Newton’s Wyatt Hendrickson continues wrestling takeover, earns Team USA bid
The year of Wyatt Hendrickson continues to get better and better.
The Newton native has been on a meteoric rise in the wrestling world since stunning Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson to win an NCAA championship and winning the Hodge Trophy, awarded to America’s best collegiate wrestler, in March.
Hendrickson added another accomplishment this past weekend in New Jersey when he swept Trent Hillger in a best-of-3 series in the heavyweight division at USA Wrestling’s 2025 Final X event.
The victory ensured “Captain America” — a nickname he earned for being a second Lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force — will now represent the United States on the national team at the World championships in September in Zagreb, Croatia.
After wrestling for Air Force for four years, Hendrickson completed his collegiate career this past season at Oklahoma State. He spoke after this past Saturday’s match about how he envisioned this with OSU coach David Taylor.
“When I talked to (Taylor) for the first time before I even committed, it was just always being a champion,” Hendrickson told USA Wrestling. “That was beyond NCAAs. We don’t want to just win nationals, we want to take over the world. Obviously saying that’s one thing, proving it’s another and we’re on a pretty good rolling streak right now.”
Hendrickson made short work of Hillger, a 4-time All-American who graduated from Wisconsin in 2023, in the first match, winning 10-0 on a technical fall in less than two minutes.
The second match produced fireworks, as the two heavyweights combined for 34 points in a thrilling back-and-forth affair with Hendrickson eventually pulling out a 20-14 decision.
The victory earned Hendrickson his first opportunity to wrestle for the senior national team. He has past experience representing the United States on the world stage, as he won gold at the U-23 World Championships in Albania.
This story was originally published June 16, 2025 at 6:01 AM.
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