Pan American champ Yianni Diakomihalis knows what it feels like to have admirers. But what if one of them was as good as he was in wrestling? The Penn State wrestler has an interesting relationship with the 26-year-old, and it’s not just normal trash-talking and a fiery feud. Diakomihalis has won two U17 World Championships, a World silver medal, and two Pan American Championships, among many other accolades. However, his younger brother Elijah’s friend is no less. PJ Duke is the recipient of the 2025 Junior Hodge Trophy, awarded to the nation’s top high school wrestler. He has also won four New York state wrestling titles, finishing his high school career with a 152-1 record. So what happened when the already acquainted duo had to fight against each other?

Diakomihalis, who won his fourth title for Cornell University, winning over Sammy Sasso 4-2 at the 149-pound final at the NCAA Championship, completed his 21-1 season with his fourth All-America honour and EIWA title. And now, it was time to fight PJ Duke at Final X, and before the match against the young wrestler, Diakomihalis laid out his conscious approach in the pre-fight interview with Flowrestling, given that Duke is now better in the body lock position, “There’s a trap with wrestling high school kids where it’s like, oh, well, he’s a high school kid. It’s like, but he’s really the number two guy in America.”

He added, “As you can tell, I’ve watched him wrestle. I’ve lost a lot of matches taking 500 shots, and that combination of taking 100 shots with maybe underestimating a kid because he’s younger than you is a great formula for failure. So it’s like, go out there, wrestle really hard, shoot a lot.”

However, the scene that unfolded on the mat was both electrifying and unexpected! Duke was defeated 10-0 in Round 1 and but then things changed. Duke won 17-10 in Round 2, and this made him the only men’s wrestler to force a third round on Saturday. Further, in that round, the 18-year-old became just the second wrestler, men’s or women’s, in the field to earn a win via a pin (Helen Maroulis won two matches via a pin).

The moment left Duke so flabbergasted that he took a second to absorb that he had won against his idol. But once it sunk in, what followed was a smooth back flip as the New Jersey cheered in full force. With this win, Duke gained a 70 kg spot on the USA Wrestling team, heading to Croatia in September. And he is set to become the youngest U.S. male freestyle wrestler to compete at a senior world championship in more than 50 years. Back in 1974, Billy Rosado did so at age 18. John Bowlsby had also finished high school that year and wrestled at the worlds.

This fight was not between two enemies but between two wrestlers who share mentorship, respect, and a love for the sport. And that’s what makes this match and its result more interesting.

Yianni Diakomihalis and PJ Duke: A story of friendship, admiration, and rivalry

PJ Duke spent most of his childhood looking up to his friend Elijah’s big brother, Diakomihalis. He was a five-time state champion in his high school near Rochester, and Duke had immense respect for him already. Duke’s regard for Yianni is clear in his own words during his FloWrestling interview after the World Team Trials: “Yianni’s one of those people I looked up to my whole youth and middle school career.”

Duke clearly saw Elijah’s older brother as a role model. Their final match with each other to earn a place in the highly coveted 2025 Senior World Championships team was a pivotal point in their careers and personal relationship.

Diakomihalis, who was widely favored to win, had followed Duke’s remarkable rise closely, acknowledging his friend’s raw talent and skill. “PJ is a good friend of my younger brother Elijah,” Diakomihalis had openly shared in a video posted by FloWrestling on X on May 21. This match was a test to see whether the mentor-protégé relationship hindered their gameplay or became a battle for supremacy. And the result? The incoming freshman pinned four-time NCAA champion Yianni Diakomihalis in Round 3 at Final X. This changes everything now. What do you think?