UWW Ranking Series:
Ahmadi, Hedayati to spearhead Iran’s Greco-Roman squad in Tirana
Payam Ahmadi and Fardin Hedayati will headline Iran’s Greco-Roman campaign when the upcoming Muhamet Malo tournament gets underway in Tirana, Albania, on February 25.
Iran head coach Hassan Rangraz has named a 13-man roster for the second Ranking Series event of the international season. The tournament will also form part of Iran’s selection process for major events in 2026, including the World Championships in Manama and the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Games later in the summer.
Ahmadi is set to compete in the 55kg division on the back of a standout season last year, which saw the 20-year-old prodigy claim the world junior title before securing a silver medal on his Senior World Championships debut in September, underlining his rapid rise through the ranks.
Hedayati, meanwhile, will take to the mat in the 130kg class following a gold-laden 2025 campaign. The heavyweight topped the podium at the Asian Championships, the Islamic Solidarity Games and, most notably, the U23 World Championships. He will be looking to lay down a marker in his pursuit of a superheavyweight berth in Manama, where reigning world champion Amin Mirzazadeh remains the man to beat.
Elsewhere, two-time world U20 champion Alireza Abdevali and Islamic Solidarity Games silver medalist Amir Abdi are among the leading contenders in the 77kg category.
Former world junior and cadet gold medalist Amirreza Dehbozorgi will compete in the 60kg class alongside compatriot Mohammad Ashiri, while Ali Hajivand is set to feature at 63kg.
Seyyed Mostafa Rezaei will line up in the 67kg bracket. In the 72kg division, Hojjat Rezaei and Mohammad Rezaei will represent Iran.
The Greco-Roman squad is completed by Mohammad-Amin Hosseini (82kg), Jamal Esmaeili (87kg) and Amirreza Moradian (97kg).
Unlike the Greco-Roman lineup, Iran has opted for a streamlined freestyle team, with four wrestlers set to compete in Tirana.
Two-time world bronze medalist Younes Emami will enter the 74kg division as he bids for a third world podium finish in Manama. Emami narrowly missed out on a medal at last year’s World Championships in Zagreb, losing to Slovakia’s Tajmuraz Salkazanov in the bronze-medal bout.
He will be joined by Mohammad Nokhodi, a five-time world medalist, including two silvers. Nokhodi is set to compete at 79kg in his first international outing since claiming bronze in Zagreb last September.
In the 92kg division, Amirhossein Firouzpour will look to build on a strong 2025 season. The two-time U23 world champion captured Asian gold in Amman before earning bronze on his senior world championship debut. He is expected to face stiff opposition from reigning world silver medalist Amanula Gadzhimagomedov, who is entered as a neutral athlete and is widely regarded as one of the favorites for the title.