Every March the best college wrestlers in the country, get together for the NCAA Wrestling Championships! This tournament is the culmination of a lifetime of hard work for these young men, and only one (in each weight class) can be crowned champion.
This year’s tournament takes place March 20-22nd, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, at the Wells Fargo Center.
In this article we will discuss last year’s 133 lb champion and who the top contenders are for this season.
2024 Champion: Vito Arujau of Cornell captured his second straight NCAA title last season defeating Dayton Fix 5-3 in the finals. Vito also won a senior level world title at 61 kg. He had collegiate wins over Ryan Crookham, as well as NCAA Champions Roman Bravo Young, and Pat Glory.
This Year’s Contenders: Drake Ayala of Iowa, and Lucas Byrd of Illinois, all have had tremendous seasons. Drake and Byrd are 1-1 against each other this season.
Drake Ayala: The 3X Iowa State champion was an NCAA finalist last year down at 125. The jump to 133 hasn’t seemed to have slowed him down one bit as Drake has had an excellent year. Already defeating the #2 and #3 ranked kids in the class.
Lucas Byrd: A 2X Ohio State Champion, Byrd is already a 2X All-American. Back for his 7th year of college wrestling Byrd has a legit shot of making the finals. Just a few weeks ago Byrd scored a dominant 7-1 win over former Big 10 champion Braeden Davis of Penn State.
Other Contenders: Zeth Romney of Cal Poly 13-4, Tyler Knox of Stanford 24-6, and Braeden Davis of Penn State 12-5, all have a chance to go far in the tournament. Evan Frost of Iowa State 18-4 has also looked solid this year.
Dark Horse Contenders: Nick Bouzakis of Ohio State is 22-7 and Jacob Van Dee of Nebraska is 14-9. Both of these kids have a chance to make a deep run at the National tournament.
2025 NCAA Champion Prediction: Drake Ayala of Iowa