Photo: Tony Rotundo

Kyle Dake is going back to a World final. The four-time World champion beat Russia's Ibragim Kadiev 6-3 in Friday's 86kg semifinals in Astana, getting him back for a loss at the Muhamet Malo Ranking Series tournament in February.

Dake Wrestles for Title No. 5

Dake went 5-0 on Friday. He survived a 6-5 opener against Mongolia's Batbilguun Naadambat, teched Lithuania's Paulius Lescauskas 13-2 and Kazakhstan's Bolat Sakayev 11-0, and beat Kyrgyzstan's Malik Shavaev 6-2 in the quarterfinals before handling Kadiev.

He meets Azerbaijan's Arsenii Dzhioev for gold on Saturday at about 9:59 AM ET. A win would give Dake his fifth World title and make him a World champion at a third different weight class, after titles at 79kg (2018, 2019) and 74kg (2021, 2022).

Hendrickson and Retherford Fall in the Semis

Wyatt Hendrickson (125kg) teched his first three opponents, including an 11-0 win over Bahrain's Shamil Sharipov, a 2025 World medalist. Iran's Amir Hossein Zare, the three-time and defending World champion, then teched him 10-0 in the semifinals. Hendrickson wrestles for bronze Saturday at about 9:07 AM ET.

Zain Retherford (70kg) pinned his first two opponents and shut out Azerbaijan's Kanan Heybatov 7-0 in the quarterfinals before a 3-2 loss to Kyrgyzstan's Ernazar Akmataliev in the semis. The 2023 World champion wrestles for bronze Saturday at about 9:17 AM ET, a win away from his third World medal.

Marcus Blaze Gets a Second Life

Blaze lost 3-2 to Iran's Ahmad Mohammadnezhadjavan in the 61kg quarterfinals, and the Iranian reached the final, pulling Blaze back into repechage. He faces India's Nikhil overnight, at about 1:37 AM ET Saturday. A win puts him in a bronze-medal match Saturday morning.

Saturday's Schedule (ET)

Saturday morning also opens the last four men's freestyle weights, with Spencer Lee (57kg), James Green (74kg), Levi Haines (79kg) and Trent Hidlay (92kg) starting at 1:30 AM ET. Follow every American live on our Team USA Senior Worlds tracker.