No one expected a four-time NCAA champ to be decimated in Paris. While Aaron Brooks showed incredible promise after defeating Magic Man David Taylor at the US Olympic Team Trials in April, the challenge posed by Bulgaria’s Magomed Ramazanov at the French capital proved too big a hurdle for the 24-year-old to overcome. However, all is not lost for the USA’s wrestling fans at the 33rd Olympic Games, as Brooks still had the chance to lay claim to at least one medal today.

In the men’s 86kg freestyle weight bracket, the Penn State star was considered a favorite to win gold. Moreover, the prospect of seeing Aaron lock horns with the Iranian powerhouse Hassan Yazdani in the City of Love was also a thrilling ambition. With this looking like a distant dream right now, fans didn’t fail to rally behind Aaron for one last takedown.

Aaron Brooks stands on the brink of redemption

A post from earlier today by the official USA Wrestling’s X account revealed the opponent who would be facing the four-time Big Ten gold medalist for the bronze medal match today at the Paris Games. “86 kg MFS – Aaron Brooks (USA) vs. Javrail Shapiev (Uzbekistan),” the post announced the matchup after the latter won the repechage match against Canada’s Alex Moore with a 6-1 margin. The bout was a golden opportunity for Aaron to showcase his salt and prove that he’s capable of being in the same league as the big boys.

With the chance to bag gold at the Games now in the rearview mirror, Brooks also missed out on receiving some financial sweetness as well. According to another Penn State alum and MMA star Bo Nickal, USA Wrestling promised gold medalists at the quadrennial event $250,000 and an additional $40k by the US Olympic Committee. While the almost $300,000 prize is not coming Brooks’ way, he would need to turn his focus on the task at hand.

However, it wasn’t much big of a threat, considering how the Maryland native’s latest opponent was already looking battered. A post by FloWrstling’s Jon Kozak on X notes that Shapiev is still reeling from his last match against Moore. “Shapiev didn’t look great in his repechage match and looked pretty hurt after Ramazanov pinned him in the quarters – Shapiev laid on the mat in the fetal position for a while,” reads the caption of the post, as Kozak asserted his confidence about seeing Brooks coming out on top of his Uzbek foe. Keeping parity with fans’ faith in his prowess, Brooks made sure to show his mettle as he won bronze by trampling Shapiev 5-0.

Brooks’ path has another weary traveler

This also provided Aaron with an opportunity to silence the naysayers. After his loss to the Bulgarian, fans slammed Cael Sanderson’s star student for not being on the same level as the 2020 Olympic gold medalist Taylor. However, considering how it was a narrow loss for Aaron, winning a bronze would show that judging him by one fumble shouldn’t be the cleverest thing to do. Brooks won every single match at the Team Trials, making it more evident with each victory that he’s ready to spread his wings beyond bustling the collegiate wrestling scene of the USA. Before Ramazanov pulled off a pivotal play in the dying seconds of the semifinal match, Brooks trounced every challenge thrown at him including defeating the #1 seed Azamat Dauletbekov in his first match at the Champ de Mars.

While Brooks took to the mat just moments ago in a bid to make it to the podium, he will be joined by the 2024 Pan American Championships gold medalist Helen Maroulis. The 2016 Olympic champ lost to Japan’s Tsugumi Sakurai in the semi of the women’s 57kg freestyle bracket and will be facing off against Canada’s Hannah Taylor for the bronze.