Saipa crowned freestyle champion in Iranian Premier Wrestling League
Saipa lifted the freestyle trophy at the Iranian Premier Wrestling League, thanks to a victory over defending champion Shahr Bank in a start-studded final in Tehran.
It all came down to the superheavyweight showpiece at the Azadi 12,000-seater Hall, where world champion Amirhossein Zare’ outmuscled Ahmad Bazri 6-0 to seal a 6-4 triumph for Saipa.
The showdown began with a battle of former world silver medalists, with Reza Atri defeating Alireza Sarlak 2-1 in the 57kg contest to give Shahr Bank the lead.
Russian Abasgadzhi Magomedov – world champion in 2021 – came out on top against Ali Qolizadegan by fall in the 61kg bout to double Shahr Bank’s advantage, before Shamil Mamedov registered a first win for Saipa after his fellow-Russian Abdulmazhid Kudiev, who won a world bronze under the flag of Tajikistan in October, pulled out of the 65kg clash with injury while the two wrestlers were tied at 4-4.
Former world under-17 champion Sina Khalili then drew Saipa level with an emphatic 14-5 win against two-time world silver medalist Amir-Mohammad Yazdani in the 70kg bout.
Russian sensation Zaurbek Sidakov – a winner of three world titles and Tokyo Olympic champion – came out victorious 4-0 against two-time world bronze medalist Younes Emami in the 74kg clash to give Saipa the lead, but Fariborz Babaei’s victory over Mahdi Yousefi in the 79kg contest leveled the scoreline at 3-3.
Russian Ibragim Kadiev put Saipa in front with a 6-0 victory over Ezzatollah Akbari in the 86kg battle, but the parity was restored again when reigning world under-23 champion Amirhossein Firouzpour defeated Hadi Vafaieipour 7-2 in the 92kg event.
Mojtaba Goleij gave Saipa the momentum in the penultimate bout, beating Mohammad-Hossein Mohammadian 6-0 in the 97kg class, before Zare’ clinched the title with the 125kg win.