Pat Downey (wrestler)

James Patrick Downey III (born August 7, 1992) is an American freestyle wrestler. He is the 19' US World Team Member at 86 kilograms and a Pan American Games medalist.

Pat Downey

Personal information
Full name	James Patrick Downey III
Nationality	American
Born	(1992-08-07) August 7, 1992 Baltimore, Maryland, United States
Residence	Randolph, New Jersey, United States
Weight	86 kg (190 lb)
Sport
Country	United States
Sport	Wrestling
Event(s)	Freestyle
College team	Iowa State Cyclones
Club	Titan Mercury Wrestling Club
Coached by	Bill Zadick
Medal record Men's freestyle wrestling Representing  United States Pan American Games 2019 Lima 86 kg Junior World Championships 2012 Pattaya 84 kg Collegiate Wrestling Representing the Iowa State Cyclones Big 12 Championships 2016 Kansas City 197 lb

Folkstyle career

High School

Downey attended North County High School, where he was a three-sport athlete, competing in wrestling, football and lacrosse. After placing third at the MPSSAA championships as a freshman, he went on to win the tournament every year and also won the NHSCA and USAW National Championships before his graduation in 2011. As a football player, he set a school record for total offense in a game with 420 total yards on 315 yards passing and 105 yards rushing his senior year and was one of three Maryland prep quarterbacks selected to the prestigious Super-22 Team.[1]

College

University of Nebraska

After being invited to train at the United States Olympic Training Center by Bobby Douglas, he started residing and training in there. During his stay, he met Olympic Gold medalist and University of Nebraska graduate Jordan Burroughs, who played a big part on Downey's recruiting. He was accepted by the Nebraska Cornhuskers and was supposed to attend the University of Nebraska, but as a recently-turned 21 year-old, he got sidetracked on partying. This caused head coach Mark Manning's decision of cutting Downey off the team, suggesting him to start a mixed martial arts career as he had demonstrated an expeditiously problematic behavior.[2]

Iowa Central Community College

After his deflected time at UNL, Downey attended Iowa Central Community College, an NJCAA level school. As a redshirt freshman competing at 197 pounds, he compiled an undefeated record and became the 15' NJCAA champion (helping the Tritons reach the team championship).[3] He also went 10-1 against NCAA Division I competition, recording notable victories over Hawkeyes, Cornhuskers, Quakers, Sun Devils, etcetera.[4]

Iowa State University

After putting things back on track, Downey was given two options; Iowa State University and University of Iowa. He ended up deciding to wear the Cyclones' cardinal and gold clothes. Some of the factors of his decision were his connections with coaches Kevin Jackson and Trent and Travis Paulson and his preference of the teammates.[2] During his sophomore season (2015-16), he competed just three times and lost one of the matches, but still was the starter for the post-season at 197 pounds.[1] He placed third at the Big 12 Conference championships[5] and entered the NCAA championships unseeded.[6] He performed greatly, taking out multiple high-seeded wrestlers to place fifth, earning All-American honors.[7][8]

As a junior, he was finding high success at 184 pounds during the regular season, posting seven wins and no losses.[1] On February 23, 2017, it was announced that Downey had been kicked off the wrestling team due to "repeated violations of team rules", as quoted by head coach Kevin Jackson.[9][10] Despite some talks about a potential run as an Iowa Hawkeye, this finished Downey's collegiate wrestling career and he earned his degree from ISU via online courses.[11]

Freestyle career

Junior

Downey was a standout junior level freestyle wrestler until 2014, year in which his eligibility to compete at this level expired. After failing to make the 2012 Senior Olympic Team, he made the Junior World Team and went on to win a silver medal at the World Championships.[12] He was also a FILA & USAW National Champion.[13]

Senior

Downey is currently competing in the senior level.[13]

