What if your idol became your rival… and you took everything they’d been working for? That’s the exact moment PJ Duke found himself in on June 14. A high schooler. A hometown kid. Sounds like a movie, right? Well, it happened live at USA Wrestling’s Final X, and now PJ’s finally speaking up about the win, the whirlwind, and what comes next.

The setting? The Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, where nine spots on the men’s freestyle Senior World Team were on the line for the 2025 World Championships in Croatia. All eyes were locked on 18-year-old PJ Duke, the No. 1 high school 157-pounder in the country, who had just wrapped up classes at Minisink Valley High School. He wasn’t supposed to win. Not against Yianni Diakomihalis, the four-time NCAA champ and world medalist.

But PJ didn’t just win—he pinned him. And the kicker? Yianni was his childhood mentor. The series felt like a wrestling rollercoaster. Yianni came out swinging, dominating match one with a 10–0 tech fall. But Duke came alive in match two with a 17–10 comeback, then sealed the deal with a third-period pin, the only fall of the entire weekend. The crowd went wild. Yianni? Stunned. Duke? Celebrating a victory over someone who once gave him training tips in his living room. “Obviously I need to evaluate some things about myself, and in moments like these I need to take it on the chin and identify what the next step forward is. Congratulations to the 2025 U.S. world team. They are some incredibly tough men and women that will do great things in Croatia.” Yannis said.

And here’s the crazy part: PJ Duke is still in high school. “Yeah, today’s my last day—just finishing up like two more periods,” he told FloWrestling after the match, laughing.

“It’s pretty crazy. I’m excited to move on, but also a little upset to leave these people, you know? But I am not really leaving them behind but just moving to bigger part of my life. And I’m really excited about that, for sure.” His graduation? June 27. His move-in at Penn State? June 28. No time to rest when your wrestling dreams just went pro overnight.

So what’s next for the teenage phenom who just broke the internet (and maybe a few hearts)? Duke is now officially on Team USA for the 70kg spot and will represent America at the World Championships in Croatia this September. “Sometimes I feel bad wrestling local kids,” he admitted. “Like, some of them just have that look and I’m like, man, I actually feel bad… so I just pinned him quick.” Ruthless? Maybe. Real? Absolutely. PJ Duke isn’t just a high schooler anymore. He’s a world-level contender, and he’s just getting started. But how did Duke and PJ share a good bond?

How PJ Duke and Yianni became final X rivals

Before they ever met on the mat at Final X, PJ Duke and Yianni Diakomihalis shared something deeper than wrestling; they shared a bond built through years of friendship, family ties, and mentorship. PJ was just a seventh grader when he started visiting Yianni’s home in Rochester to train, looking up to him not just as a wrestling legend, but as a big brother figure. “He’s the same age as my younger brother Elijah, and they were pretty tight,” Yianni recalled. Their families were close, their friendship genuine. “He was someone I looked up to my whole youth and middle school career,” PJ said. For years, PJ was the student. At Final X, he became the challenger.

When PJ and Yianni faced off on June 14 in Newark, it was more than just a wrestling match; it was a collision of past and future. Even though he shocked the world, rebounding from a 10–0 tech loss in match one to win the next two, including a match-three pin that stunned the crowd. And yet, through it all, the foundation of their relationship showed. There were no taunts, no trash talk, only respect. Yianni acknowledged PJ’s rise with admiration, calling him “disciplined” and “mature,” noting that Duke’s upper-body skills and calm presence were already world-class.

“He’s good at upper-body ties. It’s like he wrestles judo,” Yianni observed. PJ Duke, for his part, never spoke ill of his former mentor. Despite what happened on the mat, there was no animosity—only history. The match didn’t erase their friendship; it tested it. One had to win, one had to lose, and it just happened to be the younger one who walked away with a world team spot. But from the way both spoke—calm, gracious, full of respect—it’s clear this wasn’t just about winning or losing. It was about growth. And even in the fiercest of competitions, some friendships don’t break. They bend, and then, they build something new.