BUDAPEST, Hungary – Ridge Lovett, who was the Idaho winner of the National Wrestling Wrestling Hall of Fame's Dave Schultz High School Excellence Award in 2019, headlined the U.S. men’s freestyle contingent in session one of the 2026 Polyák Imre, Varga János & Kozma István Memorial on Wednesday in Budapest, Hungary, earning two wins to reach the 70 kg gold-medal match. Will Lewan pushed through the repechage to the 74 kg bronze-medal bout.

Lovett showcased his explosive style in the early rounds, capped by a semifinal pin over Azerbaijan’s Kanan Heybatov. He opened his day with a 9-4 victory over Iran’s Ebrahim Elahichouran in the quarterfinals, scoring five second-period points to pull away. In the semifinal, he jumped to a 6-0 lead on Heybatov before locking up a leg and headlock to turn him for the fall at 2:36.

Lewan battled through a rugged 74 kg field to stay alive for the bronze-medal match. He earned a 4-4 criteria win over Bahrain’s Magomedrasul Asluev in the round of 16, then dropped a 4-0 decision to Kazakhstan’s 2025 World bronze medalist Nurkozha Kaipanov in the quarterfinals. Pulled back into repechage, Lewan responded with a 7-5 decision over Kazakhstan’s Darkhan Yessengali to advance to the medal round.

At 65 kg, Beau Bartlett dropped a 5-2 decision to Georgia’s Nika Zakashvili in the round of 16.

Men’s freestyle medal matches are set for Wednesday’s second session, beginning at 6 p.m. local time/12 p.m. ET at BOK Hall. Lovett will face Georgia’s Akaki Kemertelidze for 70 kg gold, and Lewan will meet 2024 U23 World champion Muhammed Besir of Turkey for bronze at 74 kg.

A live stream of the Polyák Imre, Varga János & Kozma István Memorial will be available to the U.S. audience through FloWrestling. Brackets and updated results will be hosted on UWW Arena.

2026 Polyák Imre, Varga János & Kozma István Memorial Ranking Series 

At Budapest, Hungary, July 15-19 

Quick Links   

• Events Website

• Brackets and Results

• Live Stream

Men’s Freestyle Results 

Medal Match Pairings  

57 kg  

Gold – Roberti Dingashvili (Georgia) vs. Aman (India)

Bronze – Meirambek Kartbay (Kazakhstan) vs. Islam Bazarganov (Azerbaijan)

Bronze – Timothy Levine (Canada) vs. NNurdanat Aitanov (Kazakhstan)

61 kg  

Gold – Assyl Aitakyn (Kazakhstan) vs. Tolga Ozbek (Turkey)

Bronze – Giorgi Goniashvili (Georgia) vs. Adilet Almukhamedov (Kazakhstan)

Bronze – Nuraddin Novruzov (Azerbaijan) vs. Deepak (India)

65 kg  

Gold – Abbas Ebrahimzadeh (Iran) vs. Shamil Mamedov (Bulgaria)

Bronze – Nachyn Kuular (Kazakhstan) vs. Kumar Mohit (India)

Bronze – Ossimzhan Dastanbek (Kazakhstan) vs. Vishal Kaliramana(India)

70 kg  

Gold – Ridge Lovett (United States) vs. Akaki Kemertelidze (Georgia)

Bronze – Sanzhar Doszhanov (Kazakhstan) vs. Tulga Tumur Ochir (Mongolia)

Bronze – Ebrahim Elahichouran (Iran) vs. Kanan Heybatov (Azerbaijan)

74 kg  

Gold – Feng Lu (China) vs. Nurkozha Kaipanov (Kazakhstan)

Bronze – Will Lewan (United States) vs. Muhammed Besir (Turkey)

Bronze – Ibragim Veliev (Belgium) vs. Murad Kuramagomedov (Hungary)

86 kg 

Gold – Rakhim Magamadov (France) vs. Vladimeri Gamkrelidze (Georgia)

Bronze – Abylaikhan Uzembayev (Kazakhstan) vs. Tornike Samkharadze (Georgia)

Bronze – Alperen Atar (Turkey) vs. Nan Cao (China)

U.S. Men’s Freestyle Results  

65 kg – Beau Bartlett (Hoboken, N.J./New York City RTC)

LOSS Nika Zakashvili (Georgia), dec., 5-2

70 kg – Ridge Lovett (Post Falls, Idaho/Nebraska WTC/Titan Mercury WC), eliminated

WIN Ebrahim Elahichouran (Iran), dec., 9-4

WIN Kanan Heybatov (Azerbaijan), fall, 2:36

74 kg – Will Lewan (Naperville, Ill./Cliff Keen WC/Titan Mercury WC)

WIN Asluev Magomedrasul (Bahrain), dec., 4-4

LOSS Nukozha Kaipanov (Kazakhstan), dec., 4-0

WIN Darkhan Yessengali (Kazakhstan), dec. 7-5