2011-2016

He made his debut in 2011 (fresh out of high school) at the OTT qualifiers in an attempt to make the Olympic Team, but was unsuccessful after losing in the first round to eventual UFC champion and then NCAA DII champion Kamaru Usman.[14] He competed just once between 2012 and 2013 and made his return in 2014.[15] In this year, he won the Northern Plains tournament,[16] placed sixth at the University Nationals[17] and attended the World Team Trials.[18] A year later, he competed at the ASICS US Nationals, the Northern Plains and the Bill Farrell Memorial but did not place[15], unlike the University Nationals in where he placed fourth.[19] In 2016 he just wrestled one match.[20]

2017-2018

In 2017 he made a return to freestyle in big fashion with a fifth place finish at the US Open, which qualified him for the World Team Trials.[21] At the WTT he defeated two-time All-American turned MMA fighter Kyle Crutchmer but subsequently dropped his next two bouts.[22] To close the year, he racked up a bronze medal from the Dave Schultz Memorial Invitational.[23] In 2018 he once again placed at the US Open[24] and (unlike last year) at the World Team Trials.[25]

2019-2020

Downey completed his best year of competition as of now in 2019, as he racked up titles from the Dave Schultz Memorial International[26] and the US Open[27] and made the World Team after defeating Nick Heflin in the challenge finals and the defending World Champion David Taylor could not make it to Final X.[28] After successfully making the team, Downey won a prestigious Pan American Games medal[29] and went 2-1 at the World Championships.[30] He then participated in a Super Fight against the accomplished submission grappler Nick Rodriguez, whom he teched after scoring 12 points to none.[31]

In 2020, he won a bronze medal at the Matteo Pellicone Ranking Series in Italy[32] and had a brief appearance at the Ivan Yarygin Golden Grand Prix.[33] In February he competed at a special event where he faced the man often referred as "Greatest Submission Grappler of All Time"[34][35][36] Gordon Ryan. This event consisted on a freestyle wrestling match and a submission grappling match. Downey won the first bout in twenty seconds and Ryan submitted Downey in the second one.[37] He was then slated to rematch Nick Rodriguez with submission grappling rules on March,[38] but the event was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[39]

Downey was scheduled to compete at the 20' US Olympic Team Trials on April 4 at State College, Pennsylvania.[40] However, the event was postponed for 2021 along with the Summer Olympics due to the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving all the qualifiers unable to compete.[41]

After the Olympic Trials were postponed, Downey participated in the first wrestling event of the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic on June 28, at Rumble on the Rooftop. He faced Greco-Roman World Team Member Joe Rau in a mixed-rules match, this consisted in one period of Greco-Roman rules and other of freestyle rules, with no technical falls. After choosing Greco-Roman in the first period, Downey was down 9 points to none and could just pick up four points during the freestyle period, dropping the match 4-9.[42]

On July 7, the New Jersey Regional Training Center announced that they had cut ties with Downey due to negative comments towards Greco-Roman and women's wrestling.[43]

Downey was scheduled to face 18' World Champion David Taylor on July 25 at FloWrestling: Dake vs. Chamizo.[44] On July 12, he announced that he had withdrawn from the bout due to problems with the organization.[45]

Mixed martial arts career

Downey is currently signed with Paradigm Sport Management[46] and has trained with Colby Covington, former UFC interim champion who attended Iowa Central and won an NJCAA championship just like Downey.[47] He is expected to make the transition into mixed martial arts once his freestyle career is over.[48][49]

