Wrestling has long been one of the sports in that Iowan athletes have excelled.
Names like Dan Gable, Jim Zalesky, and Tom Brands have gone down in history as being among the state’s sporting legends. Could David Carr soon join them?
Excited to compete soon !! Truly blessed can’t thank God enough for the opportunity’s he has given me. I’m simply trusting in his plan !! 🙌🏾🙏🏾 pic.twitter.com/QGoBWUID1k
— David Carr (@Carrchamp) October 16, 2022
Who Is David Carr?
A freestyle and folkstyle wrestler from Canton, David Carr was the 2019 Junior World Champion at 74 kilograms as part of the US team. He’s also an NCAA Division I National Champion and is the 16th Cyclone to have been a Big 12 Conference winner on three occasions, as well as being an All-American.
He represents Iowa State University after winning four state titles in Ohio while attending Perry High School. This success meant that he was the second-highest-ranked recruit in the country and the top-ranked recruit in the 165-pound category. He had several options but decided to join Iowa state.
As a Cyclone, David wrestled at 157 pounds on his arrival in 2017 and he quickly racked up an excellent record as a redshirt, with a 23-1 record as he won four out of the five tournaments he competed in.
.@carterstarocci, @Carrchamp, @tony25_8, @varujau lead strong U.S. men’s freestyle team at U23 World @Wrestling Championships in Spain #WrestlePontevedra
READ: https://t.co/Dm6M8RyTp8 pic.twitter.com/pDGZrvVvfh
— USA Wrestling (@USAWrestling) October 12, 2022
Title Collector
His freshman season with the Cyclones ended with an 18-1 record and David was only the fifth freshman in Iowa State history to claim a Big 12 Conference title, before being named an All-American. After the Covid-interrupted season, his sophomore season was a triumph thanks to a 12-0 record. David collected his second Big 12 title in a row and also got his very first NCAA Championship.
His Big 12 title in 2022 came when he was up against Jared Franek from North Dakota State. This was the second consecutive year that the two wrestlers met at this stage, and David won by the same 8-2 score on both occasions. This brought him up to a 21-0 record for the season and made him one of the 8 Cyclones to qualify automatically for the NCAA Championships.
However, last March then turned into a difficult time for David Carr, as he was forced to go through a series of wrestlebacks to earn third place at the NCAA Championships, a tough feat that he achieved.
𝗢𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗵𝘂𝗻𝘁.@Carrchamp
🌪🚨🌪 pic.twitter.com/5wMVqCMtLv
— Iowa State Wrestling (@CycloneWR) October 14, 2022
A Star In The Making
This came after Hunter Willits from Oregon State ended his impressive winning streak of 55 matches in the second round, which also ended his chances of winning a second national championship.
David pointed out that he was helped through the consolation matches by the support he got from backers and by his faith. He ended the tournament with a 7-2 victory against Peyton Robb from Nebraska to grab third place at the Championship, with the action taking place at Little Caesars Arena.
This helped make up for the disappointment of not winning another title despite being top-ranked.
He also stated that this was one of the most difficult days of his life, as he was forced through a series of tough matches despite knowing that the top prize was also already out of his reach. He then followed this up with a move from the 157 pound category to 165 pounds.
What Does the Future Hold for Him?
When asked about the weight change, David said that it felt good, that the weight increase is welcome because it lets him eat more, and that he wants to win another college Big 12 title this year. Before then, he’s representing the US at the U23 World Wrestling Championships, which are being held in Pontevedra in Spain, with the finals coming on October 23.
The Iowa State wrestler is part of a strong USA freestyle wrestling team and will compete in the 74 kg category in Pontevedra. This is his chance to follow up on the gold medal he won at the U20 level in 2019 and the bronze medal he collected a few years earlier at the U17 World championships.
Once David gets back into action for Iowa State, he’ll be joining a powerful Cyclones wrestling team that’s packed with experienced campaigners like Marcus Coleman and Younger Bastida, as well as freshmen such as Paniro Johnson and Casey Swiderski.
In fact, Casey reveals that he’s been training with David Carr lately, although he pointed out that the 20-pound weight difference makes life difficult for him. He pointed out that David doesn’t get tired and is always going forward, making him an extremely difficult opponent to challenge.
This is a gang, is you in or is you out ? pic.twitter.com/jVvUX0tHUh
— David Carr (@Carrchamp) March 23, 2021
Final Thoughts
The current U23 World Championships in Spain should give David a chance to test himself against some of the best wrestlers across the planet. However, before too long his thoughts will be back on the subject of how to bring another national title back to Iowa State.
It looks like Iowa State’s wrestling team should be in for another good season, and there’s a very good chance that David Carr is among the program’s most successful wrestlers once again.
📸📸📸 pic.twitter.com/6MXs9ilYf8
— Iowa State Wrestling (@CycloneWR) October 10, 2022
Credits on Featured Image: PxHere
