'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Penn State wrestler PJ Duke will be facing his childhood hero, Yianni Diakomihalis, at Final X. Yianni Diakomihalis took the opportunity recently to reflect on PJ Duke before the game against the young Penn State wrestler.
Diakomihalis won his fourth title for Cornell University, winning 4-2 over Sammy Sasso at the 149-pound final at the NCAA Championship, completing his 21-1 season with his fourth All-America honour and EIWA title. In his junior season with Cornell University, the wrestler earned the Olympic redshirt, but the season was cancelled due to the pandemic. The Dan Hodge Trophy finalist will face PJ Duke at Final X. Diakomihalis and Duke share much more than just a love for wrestling in common; Duke is a friend of Diakomihalis' younger brother, Elijah.
Trending
Yianni Diakomihalis talked about Duke in the pre-game interview with Flowrestling.
"There's a trap with wrestling high school kids where it's like, oh, well, he's a high school kid. It's like, but he's really the number two guy in America," Diakomihalis said.
Diakomihalis mentioned that he would not be taking Duke lightly, having committed the same mistake in the past.
"As you can tell, I've watched him wrestle. I've lost a lot of matches taking 500 shots, and that combination of taking 100 shots with maybe underestimating a kid because he's younger than you is a great formula for failure. So it's like, go out there, wrestle really hard, shoot a lot," he added.
PJ Duke will be looking forward to dethroning Yianni Diakomihalis at the final X to earn the spot on the senior world team.
PJ Duke reflected on early struggles in the game ahead of the domination at the World Team Trials
In an interview with Win Magazine, the Penn State wrestler opened up about his early years and struggles in wrestling and reflected on how his father bribed the young wrestler into staying with the game.
"I was a big baby and would cry all the time and didn’t win a match for almost two years. My dad would bribe me with Pokémon cards and toys. Then around age seven or eight, something clicked. I started going to Tulsa and Reno (tournaments) and got ahead of the curve," said Duke.
Before his Final X game against childhood hero Yianni Diakomihalis, Duke had a dominating campaign at the World Team Trials. The wrestler went toe to toe with the NCAA champions, besting them on the mat. NCAA Champion Antrell Taylor fell to the young Penn State wrestler in the quarter-final. Another NCAA Champion, Ridge Lovett, was dominated by PJ Duke. The young Penn State wrestler took on Bryce Andonian in the finals, winning 4-1 by decision.