Freestyle record

Senior Freestyle Matches
Res.	Record	Opponent	Score	Date	Event	Location
2020 BJJ Fanatics Grand Prix
Win	60-36	Gordon Ryan	TF 11-0	February 29, 2020	2020 BJJ Fanatics Grand Prix	Beverly, Massachusetts
2020 Ivan Yarygin Grand Prix 14th at 86kg
Loss	59-36	Soslan Ktsoyev	6-6	January 23-26, 2020	2020 Ivan Yarygin Golden Grand Prix	Krasnoyarsk, Russia
2020 Matteo Pellicone RS at 86kg
Win	59-35	Illia Archaia	13-7	January 15-18, 2020	2020 Matteo Pellicone Ranking Series	Rome, Italy
Loss	58-35	Alex Dieringer	2-3
Win	58-34	Ethan Ramos	9-5
Win	57-34	Osman Göcen	12-5
2019 Who's Number One at 65 kg
Win	56-34	Nick Rodriguez	TF 12-0	October 4-5, 2019	2019 Who's Number One	Iowa City, Iowa
2019 World Championships 9th at 86 kg
Loss	55-34	Ahmed Dudarov	TF 0-13	September 14-22, 2019	2019 World Championships	Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan
Win	55-33	Zbigniew Baranowski	8-2
Win	54-33	Hovhannes Mkhitaryan	TF 11-1
2019 Pan American Games at 86 kg
Win	53-33	Alexander Moore	Fall	August 7-10, 2019	2019 Pan American Games	Lima, Peru
Loss	52-33	Yurieski Torreblanca	2-7
Win	52-32	Angus Arthur	TF 14-3
2019 Yasar Dogu 5th at 86 kg
Loss	51-32	Osman Göcen	6-7	July 11-14, 2019	2019 Yasar Dogu Grand Prix	Istanbul, Turkey
Loss	51-31	Deepak Punia	5-11
2019 US World Team Trials at 86kg
Win	51-30	Nick Heflin	4-0	May 17-19, 2019	2019 US World Team Trials Challenge	Raleigh, North Carolina
Win	50-30	Nick Heflin	6-2
2019 US Open at 86 kg
Win	49-30	Nick Heflin	10-4	April 24-27, 2019	2019 U.S Open Wrestling Championships	Las Vegas, Nevada
Win	48-30	Myles Martin	9-7
Win	47-30	Kenneth Courts	9-4
Win	46-30	Kevin Parker	Fall
Win	45-30	Pat Romero	TF 13-0
Win	44-30	Cameron Caffey	10-4
2019 Granma y Cerro Pelado 7th at 86 kg
Loss	43-30	Yorli Jimenez		February 15-23, 2019	2019 Granma y Cerro Pelado	Havana, Cuba
Loss	43-29	Yurieski Torreblanca
2019 Dave Schultz M. International at 86 kg
Win	43-28	Kenneth Courts	TF 12-2	January 24-26, 2019	2019 Dave Schultz Memorial International	Colorado Springs, Colorado
Win	42-28	Brett Pfarr	7-4
Win	41-28	Josh Asper	6-4
2018 Alany 12th at 86 kg
Loss	40-28	Slavik Naniev	4-7	December 7-9, 2018	2018 Alany Tournament	Vladikavkaz, Russia
2018 US World Team Trials 4th at 86kg
Loss	40-27	Richard Perry	4-7	July 23, 2018	2018 US World Team Trials True Thirds	Bethlehem, Pennsylvania
Win	40-26	Joe Rau	7-0	May 20, 2018	2018 US World Team Trials Challenge	Rochester, Minnesota
Win	39-26	Ryan McWatters	10-5
Loss	38-26	Joe Rau	2-7
2018 US Open 7th at 86 kg
Win	38-25	Brandon Supernaw	TF 10-0	April 24-28, 2018	2018 U.S Open Wrestling Championships	Las Vegas, Nevada
Loss	37-25	Nick Reenan	Fall
Win	37-24	Noe Garcia	Fall
Win	36-24	Anthony Lodermeier	TF 12-2
Loss	35-24	Dominic Ducharme	10-18
2017 Dave Schultz M. Invitational at 86 kg
Win	35-23	Takahiro Murayama	TF 10-0	November 1-4, 2017	2017 Dave Schultz Memorial Invitational	Colorado Springs, Colorado
Loss	34-23	Richard Perry	1-2
Win	34-22	Kim Gwan-uk	2-1
