Wyatt Hendrickson knew the odds were stacked against him going up against Gable Steveson in the 2025 NCAA Wrestling National Championship Finals.
Considering he was going up against an Olympic gold medalist, two-time National Champion, and the top wrestler in the United States, Hendrickson understood why it almost seemed destined that Steveson would leave with his hand raised. But the Air Force-to-Oklahoma State transfer says a sermon about David and Goliath he heard in church just days before he entered his final college wrestling tournament gave him the inspiration he needed to know he could topple a giant like Steveson.
“It was a vision of victory,” Hendrickson told MMA Fighting. “I kind of brought that into this week. I was like how can I apply this to my wrestling? Because you’re absolutely right. Some of those big matches, it’s like it’s already spoken for. It’s already done. So I think that’s the majority of what people were feeling about that match. Because you have this somewhat OK wrestler, a couple time All-American but then we’ve got Olympic gold medalist, multiple National Champion. People didn’t expect that to be a title fight match, so to speak, in the finals.
“I think going into this week, I knew that my mind had to be in the right place. That sermon carried me throughout the week.”
Once he got on the mat this past Saturday night, Hendrickson was fully confident that he could go toe-to-toe with Steveson and he kept the score close through three periods. With less than one minute remaining, Hendrickson was down 4-2 and that’s when he saw the opening to snatch Steveson’s leg and go for the takedown that eventually won him the match.
“Putting myself back in that moment, the match wasn’t over. I knew that,” Hendrickson said. “I knew the time was coming down. It was time for my shot. I got the leg, I got the takedown. In my brain, it was a go moment. Chop the wrist! Keep him down! The only time I really had to think was as soon as he was starting to stand up because I had a death grip on him. I felt like a python. I was wrapped around him. He’s not getting away.
“He started to get to his feet and I had two choices. I could hold him down and try to keep pushing him or I could get a big lift and return. The big lift and return probably would have been a great ending but sometimes it’s better to be safe than sorry. I knew I had a good grip on him. I knew he was feeling my pressure. It was a long 20 seconds, also, that was a long 20 seconds.”
The determination paid off after Hendrickson shut down Steveson’s escape and time ticked away to the final whistle.
“I remember as soon as I got him taken down, I made up in my mind he is not getting up,” Hendrickson said. “I said I am winning this match. It’s over but I still had to follow through with that. I can say all that stuff but I have to act on it. It was just an exciting 10 to 15 seconds but I made up my mind. This guy is not getting up. I’m finishing this right here, right now.”
As soon as the match was over, Hendrickson jumped up in celebration while just about everybody watching the finals declared his win quite possibly the biggest upset in NCAA wrestling history if not one of the most shocking upsets to ever happen in sports.
To be fair, Hendrickson wasn’t some lower seeded wrestler who unexpectedly punched his ticket to the finals and then stunned an Olympic gold medalist in the last match. Hendrickson was the No. 2-ranked wrestler heading into the tournament, but that didn’t negate the fact he was going up against one of the most accomplished athletes to compete in an NCAA tournament not to mention the history they shared before that moment.
“I’ve wrestled Gable before multiple times …the only time I was ever tech’d (technical fall) in my college career was to Gable Steveson,” Hendrickson said. “So I don’t really take any offense to that. Because if you look at the track record from any perspective of view, no matter if you’re a wrestling fan or not a wrestling fan, you know who Gable is, you look at the criteria of our records, you look at our track history, there’s a clear choice.
“I understand it completely. When people say it’s a big upset, it really was. They’re not trying to hurt me. They’re just trying to build in the gravity of Gable’s a great wrestler. I think they’re just building that factor into it.”
Following the stunning ending, the next few minutes played out like a movie with Hendrickson, still an active member of the Air Force, standing tall and saluting President Donald Trump in the crowd before embracing his friends and family standing nearby.
Truth be told, Hendrickson barely remembers his celebration because the moment overwhelmed him.
“There’s a lot of cliché terms out there but one I think is absolutely necessary for this—it was unreal,” Hendrickson said. “I mean it was so unreal, I blacked out after that match. Mentally, I was going to stand up and I was just like, wow that just happened. That was an unreal moment for me. I already kind of envisioned what I wanted to do after that match because I had that vision of victory. This is what’s going to happen, I’m going to win. I’m going to salute the commander in chief, I’m going to give my family a big hug, go see the coaches.
“Thank goodness I kind of had a somewhat mindset of what I wanted to do because then my body just took over. It was a complete sense of gratitude. It felt unreal.”
With the win, Hendrickson has received more attention in the past few days than he did during his entire college wrestling career. But just because he’s suddenly become a household name doesn’t mean the work has stopped.
Hendrickson was already back in the gym to begin working towards his next goal—a spot on the 2028 Olympic wrestling team, which almost certainly puts him right back in Steveson’s path again.
“Obviously next steps, we’re going to take it year by year,” Hendrickson said. “There’s still competitions I can compete in to make these World teams so the immediate future is back to training. I just got out of training 45 minutes ago. The training is not going to stop. I think it’s great to celebrate a little bit but obviously, there’s no time to let off the gas. I think we’ve gotten the momentum rolling and we’re just going to carry that through. There’s a lot of things I can fix in my wrestling and you’re never going to reach the top of the mountain. I’m just excited to keep growing as a wrestler.
“Now there is a new big goal. Obviously, this year was be a National Champion—well now the overarching goal for the next couple of years is going to be becoming an Olympic champion.”
Because he’s a wrestler and considering he just took down an Olympic gold medalist who has often talked about eventually fighting in MMA, Hendrickson also addressed his own interest in the sport.
While a history of concussions led to Hendrickson putting an early end to his football career in high school, the latest National Champion wrestler isn’t closing the door on any options and that includes a potential move into MMA one day.
“I quit football at an early age, my freshman year of high school. I was only 160 pounds at the time but God gifted me with one body and I want to make sure I take care of it,” Hendrickson said. “Obviously, I want to live my life happily. I don’t want to put myself in a situation where I’m putting my life at risk. It’s not worth that much.
“If I’m going to put myself in a situation where that might be at risk, we’ll see. I think for the foreseeable future, my wrestling career is going to be a big thing. I might start doing some cross-training, that might be exciting. Maybe do a little bit of training, link up with some MMA people, and maybe just feel it out and see where the next path takes me. For sure, right now, I’m just focused on wrestling and I’m going to have my military career following these four years of wrestling. I am active duty right now. I’m in the world-class athlete program, very blessed, very fortunate I’ve been picked up for this program. But after that obviously, I’m going to go do another job that’s not wrestling in the Air Force.”
