On November 14, two-time NCAA Champion Zahid Valencia wrestled his first match since his suspension due to a failed drug test earlier this year. Valencia was ranked number one in the nation at 184 pounds at the time of his suspension. He was ineligible to compete in the National Championships and the Olympic trials until they were cancelled due to COVID-19. Valencia’s suspension ended on November 11th and three days later he returned to the mat to take on four-time world champion Jordan Burroughs. 

Valencia took Burroughs down twice in the first period and took a demanding 4-0 at the end of the first period. However, Burroughs dug down deep in the second period and rallied back to win 8-5. Burroughs was able to take down Valencia early in the second period to make the score 4-2. Valencia was able to score quickly on the edge to increase his lead to three. Zahid kept looking for the duck under, but Burroughs was able to read it perfectly and was able to get behind him to score two. Burroughs pushed Valencia out of bounds. The match is now tied 5-5. Burroughs shot into Valencia’s legs and drove him out of bounds to score two and take the lead 7-5. Jordan was able to score one more on the edge to extend the margin 8-5. Valencia needed to come up clutch with just 36 seconds, but ultimately came up short. In an action packed match Flo Wrestling commentator David Bray even said, “That was like 20 minutes of wrestling condensed into six.” He spoke for a lot of wrestling fans after an exciting match.

Valencia is an extremely accomplished wrestler with an overall record of 121-3. Before his suspension he was 20-0. Valencia ranks first in career major wins and second in pins in Arizona State history. This success did not happen overnight. He started wrestling when he was just three years old, his dad forged his birth certificate to say Zahid was four so he could compete in tournaments. Valencia struggled during his first year of wrestling; Valencia ended up only winning one match and losing 18 in his first year. His dad did not want to repeat that, so he pushed Zahid to his limits to succeed. It ended up paying off as he won 22 matches and only lost four during his second year after only winning one match his first year. A huge improvement from the previous year. Zahid went on to become a four-time All-State wrestler and  three-time California state champion with an overall record of 158-1. His only High School loss came in the semi-finals in the state championship.

Zahid Valencia will compete next at the Olympic trials. He will compete for a spot on the 2021 United States Olympic team in Tokyo. He will wrestle at 86 kilograms. Zahid will wrestle David Taylor, Pat Doweny and Alex Dieringer. This would be a real feel-good moment for Zahid if he can make the Olympic team since being suspended just under a year ago.