Ben Davino

Ben Davino
Personal information
Full nameBenjamin Adam Davino
Born (2006-07-24) July 24, 2006
South Elgin, Illinois, U.S.
Weight61 kg (134 lb)
Websitebendavino.com
Sport
Country United States
SportWrestling
Events
Freestyle and Folkstyle
College teamOhio State
ClubOhio Regional Training Center
Coached byTom Ryan
Medal record
Men's freestyle wrestling
Representing the  United States
US Open Championships
Silver medal – second place2026 Las Vegas61 kg
Men's collegiate wrestling
Representing the Ohio State Buckeyes
NCAA Division I Championships
Silver medal – second place2026 Cleveland133 lb
Big Ten Championships
Gold medal – first place2026 State College133 lb

Benjamin Adam Davino (born July 24, 2006)[1] is an American freestyle and folkstyle wrestler who competes at 61 kilograms and 133 pounds.[2] In freestyle, he was the US National runner-up in 2026.[3]

In folkstyle, Davino was an NCAA Division I National runner-up as well as the Big Ten champion as a 19-year-old redshirt-freshman in 2025–2026, out of the Ohio State University.[4]

Career

High school

Born and raised in the state of Illinois, Davino started wrestling at the age of six, and went on to attend St. Charles East High School. With a record of 181–1, he racked up four 3A state titles by the end of his career.[5] Nationally, Davino was one of the top-ranked high schoolers, winning folkstyle tournaments such as Super 32 and Ironman, as well as freestyle tournaments such as the US Fargo National Championships and the U17 US World Team Trials.[6] At the 2023 U17 World Championships, Davino fell in the quarterfinals.[7]

In 2023, Davino, a three-time state champion at the time, committed to the Ohio State University, and graduated in 2023–2024.[8]

Ohio State University

2024–2025

Davino wore a redshirt during his first season in college and compiled a 19–1 record, claiming crowns from the Clarion Open and the Franklin & Marshall Open and posting a 4–0 mark in dual meets.[9]

Davino then made his senior freestyle debut in April 2025, at the US Open National Championships.[10] He notably defeated NCAA champion Nico Megaludis, World silver medalist Daton Fix and four-time All-American Austin DeSanto, though falling to U17 World silver medalist Jax Forrest and U17 World champion Marcus Blaze to place fourth.[11]

2025–2026

During his freshman campaign, Davino went 24–1 during regular season, before capturing the Big Ten Conference title and avenging his lone loss to Penn State's Marcus Blaze in the finals.[12] At the NCAA tournament, he made his way into the finals as the second-seed with notable wins over returning NCAA champion from Illinois Lucas Byrd and once again over Blaze.[13] In the finals, Davino was defeated by U23 World champion Jax Forrest from Oklahoma State.[14]

Davino went back to freestyle action in April 2026, making his way onto the US Open National finals after defeating Austin DeSanto for a second time and Jax Forrest in a rematch from the NCAA finals.[15] In the first-place match, he was defeated by Marcus Blaze by a score of four points to one to claim the silver medal.[16]

In May, Davino competed at the US World Team Trials Challenge, in a second attempt to qualify for Final X.[17] He took out NCAA champion Nathan Tomasello on points to set up a rematch with Forrest, where he was in the wrong end of a technical fall to place second.[18]

2026–2027

Returning to freestyle wrestling, Davino was scheduled to face RAF Bantamweight Champion Austin DeSanto for the championship.[19] However, for undisclosed reasons, the bout was removed and he instead faced four-time European champion from Armenia Arsen Harutyunyan on July 18, 2026 at RAF 11, falling on points.[20] Next, he competed at RAF 12, losing to World Champion from Japan Masanosuke Ono on points.[21]

Freestyle record


NCAA record

Stats

[22]

