Final X: New World Team Trials setup.

[MadMardigain 1,361]

https://www.flowrestling.org/articles/6083815-flosports-usa-wrestling-announce-final-x-series-to-determine-world-team

 

 

So this concepts of retooling the trials has turns into just moving the World Team Trial finals to 3 different cities rather than hold them in Minn. after the challenge tournament concludes.

 

Though attendance was always iffy I’m not sure this helps with improving house attendance at any of the events. Maybe the thought is a short few hour show will be more feasible for those wanting to attend than buying a one or two day long package.

 

Maybe they are hoping to attract more stream viewers. But you have to be a yearly FloPro member, so the none hardcore fans aren’t getting a peek at it as you build the Olympic fan base. Not sure when or even if NBC would show the finals as part of their Olympic buildup.

 

Thoughts on this moving things in any direction? It’s not the x-games era of extreme sports so not sure Final X really is the best working title?

Edited January 16, 2018 by MadMardigain

[wrestlingphish 702]

“Final X is not just an event series but a status,” FloSports co-founder and CEO Martin Floreani said. “Only the best American wrestlers of our generation make it to Final X, and those that become Final X have the opportunity to represent the most glorious country on earth.”

 

I can't stop laughing at this quote. 

[MadMardigain 1,361]

“Final X is not just an event series but a status,” FloSports co-founder and CEO Martin Floreani said. “Only the best American wrestlers of our generation make it to Final X, and those that become Final X have the opportunity to represent the most glorious country on earth.”

 

I can't stop laughing at this quote.

Yes that’s some high quality sensationalism there. Suprised he’s not being vetted for a White House Press Secretary position or at least a circus ringmaster.

[IronChef 812]

I suppose they could have come up with a less fan-friendly format, but it would have taken some doing.

[cjc007 703]

USA Wrestling is a terrible promoter and provider of the team trials.

 

Why would they want Flo Wrestling involved in streaming the Final X?

 

Why change the format that produced the 2017 MSFS World Champions?

 

 

 

Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk

Edited January 16, 2018 by cjc007

[wrestlingphish 702]

June 9, 2018
- Men's freestyle weight classes (57 kg, 70 kg, 74 kg, 97 kg)
- Women's freestyle weight classes (55 kg, 59 kg, 68 kg)

June 16, 2018
- Men's freestyle weight classes (65 kg, 79 kg, 86 kg)
- Women's freestyle weight classes (62 kg, 72 kg, 76 kg)

June 23, 2018
- Men's freestyle weight classes (61 kg, 92 kg, 125 kg)
- Women's freestyle weight classes (50 kg, 53 kg, 57 kg, 65 kg)

 

Looking at this it means Gilman, Green, Burroughs, and Snyder will all wrestle on the same weekend. I wonder what location they will pick.

Edited January 16, 2018 by wrestlingphish

[mspart 201]

So the finals of the WTT is now going to be at 3 different locations.  So all one would see at any one would not be a tourney, but a round robin of the two contestants of 1/3 of the weights.  Is that correct?  Seems kind of weird to me.  I'd rather they did the WTT tourney day 1, and the finals on day 2 - all weights.  Left out was who gets to go to the WTT trials. 

 

So for Burroughs' weight for example, the winner of US Nationals gets nothing other than the title of US National Champion.  He doesn't get to go to the Final X because Burroughs has that.  The champion then has to compete in the WTT and win that to go face Burroughs at some future date. 

 

But for a weight without a World medalist, the winner of US Nationals goes to the final and then the winner of WTT trials goes to the final, which final will be held at some future date. 

 

Do I have that right?

 

mspart

[rpm002 169]

There 3 main events:  US Open (Vegas in April), WTT Challenge (MN in May), and Final X (3 Saturdays in June, locations TBD)

 

The top 7 from the US Open (plus NCAA Champs and some others) get into the Challenge tournament as usual but what's different is that the challenge tournament is not the end. 

 

World Medalists (Gilman, Green, Burroughs, Snyder, Cox, Gwiz) can skip the US Open AND Challenge Tournament and go straight to the Final X, which is a best of 3 tournament on 3 different dates. (since none of these guys even have to compete in the Challenge tournament, none of them will be at either the US Open or the Challenge Tournament).  At these weights, the US Open winner gets a bye to the Challenge Tournament final 

 

For the weights that don't have a world medalist, the Final X will be the US Open champion (this person doesn't have to go to the challenge tournament either) vs. the Challenge tournament winner.

 

So it seems like the biggest fault is from the fan's perspective.... if you want to go to one event and see the best wrestlers in the country, what do you go to?  1 of the Final X dates and only see 6-12 MFS matches?  The US Open and miss all the World Medalists?  The Challenge tournament and miss all the World Medalists and some of the US Open winners?  This method seems OK competitively, but it sure does space out the process.

