on the points against former Japan star Tsuchika Shimoyamada (AUS) 13-4. The victory for Nutter put him in the round-of-16 paired with Chkhikvadze, who prevailed 9-0. With the Georgian having edged Black, Nutter had his ticket to repechage, where he greeted Zakriev. A scary moment unfolded between the two in the first period. Zakriev had been awarded the passivity/par terre and Nutter, amid trying to defend a gutwrench rotation, wound up injured on account of his arm having been caught underneath him as he rolled. The training staff tended to the American, if only briefly, but the points required for Zakriev to advance had already been logged. At press time, Nutter has been examined once more but there is no word yet on the severity of his injury, or whether or not it might affect his status for the upcoming Armed Forces Championships and beyond.
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