References

  1. ↑ "2023 U.S. U17 Men's Freestyle World Team biographies". www.themat.com. July 27, 2023. Retrieved April 25, 2026.
  2. ↑ "Despite team's bus being showered with bullets, Greeley Central's Andrew Alirez unflappable, winning Pan Am wrestling title in Brazil". Greeley Tribune. September 1, 2018. Retrieved December 16, 2023.
  3. ↑ "Six out of seven past World Teamers advance to Men's Freestyle Finals; Davino Beats Forrest in NCAA finals rematch". www.themat.com. April 25, 2026. Retrieved April 25, 2026.
  4. ↑ sports@tribdem.com, Eric Knopsnyder (March 22, 2026). "'Funkytown' phenom: Bishop McCort graduate Jax Forrest captures NCAA title as freshman for Oklahoma State". The Tribune-Democrat. Retrieved March 22, 2026.
  5. ↑ Stroll. "Fox Valley Wrestling Champion Sets Sights on NCAA Glory and Olympic Dreams". www.strollmag.com. Retrieved April 25, 2026.
  6. ↑ Bartelson, Jacob (August 4, 2022). "Wrestling: St. Charles East's Ben Davino wins Fargo National title, adds to decorated career". Shaw Local. Retrieved April 25, 2026.
  7. ↑ "Villasenor, Lockett advance to semifinals in men's freestyle at U17 World Championships". www.themat.com. August 5, 2023. Retrieved April 25, 2026.
  8. ↑ "Ben Davino's decision: Ohio State. And the St. Charles East wrestler is ready. 'I am going to pick it up pretty quickly.'". Chicago Tribune. April 7, 2023. Retrieved April 25, 2026.
  9. ↑ "Breaking down Penn State wrestling's 2025-26 schedule | NCAA.com". www.ncaa.com. Retrieved April 25, 2026.
  10. ↑ "2025 US Open Senior Level Wrestling Entries". FloWrestling.
  11. ↑ "Ben Davino named USA Wrestling Athlete of the Week presented by U.S. Air Force Special Warfare". www.themat.com. November 19, 2025. Retrieved April 25, 2026.
  12. ↑ "Mendez, Davino Win Big Ten Titles, Buckeyes Take Second". Ohio State. Retrieved May 7, 2026.
  13. ↑ Easterling, Chris. "Ohio State's Ben Davino reaches NCAA wrestling final after review". Akron Beacon Journal. Retrieved May 7, 2026.
  14. ↑ Wright, Scott. "Oklahoma State wrestling's Jax Forrest captures 133-pound title at NCAA Championships". The Oklahoman. Retrieved May 7, 2026.
  15. ↑ "Six out of seven past World Teamers advance to Men's Freestyle Finals; Davino Beats Forrest in NCAA finals rematch". www.themat.com. April 25, 2026. Retrieved May 7, 2026.
  16. ↑ "Davino Takes Second at US Open". Ohio State. Retrieved May 7, 2026.
  17. ↑ read, Jon Kozak·19 min (April 21, 2026). "2026 US Open Wrestling Championships Preview & Prediction - Men's Freestyle". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved May 17, 2026.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  18. ↑ sports@tribdem.com, Eric Knopsnyder (May 16, 2026). "Jax Forrest defeats Ben Davino for spot in Final X". The Tribune-Democrat. Retrieved May 17, 2026.
  19. ↑ rafwrestlingusa (June 19, 2026). "Austin DeSanto will defend the RAF Bantamweight Championship against Ben Davino July 18 at RAF11 in Milwaukee". instagram.com. Retrieved July 26, 2026.
  20. ↑ Tucker, Bryan (July 18, 2026). "RAF 11 Results: Tsarukyan vs. Covington". MMA Fighting: UFC, Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) News, Results. Retrieved July 20, 2026.
  21. ↑ "Penn State's Masanosuke Ono to Make Intriguing Real American Freestyle Debut". Penn State Nittany Lions On SI. July 3, 2026. Retrieved July 3, 2026.
  22. ↑ Wrestlestat.com. "Ben Davino". WrestleStat. Retrieved May 7, 2026.
This page is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.