Edited January 16, 2018 by rpm002

[nom 984]

Ok, so for an individual weight class, the best of three series is all done on one day. That’s good. I thought I had heard one weight class would be spread over three dates. Yuck.

 

Still - Not sure why all weight class could not be done on one day for all weights. Perhaps when combine styles it is too much? Have three mats going. One Greco, one women’s, one men’s. 30 matches at most per mat. X 11 minutes per match on average = 330 minutes which is 5.5 hours. Seems like an upper bound. Not all will go to best of three.

 

That event would be worth a plane ticket.

[Housebuye 2,225]

This takes away the advantage of the word medalist being better rested than their opponent. That is the only improvement for this system.

 

Why would they make a change to the system that produced the world champs last year? What the hell?

[TripNSweep 510]

This sounds idiotic.  Do they really think people are going to travel to all 3 or is this Flo's idea because they want to charge 3x as much as they normally would for one event?  

[CA_Wrestler 265]

So, 100-200 people per event across the country instead of a few thousand at one event?

[tbert 561]

Seems like a complicated scheme to get Kyle dake on a world team.

Edited January 16, 2018 by tbert

[cjc007 703]

Seems like a complicated scheme to get Kyle dake on a world team.

It's really for Davey Taylor. Read between the lines!

 

Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk

[mspart 201]

Well, I think this is all screwed up.  First of all, I want to see all the wrestlers.  Not some subset.  I would like to see the US Nationals but with the way it is arranged, not really now.  The WTT trials will probably be the best show with so much at stake.  The Final X I don't see where this will get much headway.  They'll probably lose money on the whole deal.  The trials should stay the way they are with this change - Hold the whole tourney on one day, finals the next day.  There, solved.  That was the setup when they ran it in 1999 in Seattle WA.  By the way, when will it be back here anyway!!

 

mspart

[ThorsteinV 76]

This is obviously a step in the right direction.  Hopefully, they'll get it entirely right next year with all ten Final X weights contested on ten consecutive weekends in ten different cities!

[rpm002 169]

Pros:

-More high level events

-More cities get to host/be part of the process

-Final X is on a more level playing field (equally rested)

 

Cons: 

-No single event will have even half of the top 10 American wrestlers.

-Lots of weight on single US Open final (why not make those best of 3?)

-Rest disadvantage still a factor for some (since US Open winner goes to Challenge tournament final at some weights)

-Can make team without ever completing a 2 day weigh in

[Glane18 73]

I'm just glad the best of 3 finals is not on the same day as the WTT.  
 

 

Question:

If Kyle Dake wins the U.S. Open, and then goes and wins the WTT, does he not wrestle at the X thing because his weight class does not have a returning medalist?  Who would they choose for Dake to wrestle if he wins both?  

[ThorsteinV 76]

I'm just glad the best of 3 finals is not on the same day as the WTT.  

 

 

Question:

If Kyle Dake wins the U.S. Open, and then goes and wins the WTT, does he not wrestle at the X thing because his weight class does not have a returning medalist?  Who would they choose for Dake to wrestle if he wins both?  

If he wins the U.S. Open, then he goes directly to the Final X thing; where he'll wrestle the winner of the WTT challenge tournament. 

[MadMardigain 1,361]

This sounds idiotic. Do they really think people are going to travel to all 3 or is this Flo's idea because they want to charge 3x as much as they normally would for one event?

Well Flo won’t be charging 3x as much it requires their standard annual subscription to watch. And there would be just as many added subscribers from having it all in one as they will from it being spread out between 3 events. So not sure it’s helping them any other than claiming they have high event viewing over multiple streams for the sake of any investor interest. If you include any setup and travel costs Flo would had they probably are not making as much money as if this was all done in one venue.

 

 

Also, I’m all for the final 2 of 3 series being on a different day or if they think it helps promotion to have it different weekend in another city. But spreading it out in 4 different places (wtt + 3 different finals) seems unnecessary.

Edited January 16, 2018 by MadMardigain

[steamboat_charlie 727]

Well, what the hell.  Let's give it a shot.  

[MadMardigain 1,361]

Is it best 2 of 3 in the US Open finals since that winner, at some weights, advanced to the Final X event? Is it best 2 of 3 at WTT since that winner also advanced to the Final x event? I’d think with that much on the line and since the Final X is a completely different weekend having 2 of 3 to determine who advances to Final X maybe warranted.

[sgallan 592]

I can see the spreading out things so guys don't have to grind through the challenge tournament and then have to win two more, but this spreading it out thingy is just weird.

[rpm002 169]

Seems like US Open final is a single match (as it has always been), but Challenge Finals and Final X are best out of 3.

 

Burroughs and many others got a bye to the final because he won a single US Open match, so on that point it really isn't a change from the status quo.

Edited January 17, 2018 by rpm002

[Slideby89 1]

Does anyone know why the Greco team isn't doing their selection process this way? I know its ultimately up the the head coach, but you'd think they would want the exposure.