Robles 125?

[talkinhawks]

Robles is somewhat of a deserving champion - he did his damage in the first period and then wrestled smart (aka stalled and played defense) for the last 2 periods. A truly deserving champion could wrestle and score for the entire 7 minutes. Robles is an amazing story, but it makes me sick to watch any "champion" stall and play defense like that. I for one, would have loved to see another stalling call, which would have DQ'd him. I know McD wouldn't have wanted to win that way but that kind of wrestling that he did the last 4 minutes sucks big time!

He did his damage in the first but it wasn't because he initiated any offense. The way he wrestles, his opponents have to engage him. He could get hit for stalling a lot more than he does, just because he sits on his leg and waits for his opponent to engage.....I'm happy for Robles because he did something I'm sure many people told him couldn't be done, but I think the rules are circumvented somewhat in order to level the playing field and allow Robles to compete.

That being said, I think McDonough's strategy or lack thereof was questionable....Why tie up with a guy who has the strength of a wrestler 3 weight classes above you?

 

[Hawk8568]

im quite confident that almost all knowledgeable wrestling fans would agree that his disability is actually an advantage in wrestling.

i have nothing against the guy, and i think its great he was able to motivate himself to compete at a high level. he seems like a good person and obviously has great work ethic and competitive drive. while i feel good for him that he was able to do this, i mostly feel sorry for the wrestlers who werent able to truly gauge their hard work/talent against "normal" wrestlers. McD could possibly end up a 3x champion, and its too bad that he wont get the chance to become a 4-timer because of an anomaly match that is very different than what he has been training to compete in his entire life. most guys competing at this level have been wrestling since they could walk. all of a sudden, they have to change their lifelong strategy/style completely for one match on the biggest stage of their lives.

do i think he should have been allowed to compete at the 125lb weightclass? yes.
but to put it plainly ... i just think it sucks for the guys that had to wrestle him.

 

[Hawks1]

Why doesn't that argument work? It's about the weight of the wrestler. Matt uses his long arms to his advantage...just like Robles uses his lack of a leg to his advantage.

good we are in agreement that Robles has an advantage

 

[RobKong]

Uh, I don't even know what that means? Internet CHALLENGE!!?

You better watch it, or he'll pound on his keyboard.

 

[brach700]

Why doesn't that argument work? It's about the weight of the wrestler. Matt uses his long arms to his advantage...just like Robles uses his lack of a leg to his advantage.

Well those long arms whiffed more than once when he instinctively grabbed for a leg for control that wasnt there.

 

[pin2win]

amazing how many ppl who never post on wrestling board have so much to say about this topic

 

[DuffMan]

Imagine how big the thread would be if it were a one legged girl we were talking about.

 

[brach700]

Imagine how big the thread would be if it were a one legged girl we were talking about.

I thought we were....LOLO.....ok, that was uncalled for.

 

[pin2win]

Anthony Robles: Advantage or disadvantage | 2011 NCAA Wrestling Championships | Flowrestling

robles talks and brands go out of his way to congratulate him

 

[gonzoJM]

This thread and every other one relating to Robles is hilarious to me. I'm going to come at this from experience. Having wrestled in college AND having wrestling someone with amputated legs, to suggest that Robles is either not 100% deserving of his title or that he shouldn't be wrestling at 125 is idiotic.

Yes, he is stronger than any other wrestler at 125. What weight exactly should he be wrestling at and how exactly would that work? "Well if he had legs, he'd probably be at about 149/157." Sure, but he doesn't have legs and he weighs 125, so that's where he should wrestle. Just like everyone else. Should he weight in with his crutches and/or prosthetics? That's beyond absurd.

As far as being tough to wrestle, he absolutely is. Unfortunately, there are a lot of guys that are tough to wrestle because of style, strength, quickness, or whatever. The dude that got manhandled by Burroughs should probably complain because he isn't the physical specimen that Burroughs is. Everyone that Metcalf destroyed should probably get upset that he goes too hard all the time. Please. If you are a wrestler with any pride or guts (like McD), you suck it up and don't complain because otherwise, you're making excuses.

That's really the beauty of wrestling. It's one on one with nowhere to go and all eyes on you. You win however you can (within the rules), which Robles did. If you watched all of the matches, you would have seen every other wrestler that went the full 7 minutes stalling just as much or more than Robles at the end of the match. That's what you do, especially when it means that you get to take home the national title. Circle, stall, do what you gotta do to get that bracket and medal. Sometimes stalling is just conserving energy for the celebration.

 

[talkinhawks]

This thread and every other one relating to Robles is hilarious to me. I'm going to come at this from experience. Having wrestled in college AND having wrestling someone with amputated legs, to suggest that Robles is either not 100% deserving of his title or that he shouldn't be wrestling at 125 is idiotic.

