Wrestling: Biggest bout is with big boys

The wrestling will culminate with the biggest and best bout of the Games so far as the super heavyweights round off five days of fantastic mat action.

Reigning Asian Games champion Artur Taymazov from Uzbekistan will pit his wits against Fardin Masoumi Valadi of IR Iran in the +120kg freestyle division.

Masoumi Valadi is pretty nimble on his feet for a big man, celebrating his semifinal victory over Marid Mutalimov from Kazakhstan with three somersaults.

The Iranian will have to be at his very best, though, to defeat Taymazov who is the Olympic Champion from not only Athens but Sydney as well. However, Masoumi Valadi looked handy in Thursday morning's qualification, so could Taymazov's near domination of his weight category be about to be broken?

Baek Jin Kuk of Korea is another champion from Busan 2002 who will be fighting to defend his title on Thursday evening. Baek is also the 66kg Asian Champion from 2005 and goes into his match with Takafumi Kojima of Japan as the overwhelming favourite.

Sandwiched between those two fights and third on the card will be the 84kg final which is more difficult to call but it could see more success for the Iranians.

IR Iran had a tortuous first three days in wrestling when they failed to win a single gold but turned it around on Wednesday to sweep the board winning all three gold in the 60kg, 74kg and 96kg freestyle categories.

Only Korea have more gold now with four. Iranian Reza Yardman will be trying to close the gap when he fights Zaurbek Sokhiev of Uzbekistan in the 84kg final.

Yazdani, 22, has never won a major title but does have a world championship bronze to his name from Guangzhou earlier in the year. However the Uzbek also claimed bronze at that event so they are evenly matched.

Uzbekistan, surprisingly, are still searching for their first wrestling title at Doha 2006. They have won five medals but none of them have been gold.

However, by the time Sokhiev comes to the mat the Uzbeks should have rectified that statistic by winning the opening final of the evening.

Dilshod Mansurov is the +55kg world champion and current Asian Games champion and he is a strong favourite to beat Jon Hyon Guk of DPR Korea and claim Uzbekistan's first grappling gold of the Games.

15th Asian Games, Doha 2006