Loss	33-22	Aleksander Musalaliev	2-3
2017 US World Team Trials at 86 kg
Loss	33-21	Austin Trotman	5-14	June 9-10, 2017	2017 US World Team Trials Challenge	Lincoln, Nebraska
Loss	33-20	David Taylor	TF 0-10
Win	33-19	Kyle Crutchmer	TF 14-1
2017 US Open 5th at 86 kg
Win	32-19	Kyle Crutchmer	7-3	April 26-29, 2017	2017 U.S Open Wrestling Championships	Las Vegas, Nevada
Loss	31-19	Bo Nickal	TF 2-12
Win	31-18	Gabe Dean	7-6
Win	30-18	Josh Asper	7-2
Loss	29-18	David Taylor	TF 0-10
Win	29-17	Peter Renda	9-6
Win	28-17	Ryan McWatters	TF 14-4
Win	27-17	Vic Avery	6-4
2016 Poland Open 14th at 86 kg
Loss	26-17	Fırat Binici	3-6	June 15-17, 2016	2016 Poland Open, Ziolkowski & Pytlasinski	Spala, Poland
2015 Bill Farrell International Open at 86 kg
Loss	26-16	Richard Perry	7-8	November 5-7, 2015	2015 Bill Farrell International Open	New York City, New York
Win	26-15	Tyler Caldwell	7-4
Win	25-15	Tyrel Todd	11-6
Win	24-15	Alireza Asadinia	Fall
Loss	23-15	Ryan Loder	12-16
Win	23-14	Gwon Hyeok-beom	9-5
2015 University Nationals 4th at 86kg
Loss	22-14	Ryan Loder	5-5	May 28-31, 2015	2015 US University National Championships	Akron, Ohio
Win	22-13	Sam Brooks	7-7
Win	21-13	Aaron Studebaker	TF 10-0
Win	20-13	Glenn Climmons	8-5
Loss	19-13	Hayden Zillmer	5-8
Win	19-12	Montrail Johnson	TF 10-0
Win	18-12	Nicholas Veling	TF 12-2
Win	17-12	Lawrence Thomas	8-4
2015 Northern Plains at 86 kg
Loss	16-12	Victor Terrell	3-7	May 14-16, 2015	2015 Northern Plains	Waterloo, Iowa
Win	16-11	Cody Caldwell	TF 12-1
Win	15-11	Dane Pestano	TF 10-0
2015 ASICS US Nationals at 86 kg
Loss	14-11	Richard Perry	Fall	May 5-9, 2015	2015 ASICS US Senior Nationals	Las Vegas, Nevada
Win	14-10	Robert Hamlin	6-5
Win	13-10	Adam Fierro	7-2
Loss	12-10	Deron Winn	1-7
Win	12-9	Quentin Wright	Fall
2014 US World Team Trials at 86 kg
Loss	11-9	Enock Francois	Fall	May 29 - June 1, 2014	2014 US World Team Trials	Madison, Wisconsin
Loss	11-8	Robert Hamlin	5-7
2014 University Nationals 6th at 86kg
Loss	11-7	Chris Perry	4-10	May 22-25, 2014	2014 US University National Championships	Akron, Ohio
Win	11-6	John Lampe	TF 10-0
Win	10-6	Kenneth Courts	17-13
Win	9-6	Rory Bonner	TF 11-1
Win	8-6	Trent Noon	6-4
2014 Northern Plains at 86 kg
Win	7-6	Bruce Toal	TF 11-1	May 8-10, 2014	2014 Northern Plains	Waterloo, Iowa
Win	6-6	Justin Koethe	TF 11-0
Win	5-6	Dan Olsen	Fall
2012 NYAC International at 84 kg
Loss	4-6	Tamerlan Tagziev	0-5, 0-5	November 8-10, 2012	2012 NYAC Holiday International Open	New York City, New York
Win	4-5	Mathieu Deschatelets	4-1, 6-0
Loss	3-5	Selim Yaşar	0-3, 2-1, 0-1
2011 US OTT Qualifier at 84 kg
Loss	3-4	Evan Brown	1-0, 0-1, 0-4	December 3, 2011	2011 US Olympic Team Trials Qualifier	Las Vegas, Nevada
Win	3-3	Cody Powers	Fall
Loss	2-3	Kamaru Usman	1-1, 3-3, 0-4
2011 NYAC International at 84 kg
Loss	2-2	Kurt Brenner	1-3, 4-0, 3-5	November 11-13, 2011	2011 NYAC Holiday International Open	New York City, New York
Win	2-1	Eyad Abujaradeh	1-0, 5-0
Loss	1-1	Bryce Hasseman	1-1, 0-4
Win	1-0	Nathanael Ackerman	1-0, 4-3