Yes, he is stronger than any other wrestler at 125. What weight exactly should he be wrestling at and how exactly would that work? "Well if he had legs, he'd probably be at about 149/157." Sure, but he doesn't have legs and he weighs 125, so that's where he should wrestle. Just like everyone else. Should he weight in with his crutches and/or prosthetics? That's beyond absurd.

As far as being tough to wrestle, he absolutely is. Unfortunately, there are a lot of guys that are tough to wrestle because of style, strength, quickness, or whatever. The dude that got manhandled by Burroughs should probably complain because he isn't the physical specimen that Burroughs is. Everyone that Metcalf destroyed should probably get upset that he goes too hard all the time. Please. If you are a wrestler with any pride or guts (like McD), you suck it up and don't complain because otherwise, you're making excuses.

That's really the beauty of wrestling. It's one on one with nowhere to go and all eyes on you. You win however you can (within the rules), which Robles did. If you watched all of the matches, you would have seen every other wrestler that went the full 7 minutes stalling just as much or more than Robles at the end of the match. That's what you do, especially when it means that you get to take home the national title. Circle, stall, do what you gotta do to get that bracket and medal. Sometimes stalling is just conserving energy for the celebration.

I don't think you are hearing excuses. I think the rules are circumvented somewhat because Robles never engages his opponents. Burroughs wrestles head to head and engages...he is just better.

 

[gonzoJM]

I don't think you are hearing excuses. I think the rules are circumvented somewhat because Robles never engages his opponents. Burroughs wrestles head to head and engages...he is just better.

I would agree that Burroughs is better, although it is a bit tough to compare wrestlers at two very different weight classes. To say that the rules are circumvented because Robles doesn't shoot is just flat out wrong. There are plenty of guys (including some in the finals) that are successful because they are defensive wrestlers just looking to capitalize on a poor shot or poor positioning. There's nothing wrong with that. There is no rule that says you have to engage head on. Personally, when I wrestled someone overly aggressive, I would play total defense and wait for them to make a mistake.

Also, Robles has a pretty killer ankle pick (which does qualify as a shot) that he is able to hit with some frequency. You can't criticize the dude for not taking normal shots. He can't hit a double leg because to do so requires TWO legs. He's wrestling smart, which, last time I checked, isn't circumventing any rule.

 

[talkinhawks]

I would agree that Burroughs is better, although it is a bit tough to compare wrestlers at two very different weight classes. To say that the rules are circumvented because Robles doesn't shoot is just flat out wrong. There are plenty of guys (including some in the finals) that are successful because they are defensive wrestlers just looking to capitalize on a poor shot or poor positioning. There's nothing wrong with that. There is no rule that says you have to engage head on. Personally, when I wrestled someone overly aggressive, I would play total defense and wait for them to make a mistake.

Also, Robles has a pretty killer ankle pick (which does qualify as a shot) that he is able to hit with some frequency. You can't criticize the dude for not taking normal shots. He can't hit a double leg because to do so requires TWO legs. He's wrestling smart, which, last time I checked, isn't circumventing any rule.

You are more familiar with Robles than I am, but you can't tell me he didn't stall for the majority of that match. He gets the benefit of doubt in my opinion, and that is circumventing the rules or at least bending them.

I think a guy like Precin would be more effective against Robles because he is defensive as well. McDonough is such an aggressive wrestler that it worked against him in that match against Robles.

You are right that playing defense is smart, but Robles never engages.

 

[GravyJones]

Does Robles belong at 125? Yes, because that's what he weighs.

Is Robles stronger than anyone at 125? Yes, BUT HE'S MISSING A LEG. He starts with a huge disadvantage, so anything he gains with upper-body strength is pretty much a push.

Congratulations to him.

 

[gonzoJM]

You are more familiar with Robles than I am, but you can't tell me he didn't stall for the majority of that match. He gets the benefit of doubt in my opinion, and that is circumventing the rules or at least bending them.

I think a guy like Precin would be more effective against Robles because he is defensive as well. McDonough is such an aggressive wrestler that it worked against him in that match against Robles.

You are right that playing defense is smart, but Robles never engages.

Look, I'm not in love with Robles and I wanted McD to win the match. With that out of the way, I can definitively say that he did not stall for the majority of the match, especially because, by strict definition of majority, he was too busy tilting McD for back points during the first 4 minutes or so.

If you want to see Robles engage, watch him against Iowa's own Charlie Falck. I'm sure the video is on YouTube. He shoots the closest thing to a double that he can. Also, he hit an ankle pick in another match in the tournament for a takedown. So, therefore, he does engage when necessary. He just didn't need to because McD helped him out more than he should have.