Two weeks ago, Bo Bassett’s remarkable winning streak came to a sudden end. His dream run was halted by a clash with veteran wrestler Brock Hardy. Though Bassett showed moments of brilliance, he couldn’t recapture the magic from his previous bout. The final score was 12-7 — a clear win for Hardy, though Bassett didn’t go down without a fight. He stayed aggressive, but Hardy’s composure in the closing moments made the difference. In the consolation semifinals, 18-year-old Marcus Blaze took control and defeated Bassett 5-1. These two losses not only snapped Bassett’s impressive 111-match unbeaten streak but also shut the door to his hopes of competing in the 2025 World Team Trials. Even after securing a victory over Penn State’s Beau Bartlett in the 65 kg semifinal, Bassett’s journey came to a disappointing conclusion. And for him, the heartbreak didn’t stop there.

On May 31, Bo Bassett launched a technical fall attempt against Daniel Zepeda and ultimately secured a dominant 14-2 victory. Not only that, in a high-stakes match against the highly regarded Aden Valencia, Bassett pulled off a clutch counter-takedown with one minute remaining to clinch a narrow 5-4 win. The victory propelled him into the best-of-three finals at 65 kg later that same day, where he aimed to avenge an earlier U.S. Open loss to Lehigh’s Luke Stanich. Also, earlier in the day, he had overwhelmed the nation’s No. 2-ranked high schooler at 144 pounds, winning 14-4 by technical superiority. So, the Bishop McCort Catholic Academy junior gave everything in his pursuit of a spot on the U20 World Team. But what he didn’t know was that another heartbreak was just around the corner.

In the best-of-three finals, Luke Stanich shut down Bo Bassett with a dominant 10-0 win in the decisive third match, securing his spot on the U20 World Team at 65 kg. The first two bouts were tightly contested, with each wrestler earning a 3-2 decision, but Stanich pulled away in the final showdown. The loss sparked renewed debate about Bassett’s true level, with one wrestling fan posting on X, “Bo boy is overrated, maybe a tad?” Still, Bassett remains a highly regarded prospect — the top-ranked recruit in the nation for the class of 2026 and an Iowa Hawkeyes commit. Let’s not forget, he once held a 111-match win streak. So, is he really just “a tad” overrated? That’s for you to decide. However, there have been a few counter discussions, giving Bassett a clean chit. 

On X, a respected voice in the wrestling community referenced something Kyle Dake once said about the difficulty of competing in both the challenge tournament and finals on the same day. Dake had described it as exhausting — a sentiment the fan echoed, pointing out that Bassett wrestled four matches in a single day. Fatigue was to be expected, and it showed. In the finals, Bassett dropped the opening match to Stanich in a close 3-2 decision. Yet, he bounced back in the second bout with a crucial win, trying to regain control. However, according to the fan page, hawkeye.source, there was “some questionable quick whistle” that may have worked against Bassett. Still, despite these factors, a portion of the wrestling fanbase continued to criticize him for various reasons.

Fans criticized Bo Bassett, calling him ‘BO-roke’

“BO-roke .He Broke Bo fr fr.” That was the brutal jab someone fired on X after Bo Bassett’s crushing 10-0 tech fall loss to Luke Stanich in the final match. With that dominant performance, Stanich slammed the door on any hope of a Bassett comeback and officially locked in his spot on the U20 World Team. Praise poured in for Stanich, too. One fan wrote, “Stanich is more impressive every time. Very excited for his future. Deserving world team.” And the stats back it up — in his freshman season at Lehigh, Stanich compiled a stellar 25-4 record and was honored with the Deferred Eligibility Wrestler of the Year award at the Lewis Dinner. But this wasn’t all doom and gloom for Bassett.

One user chimed in with a much-needed reality check: “Junior in High School VS Sophmore in College. Bo will be just fine.” And that’s the truth. Bassett, a top-tier recruit and future Iowa Hawkeye, is still just a high school junior. Stanich may be in college now, but they’re still in the same age division — So there’s plenty of time left for Bo to rise again.

Still, the internet didn’t hold back. Another fan, quoting a classic saying, posted: “There ain’t a horse that can’t be rode. There ain’t a cowboy who can’t be throwed.” Bassett’s been thrown, no doubt. But he’s also known for getting back up.