NCAA record

NCAA Championships Matches
Res.	Record	Opponent	Score	Date	Event
2016 NCAA Championships 5th at 197 lbs
Win	5-2	Jared Haught	Fall	March 15-17, 2016	2016 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships
Loss	4-2	Nathan Burak	SV-1 1-3
Win	4-1	Brett Harner	3-2
Win	3-1	Shawn Scott	5-3
Loss	2-1	Brett Pfarr	MD 3-12
Win	2-0	Jared Haught	TB-1 Fall
Win	1–0	Phil Wellington	SV-1 3-1

Stats

Season	Year	School	Rank	Weigh Class	Record	Win	Bonus
2017	Junior	Iowa State University	#7 (DNQ)	184	7-0	100.00%	57.14%
2016	Sophomore		#5 (5th)	197	11-4	73.33%	13.33%
2015	Freshman	Iowa Central Community College	NR		10-1	90.91%	36-36%
Career					28-5	84.85%	30.30%

References

1. "Patrick Downey III - Wrestling". Iowa State University Athletics. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
2. "Iowa State's Pat Downey ready to make use of second chance to wrestle at Division I level". Team USA.
3. "Tritons of Iowa Central claim seventh NJCAA Wrestling title". NJCAA. 2015-03-01. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
4. LLC, ACS. "Patrick Downey (Unknown) Profile". www.wrestlestat.com. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
5. Daily, Brian Mozey/Iowa State. "Iowa State places third at Big 12 Wrestling Championships". Iowa State Daily. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
6. grappleCy (2016-03-09). "2016 D1 NCAA Wrestling Championship Brackets". Wide Right & Natty Lite. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
7. grappleCy (2016-03-21). "2016 NCAA Wrestling Championships Recap". Wide Right & Natty Lite. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
8. "2015-16 Wrestling Season Recap". Iowa State University Athletics. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
9. grappleCy (2017-02-23). "All-American Pat Downey Dismissed, Burns All Bridges on Way Out". Wide Right & Natty Lite. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
10. Young, Aaron. "These tweets may show why Patrick Downey is no longer an Iowa State wrestler". Des Moines Register. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
11. Leistikow, Chad; Leistikow, Chad. "Graduate transfer Pat Downey won't wrestle for Hawkeyes". Hawk Central. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
12. "World Championships Preview: Pat Downey 86kg". Fanatic Wrestling. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
13. "Patrick Downey III - Team USA". Team USA.
14. "NYAC Holiday International Open". www.trackwrestling.com. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
15. "Patrick Downey (Baltimore, MD) | Trackwrestling Profile". Trackwrestling. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
16. "2014 Northern Plains Jr & Sr - FS". www.trackwrestling.com. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
17. "2014 ASICS University Nat - FS". www.trackwrestling.com. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
18. "2014 U.S. World Team Trials - FS". www.trackwrestling.com. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
19. "2015 UWW Cadet & University Nationals-FS". www.trackwrestling.com. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
20. "International Wrestling Database". www.iat.uni-leipzig.de. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
21. "Freestyle World Team Trials preview at 86 kg/189 lbs". Team USA. May 31, 2017. Retrieved June 29, 2020.
22. "See the results for the 2017 Junior and Senior World Team Trials wrestling event on FloWrestling.org". www.flowrestling.org. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
23. "See the results for the 2019 Dave Schultz Memorial International wrestling event on FloWrestling.org". www.flowrestling.org. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
24. "See the results for the 2018 US Open Wrestling Championships wrestling event on FloWrestling.org". www.flowrestling.org. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
