Iszmail MUSZUKAJEV (HUN) may have broken his infamous curse of fizzling out in the second period of the bout.
What fans witnessed Tuesday was a different Muszukajev who not only ended Hungary’s 21-year wait for a freestyle European champion, he destroyed two-time Olympic medalist Haji ALIYEV (AZE) with a 12-1 victory in the 65kg final.
For long, Muszukajev has been an unpopular wrestler for his second-period conditioning. Many of his losses have been a result of him not being able to match the pace of his opponents. In one of those losses, he was up 9-0 at the break.
So when he set up a final against Aliyev at the European Championships in Budapest, a similar fate was expected — Muszukajev would give up after the initial burst.
Muszukajev was referring to their semifinal bout at the 2020 Individual World Cup which he won 7-6. He had built a 6-1 lead in that semifinal but Aliyev mounted a comeback with three takedowns and leveled it 6-6 with five seconds remaining. A tired Muszukajev somehow managed to hold on for the win.
Just over a year later, the stakes had changed. Aliyev was now a two-time Olympic medalist while the Hungary wrestler was becoming a flash in the pan after his 2019 World bronze medalist.
Before the final, Aliyev was warming up with his coach while Muszukajev was zen-like in the warm-up room. As the announcers called for their names, Azerbaijan fans let out a loud cheer to welcome their three-time world champion. But seconds later, the local Hungary fans with their vuvuzelas made the atmosphere electric.
Results
Day 2 Medal Bouts
57kg
GOLD: Vladimir EGOROV (MKD) df Aliabbas RZAZADE (AZE), 8-6
BRONZE: Manvel KHNDZRTSYAN (ARM) df Niklas STECHELE (GER), 6-2
BRONZE: Beka BUJIASHVILI (GEO) df Mikyay NAIM (BUL), 11-0
65kg
GOLD: Iszmail MUSZUKAJEV (HUN) df Haji ALIYEV (AZE), 12-1
BRONZE: Munir AKTAS (TUR) df Maxim SACULTAN (MDA), via fall
BRONZE: Islam DUDAEV (ALB) df Krzysztof BIENKOWSKI (POL), 5-0
70kg
GOLD: Zurabi IAKOBISHVILI (GEO) df Arman ANDREASYAN (ARM), 2-1
BRONZE: Ziraddin BAYRAMOV (AZE) df Ramazan RAMAZANOV (BUL), via fall
BRONZE: Nicolai GRAHMEZ (MDA) df Selahattin KILICSALLAYAN (TUR), via fall
79kg
GOLD: Georgios KOUGIOUMTSIDIS (GRE) df Ashraf ASHIROV (AZE), 7-6
BRONZE: Vladimeri GAMKRELIDZE (GEO) df Arman AVAGYAN (ARM), 9-7
BRONZE: Alans AMIROVS (LAT) df Muhammet AKDENIZ (TUR), via inj. def.
97kg
GOLD: Magomedkhan MAGOMEDOV (AZE) df Vladislav BAITSAEV (HUN), 11-5
BRONZE: Batyrbek TSAKULOV (SVK) df Erik THIELE (GER), 7-0
BRONZE: Zbigniew BARANOWSKI (POL) df Elizbar ODIKADZE (GEO), 4-2
Day 2 Semifinals
61kg
GOLD: Suleyman ATLI (TUR) vs Arsen HARUTYUNYAN (ARM)
SF 1: Suleyman ATLI (TUR) df Georgi VANGELOV (BUL), 6-3
SF 2: Arsen HARUTYUNYAN (ARM) df Eduard GRIGOREV (POL), 13-8
74kg
GOLD: Frank CHAMIZO (ITA) vs Tajmuraz SALKAZANOV (SVK)
SF 1: Frank CHAMIZO (ITA) df Hrayr ALIKHANYAN (ARM), 7-1
SF 2: Tajmuraz SALKAZANOV (SVK) df Turan BAYRAMOV (AZE), 8-2
86kg
GOLD: Myles AMINE (SMR) vs Abubakr ABAKAROV (AZE)
SF 1: Myles AMINE (SMR) df Osman GOCEN (TUR), 6-6
SF 2: Abubakr ABAKAROV (AZE) df Sebastian JEZIERZANSKI (POL), 3-1
92kg
GOLD: Miriani MAISURADZE (GEO) vs Osman NURMAGOMEDOV (AZE)
SF 1: Feyzullah AKTURK (TUR) df Miriani MAISURADZE (GEO), 5-2
SF 2: Ahmed BATAEV (BUL) df Osman NURMAGOMEDOV (AZE), 4-4
125kg
GOLD: Taha AKGUL (TUR) vs Geno PETRIASHVILI (GEO)
SF 1: Taha AKGUL (TUR) df Daniel LIGETI (HUN), 10-0
SF 2: Geno PETRIASHVILI (GEO) df Robert BARAN (POL), 2-1
Source and image: www.uww.org
