Roman Bravo-Young facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Roman Bravo-Young

Personal information
Full name	Roman Guillermo Bravo-Young
Nickname(s)	RBY
Born	(1999-01-28) January 28, 1999 (age 26) Tucson, Arizona, U.S.
Sport
Country	Mexico (2023–present)  United States (2016–2023)
Sport	Wrestling
Weight class	57 kg (126 lb)
Event(s)	Freestyle and Folkstyle
College team	Penn State
Club	Cowboy Wrestling Club RTC, Nittany Lion Wrestling Club (formerly)
Coached by	David Taylor Cael Sanderson
Medal record Men's freestyle wrestling Representing Mexico Pan American Championships Gold 2025 Monterrey 57 kg Grand Prix Gold 2023 Mexico City 57 kg Gold 2024 Sangju 57 kg Gold 2024 Warsaw 57 kg Gold 2024 Nice 57 kg Silver 2025 Ulaanbaatar 57 kg Bronze 2025 Zagreb 57 kg Representing the  United States U20 Pan American Championships Gold 2019 Guatemala City 61 kg Collegiate Wrestling Representing the Penn State Nittany Lions NCAA Division I Championships Gold 2021 St. Louis 133 lb Gold 2022 Detroit 133 lb Silver 2023 Tulsa 133 lb Big Ten Championships Gold 2021 State College 133 lb Gold 2022 Lincoln 133 lb Gold 2023 Ann Arbor 133 lb Silver 2020 Piscataway 133 lb

Roman Guillermo Bravo-Young (born January 28, 1999) is a talented Mexican-American freestyle and folkstyle wrestler. He competes in the 57 kilogram weight class. In freestyle wrestling, he represented Mexico at the 2024 Summer Olympics and won the Pan American championship in 2025.

In folkstyle wrestling, Bravo-Young was a two-time champion at the NCAA Division I National Championships in 2021 and 2022. He wrestled at 133 pounds and was named an All-American four times while competing for Pennsylvania State University.

Wrestling Career Highlights

High School Success

Roman Bravo-Young went to Sunnyside High School in Tucson, Arizona. He had an amazing high school career, winning four state championships without losing a single match. His record was 182 wins and 0 losses. He also competed internationally as a US U17 World Team member in freestyle wrestling. After high school, he decided to wrestle for Pennsylvania State University.

College Wrestling at Penn State

Roman Bravo-Young had a very successful college wrestling career at Penn State.

Freshman Year (2018–2019)

Before his first college season, he placed second at the US U23 National championships in freestyle. As a freshman, he won the Keystone Classic and placed third at the Southern Scuffle. He finished fifth at the Big Ten Championships. He became an All-American by placing eighth at the NCAA National Championships. He ended the year with 25 wins and 7 losses. After his college season, he won a gold medal at the U20 Pan American Championships in freestyle.

Sophomore Year (2019–2020)

In his second year, Bravo-Young won the Black Knight Invitational and Wilkes Open. He only lost one match during the regular season. He improved to a second-place finish at the Big Ten Championships. However, the NCAA National Championships were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This cut his season short, but he still had a great record of 20 wins and 2 losses.

Junior Year (2020–2021)

During the pandemic, Bravo-Young competed in freestyle matches. He defeated other top wrestlers, including NCAA finalist Jack Mueller and future UFC champion Aljamain Sterling. When he returned to folkstyle, he had a perfect regular season. He won his first Big Ten title by defeating his rival Austin DeSanto. At the NCAA Championships, he became a national champion. He won a tough match against Daton Fix in sudden-victory. He finished the season undefeated with 14 wins and 0 losses. He was also named the Penn State Male Athlete of the Year.

Senior Year (2021–2022)

Roman Bravo-Young had another perfect regular season in his senior year. He won his second Big Ten title, again defeating Austin DeSanto. At the NCAA Championships, he became a two-time national champion. He once again defeated Daton Fix in the final. He completed another perfect season with 22 wins and 0 losses.

Final College Season (2022–2023)

He used an extra year of eligibility, which was given to athletes because of the canceled 2020 season. He had another undefeated regular season and won his third Big Ten title. At the NCAA Championships, he reached the finals but was defeated by Vito Arujau. He finished as the runner-up with a record of 20 wins and 1 loss. Roman Bravo-Young finished his college career as a two-time NCAA national champion, a four-time All-American, and a three-time Big Ten champion. His overall college record was 100 wins and 10 losses.

In June 2023, he also competed in submission grappling against UFC fighter Alex Perez. Their match ended in a draw.

Representing Mexico

2023 International Debut

In July 2023, Roman Bravo-Young announced he would represent Mexico in freestyle wrestling. This was the country of his grandparents. Later that month, he won the Mexican National Qualifier title, wearing the Mexican uniform for the first time. In December, he won the Mexico Grand Prix title at 57 kilograms, winning all three of his matches by a large margin (technical fall).

2024 Olympic Qualification and Debut

In January 2024, Bravo-Young won a gold medal at the Grand Prix de France Henri Deglane. He defeated strong opponents, including African champion Diamantino Iuna Fafé. In March, he competed at the Pan American Olympic Qualification Tournament. He won his matches to reach the semifinals, where he defeated Óscar Tigreros. This win qualified Mexico for the 2024 Summer Olympics.

In June, he won the Poland Open, defeating two African champions. In August 2024, Bravo-Young made his Olympic debut at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. He lost his first match to Arsen Harutyunyan and was eliminated from the tournament. In November, he won the Korea Open by defeating two Japanese opponents.

2025 Season

To start 2025, Bravo-Young competed at the Golden Grand Prix Ivan Yarygin in January. He then won a bronze medal at the Grand Prix Zagreb Open in February. He had three wins against international wrestlers and a close loss to three-time NCAA champion Spencer Lee. In May 2025, he won the gold medal at the Pan American Championships. This was Mexico's first gold medal in 32 years at that tournament. In June, he competed at the Ulaanbaatar Open in Mongolia. He won against Turkey and pinned India's Olympic bronze medalist Aman Sehrawat before losing to a Mongolian wrestler.

Wrestling Style

Roman Bravo-Young is known for his amazing footwork, speed, and quick moves. He can explode from a relaxed position into a takedown very quickly. When defending, he often uses acrobatic flips to escape tricky situations. He sometimes trains with former UFC champion Dominick Cruz, who is also known for his versatile footwork.

Personal Life

Roman Bravo-Young got engaged to soccer player Ellie Wheeler on March 15, 2025. He proposed to her on the field at CPKC Stadium after her game with the Kansas City Current.

Career Stats