A challenge that proved insurmountable even for the four-time NCAA champ! Almost every wrestling fan in the USA was gearing up for an epic showdown between Penn State alum Aaron Brooks and Iranian Behemoth Hassan Yazdani in the final of the men’s 86kg freestyle bracket at the 33rd Olympic Games. However, in the semifinal bout, the American star fell unexpectedly to Bulgaria’s Magomed Ramazanov, and his fans are left reeling.

Soon after Brooks’ 4-3 loss, fans and wrestlers rushed to social media to grief over his loss. In a post on X, Justin Basch shared the news of Cael Sanderson’s star student’s fumble, penning, “Brooks falls in the Semis.” The Penn State graduate was leading the match with 3 points but was cautioned by the match official at one point due to stalling. And yet, no one could foresee the incredible stunt the Bulgarian would pull off during the dying seconds of the second half.

Brooks had started off strong and thanks to his opponent being levied with a 30-second clock penalty, he opened his books with a 0-1 lead. Soon, a takedown gave Aaron 2 additional points before the first half came to an end. In the second period of the bout, Ramazanov managed a takedown of his own and earned 2 points in the process. With literally no time left on the clock, a pivotal play by Magomed awarded him 2 more points and he was declared the winner of the match, as Aaron left the Champ de Mars Arena with a hanging head. Naturally, fans weren’t prepared for the result and were just as flabbergasted by the same.

Aaron Brooks makes fans wail

After Aaron secured his ticket to Paris by defeating 2020 Olympic gold medalist David Taylor, it was justifiably speculated that he would replicate Taylor’s success on the big stage. However, with that not materializing, wrestling followers can’t hide their frustration, and one fan-run page argues that comparing Brooks to Taylor was a mistake from the start. “I said before this tournament that Aaron Brooks is not David Taylor,” reads the comment from the page on X.

Brooks is easily one of the most recognizable faces in the collegiate wrestling scene back home. However, when he defeated Taylor in two straight matches at the team trials, the hype about Brooks doing the same to the former’s arch-rival on the big stage was also enticing. Just before the semis, Bill reflected on how fans in America were waiting for the Brooks vs Yazdani showdown as he wrote, “A potential matchup with Aaron Brooks should be scintillating.” We wonder how the lad is coping with the loss now.

However, the issue of being compared to Penn State’s enigma David Taylor isn’t far off. Instead, it seems that the current OSU head coach is on the mind of every wrestling connoisseur across the USA, as he is the clear favorite between himself and his collegiate successor. Brian also sneered at Aaron’s loss with the comment, “David Taylor > Aaron Brooks.”

Brandon, too, thinks that Brooks might have been too specific about his training regime with only the thought of defeating Taylor being the center of his attention. Naturally, fans are now of the opinion that Aaron should have kept his horizons broader. “Aaron Brooks was trained to beat David Taylor but wasn’t the best at the weight,” said this fan straightforwardly.

For some other fans, Aaron’s loss seemed like a seminal moment in his career and can go on to define his coming years. “Aaron Brooks losing was biblical,” joked Jackson without caring to go too deep about it, and we would also like to leave it there! Were you also hopeful to see Aaron Brooks making it to the final and bag his maiden gold? Now that this hope is lost, how do you think he will fare in the bronze medal match against Myles Amine tomorrow?