25. "See the results for the 2018 Senior Freestyle World Team Trials Challenge wrestling event on FloWrestling.org". www.flowrestling.org. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
26. "USA Wrestling Events". usawrestlingevents.com. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
27. "#FreestyleFriday: Dedicated and determined Downey wins U.S. Open and prepares for Raleigh". Team USA. May 3, 2019. Retrieved June 29, 2020.
28. NJ.com, James Kratch | NJ Advance Media for (2019-05-25). "World champion David Taylor withdraws from Final X-Rutgers; NJRTC's Pat Downey gets Team USA spot". nj. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
29. Smith, Earl (2019-08-11). "Three US Men Win Gold on Final Day of Pan-American Games". The Open Mat. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
30. truewrestling. "2019 Men's Freestyle World Championship Wrap up & Results – True Wrestling". Retrieved 2020-06-29.
31. Peters, Matt (2019-10-06). "ADCC Silver Medalist Nick Rodriguez Loses via Technical Fall in Wrestling Return". Grappling Insider. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
32. "Gilman, Dake and Valencia win golds, four others claim medals to close out Matteo Pellicone". Team USA. January 18, 2020. Retrieved June 29, 2020.
33. "Forrest Molinari wins bronze medal on final day of Ivan Yarygin Grand Prix in Russia". Team USA. January 26, 2020. Retrieved June 29, 2020.
34. Rastrelli, Mike (2019-01-24). "Opinion: Gordon Ryan is the greatest American submission grappler of all-time". Grappling Insider. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
35. "Is Gordon Ryan the world's best grappler?". MMA Junkie. 2018-10-21. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
36. Regan, Tristan (2020-02-26). "Gordon Ryan Justifies His Claim As No Gi GOAT". Grappling Insider. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
37. "Ryan, Downey each win one event at BJJ Fanatics Grand Prix". InterMat. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
38. Lindsey, Alex (2019-12-07). "Nick Rodriguez v Pat Downey 2 Set For Third Coast Grappling 4". Grappling Insider. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
39. admin (2020-03-05). "Breaking: Third Coast Grappling IV Main Event is Cancelled". Grappling Insider. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
40. Goodwin, Cody. "Wrestling: Iowa's Spencer Lee wins Senior Nationals, qualifies for 2020 U.S. Olympic Trials". Hawk Central. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
41. Goodwin, Cody. "USA Wrestling announces that 2020 Olympic Trials are postponed". Des Moines Register. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
42. Staff, 5PM (2020-06-28). "Rau Defeats Downey at Rumble on the Rooftop". Five Point Move. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
43. Hamilton, Andy. "NJRTC drops World Teamer Pat Downey after social media posts about women's wrestling and Greco-Roman". Trackwrestling. Retrieved 2020-07-13.
44. "Dake vs Chamizo - July 25 - Only On FloWrestling". www.flowrestling.org. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
45. "Pat Downey is no longer on the card for the FloWrestling event on July 25th. We are currently looking for a replacement opponent for David Taylor". Twitter. Retrieved 2020-07-13.
46. "Paradigm Sport Management | Pat Downey". Retrieved 2020-06-29.
47. "Colby Covington working with elite wrestler who 'used to wipe the mats' with Kamaru Usman". MMA Junkie. 2019-10-17. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
48. Gallo, Ed (2018-03-26). "Five Class of 2018 Wrestling to MMA Prospects". MMASucka.com. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
49. "Amateur Wrestler Pat Downey Might Be A Villain Worth Rooting For". pressboxonline.com. Retrieved 2020-06-29.

External links

• Pat Downey at United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee
• Pat Downey at United World Wrestling
• Pat Downey at United World Wrestling