No takedown call gives Grajeda 7-5 win over Reynolds at WNO
FloWrestling posted the disputed finish and asked fans to weigh in on the 144-pound opener.
Ohio State commit Jesse Grajeda beat Braylon Reynolds 7-5 at 144 pounds in the opening match at Who's Number One, and the finish came down to a sequence the officials ruled no takedown. FloWrestling posted the video of that sequence and asked fans what they thought of the call. Grajeda came in ranked No. 1 at the weight, Reynolds No. 2.
GlobalWrestOrder called it a great back and forth match and laid out how it went. Grajeda set the tone with two early takedowns. Reynolds pushed the pace from there and generated several stalling calls with his action, but he could not close the last two points, and the no takedown ruling at the end sealed it for Grajeda.
The call
Flo did not say who made the call or explain the reasoning, and nobody has said anything further about it. What the promotion did do was put the clip in front of its audience with an open question attached.
Reynolds arrived in Stillwater already at the center of a debate. Justin Basch had questioned his spot on the Who's Number One card after an 0-3 run at the Elite 8 Duals. He answered by taking the top ranked wrestler at 144 to a two point match and forcing the officials to decide it.
Around the card
Basch posted the running results. Jimmy Mastny, ranked second at 215, beat No. 4 Mick Moylan 9-0. At 120, No. 1 Brayden Wenrich edged No. 2 Michael Batista 4-2. At 138, No. 2 Gavin Mangano beat No. 1 Dean Anderson 9-4 for the upset of the group. At 150, No. 1 Jason Dube held off No. 2 Clinton Shepherd 4-3.
Two matches never happened. No. 2 Luke Loren won by forfeit over No. 1 Kooper Deputy at 106, and No. 2 Evan Restivo won by forfeit over No. 1 Analu Woode at 113, after both top seeds missed weight.
That leaves the 144 pound bout as the marquee finish of the early card, decided on a judgment call rather than a scoring exchange everyone agreed on. Grajeda leaves Stillwater with a win over the No. 2 wrestler in the country at his weight. Reynolds leaves with a loss that a different ruling turns into a win.
Watch for whether Flo or the event follows up with an explanation of the no takedown ruling.
This was ruled no takedown, giving Jesse Grajeda the 7-5 victory at Who’s Number One.
Reynolds pushed the pace from that point on generating several stalling calls with his action, but ultimately Grajeda gets the 7-5 win.