Kyle Snyder vs. Abdulrashid Sadulaev VI: Wrestling’s Greatest Rivalry Returns

Rarely in combat sports can you find a rivalry with six chapters. What makes the saga of Kyle Snyder and Abdulrashid Sadulaev even more unique is that every match has been with gold on the line.

Snyder and Sadulaev first met in Paris, France in the gold medal round of the 2017 Worlds where Snyder would edge out the Russian standout. Later that year Sadulaev would get his revenge by pinning Snyder in the 2018 Worlds.

The two wouldn’t cross paths again until the 2020 Summer Olympics where Sadulaev would defeat Snyder for the gold medal by the score of 6-3. Later that year, Sadulaev would yet again defeat Snyder, this time blanking him by the score of 6-0 for the gold medal at the 2021 Worlds.

The final meeting resulted in a medical forfeit victory for Snyder in the bronze medal match giving Sadulaev a 3-2 advantage over the former Ohio State Buckeye.

Sadulaev will now be making his promotional debut to restore their 9-year rivalry by immediately challenging Snyder for his Light Heavyweight Championship.

Behind in the series, Snyder might find himself in the unfamiliar position of being the betting underdog. The three-time NCAA National Champion and Olympic Gold Medalist has had one of the most prolific careers and toughest promotional runs since joining the RAF roster, it will take far more than Vegas odds to shake one of the most accomplished wrestlers in the sport.

To defeat Sadulaev, Snyder will need to finish cleanly on leg attacks. Many wrestlers who attack the legs are unable to complete takedowns, overextend and wind up losing the battle they started. Snyder’s attacks are much more effective and technically sound, he will need to utilize this.

Snyder will also need to avoid scrambles and instead utilize physicality. Sadulaev could be one of the greatest counter-wrestlers of his generation, instead of engaging in scrambles that favor him almost 100% of the time, turn the match into a war of attrition and a grind. Snyder is one of the strongest light heavyweights on the roster and has shown, many times over, that he can wear down even the most skilled of opponents.

For Sadulaev, outside of creating scrambles, Sadulaev needs to dominate ties and underhooks. There’s possibly nobody alive that is harder to move when controlling the upper body than the 30-year-old Russian.

Another advantage comes with Sadulaev’s edge wrestling. He’s one of the best in the business at using positioning to create step outs and notching short scoring sequences without taking major risks that may be necessary in putting up large scoring sequences.

Both men have a path to leaving with RAF gold, can Kyle Snyder even the series up or will Sadulaev pull away with the rivalry?