Nahshon Garrett, 29, defeated Daton Fix, 12-4, at the 2023 WTT Challenge in Colorado Springs, Colorado, to secure his spot at Final X 2023.

Along with the spot at Final X presented by Tezos, the victory helped earn Garrett the USA Wrestling Athlete of the Week honor May 23.

Subscribe to FloWrestling and the FloSports app to watch Final X Wrestling 

Gable Steveson Could Join The Most Exclusive Club In Wrestling

2023 Final X Wrestling Matchups

Garrett was the 61kg winner at Final X in 2018 but was unable to compete in the Senior World Championships due to injury.

His Final X opponent this year will be Vito Arujau, who was the 61kg at the 2023 U.S. Open Wrestling Championships in Las Vegas. Arujau defeated Austin Desanto to advance to Final X.

This year’s edition of Final X will take place at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, on June 10. The event will feature the top two wrestlers at every weight class in a best-of-three series, with the winners making the 2023 United States World Team. 

The world team will travel to Belgrade, Serbia, to compete at the 2023 Senior World Championships from Sept. 16-24. 

Check below for the current matchups for Final X and a brief explanation of how each wrestler qualified for the 2023 event.

Here’s what to know about Nahshon Garrett:

Nahshon Garrett And Opponent Have Something In Common

Like his Final X 2023 opponent, Vito Arujau, Garrett also excelled on the mat for Cornell University, where he was a four-time All-American and the 2016 NCAA champion at 133 pounds.

Garrett also was a two-time Ivy League Wrestler of the Year and a four-time All-Ivy first-team selection. His collegiate record was 149-12, including a 37-0 run during the 2015-2016 season.

Prior to attending Cornell, Garrett picked up a pair of state wrestling titles in California (2010, 2011) while wrestling for Chico High School. He won at 103 and 112 pounds, respectively.

Nahshon Garrett Is A Hall Of Famer

In 2022, Garrett was inducted into the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association Hall of Fame.

While at Cornell, he earned four EIWA titles. 

At the EIWA Championships in 2015, after his third win, he took home the John Fletcher Trophy for most career points scored at the event. As a senior, he won another EIWA title and was named Outstanding Wrestler of the tournament. 

Nahshon Garrett Withdrew From 2018 World Championships

In October 2018, Garrett officially withdrew from the 2018 World Championships.

While preparing with training partner Zane Richards, Garrett tore his pectoral muscle and immediately went in for surgery. 

He was replaced by Joe Colon, whom he defeated at Final X that year in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

Garrett, his high school coaches and some friends from California made the trip to Budapest, Hungary, anyway to experience the World Championships in whatever capacity they could.

Nahshon Garrett Wrestling Ranking 

In the most recent Domestic Men’s Freestyle rankings on FloWrestling, Garrett ranked fifth in the 61kg weight class. 

Here are the top 5: 

1. Vito Arujau 
2. Austin Desanto
3. Seth Gross
4. Daton Fix
5. Nahshon Garrett

Here are the complete rankings.

How Wrestlers Qualify For Final X Wrestling 2023

A wrestler can qualify for Final X in one of three ways.

First, all 2022 senior world medalists automatically qualified for Final X. There were seven wrestlers in men’s freestyle, six in women’s freestyle and zero in Greco-Roman who met this criterion.

Next, all champions from the 2023 US Open (held April 26-30) automatically qualified for Final X.

Finally, for the weights that didn’t have a returning world medalist, the World Team Trials Challenge Tournament (May 20-21) champion will earn a spot in Final X. 

Men’s Freestyle Matchups At Final X Wrestling 2023

• 57 kg: *Thomas Gilman vs Zane Richards
• 61 kg: Vito Arujau vs Nahshon Garrett
• 65 kg: *Yianni Diakomihalis vs Nick Lee
• 70 kg: *Zain Retherford vs Tyler Berger
• 74 kg: *Kyle Dake vs Jason Nolf
• 79 kg: *Jordan Burroughs vs Chance Marsteller
• 86 kg: *David Taylor vs Aaron Brooks
• 92 kg: Michael Macchiavello vs Zahid Valencia
• 97kg: *Kyle Snyder vs J’den Cox
• 125 kg: Gable Steveson vs Mason Parris

*Denotes 2022 World Medalist

Women’s Freestyle Matchups At Final X Wrestling 2023

• 50 kg: *Sarah Hildebrandt vs Audrey Jimenez
• 53 kg: *Dominique Parrish vs Katie Gomez
• 55 kg: Alisha Howk vs Jacarra Winchester
• 57 kg: *Helen Maroulis vs Xochitl Mota-Pettis 
• 59 kg: Michaela Beck vs Jennifer Page
• 62 kg: *Kayla Miracle vs Adaugo Nwachukwu
• 65 kg: Mallory Velte vs Macey Kilty
• 68 kg: Forrest Molinari vs Emma Bruntil
• 72 kg: *Amit Elor vs Joye Levendusky
• 76 kg: Kennedy Blades vs. Adeline Gray

*Denotes 2022 World Medalist

Men’s Greco-Roman Matchups At Final X Wrestling 2023

• 55 kg: Brady Koontz vs Dalton Duffield
• 60 kg: Dalton Roberts vs Ildar Hafizov
• 63 kg: Hayden Tuma vs Xavier Johnson
• 67 kg: Robert Perez III vs Alejandro Sancho
• 72 kg: Justus Scott vs Patrick Smith
• 77 kg: Kamal Bey vs Aliaksandr Kikiniou
• 82 kg: Spencer Woods vs Ryan Epps
• 87 kg: Alan Vera vs Zachary Braunagel
• 97 kg: Josef Rau vs Christian Dulaney
• 130 kg: Cohlton Schultz vs Adam Coon

How To Watch Final X Wrestling 2023 

Final X will stream live on FloWrestling and the FloSports app. 

FloWresting also will serve as home of match archives and provide the latest news from Final X.