California is one of the few states in the country that maintains a single-class state championship format. As of January 2026, approximately 900 to 950 high schools in California support a boys’ wrestling program. Reaching the CIF State Championships and season’s end is a grueling endeavor. Most of California’s 10 sections require athletes to survive two or three preliminary tournaments to qualify for the state championships. Given that California is home to nearly 40 million people, the odds of earning a spot on the medal stand (top 8) are less than 1%.

For over a decade, Michael Cho has served as California’s premier authority on wrestling state rankings. Through rigorous data analysis and detailed weight-class evaluations, he has built an exceptional track record for identifying future state medalists. In my professional view, Michael is one of the nation’s top-tier rankers; his work remains the definitive benchmark for evaluating elite wrestling talent in California.

The January 2026 wrestling rankings clearly illustrates California’s dominance in producing elite talent. According to recent Sports Illustrated (SI) by Billy Buckheit and Flo Wrestling rankings, 63 California wrestlers are currently ranked nationally in the top 30 or Honorable Mention categories (15 ranked in top 5). Remarkably, this averages out to approximately five wrestlers in each respective weight class (top 8 CA rankings). 

Beyond individual accolades, California’s dominance is reflected in the top eight wrestlers across every weight class, a group that boasts 33 college commits, 57 All-Americans, and five World Team members. This depth is further evidenced by six California schools appearing in the national rankings, led by Buchanan High School, which recently made history as the first team from the state of California to secure the #1 national ranking.

A deep dive into Michael’s rankings reveals a common thread: elite talent saturates every one of the fourteen weight divisions. The numbers prove California remains a powerhouse of prep wrestling. With a permanent seat in the national top five, the state’s internal circuit is so competitive that merely reaching the state tournament is a challenge, while placing on the podium is reserved for the truly elite.

We owe a debt of gratitude to Michael Cho for his meticulous efforts on these rankings. He is a one-of-a-kind resource for wrestling. Here are the highlights from his January state rankings.

STATE RANKED WRESTLERS BY CIF SECTION (top 8)

• Southern (SS): 38 (10 SJB/6 Fountain Valley)
• Central (CS): 29 (26 TRAC Schools)
• San Diego (SD): 16 (10 Poway)
• Sac Joaquin (SJ): 11 (Pitman w/3)
• Central Coast (CC): 8 (5 Gilroy)
• Los Angeles City (LA): 5 (4 Birmingham)
• North Coast (NC): 4 (2 Del Norte)
• Northern (N): 1
• San Francisco (SF): 0
• Oakland (O): 0

STATE RANKED WRESTLERS BY GRADE (Top 8)

• SENIOR: 59
• JUNIOR: 29
• SOPH: 15
• FROSH: 8

MISC. STATS

• School w/Most #1 state ranked wrestlers – Buchanan (CS): 4 
• CIF Section w/Most #1 state ranked wrestlers – Central (CS): 6
• Returning State Champions – 7 (total titles – 10)
• Returning state placers – 58 (90 medals overall)
• Super 32 placers – 18 

WRESTLERS RANKED BY NATIONAL OUTLETS – SI / FLO (Top 30 / Honorable Mention)

• #1 Ranking: 2
• Top 5: 15
• Top 10: 24
• TOTAL: 63

NATIONALLY RANKED WRESTLERS BY CIF SECTION (SI and FLO Rankings)

• Central (CS): 21 (Buchanan w/9) / TRAC (20)
• Southern (SS): 16 (St. John Bosco w/8)
• Central Coast (CC): 8 (Gilroy w/5)
• San Diego (SD): 7 (Poway w/5)
• Sac Joaquin (SJ): 5 (Pitman/Oakdale – 2 each)
• Los Angeles City (LA): 3 (all Birmingham H.S.)
• North Coast (NC): 3 (Del Norte w/2)
• Northern (N): 1

NATIONALLY RANKED WRESTLERS BY WEIGHT GROUP – 63 (top 8)

106: 5

113: 7

120: 3

126: 4

132: 5

138: 5

144: 6

150: 4

157: 3

165: 3

175: 4

190: 4

215: 5

285: 5

ALL-AMERICANS BY CIF SECTION – 57 (combined 165 AA honors)*

• Southern (SS): 21 (St. John Bosco w/6)
• Central (CS): 15 (Buchanan w/9)
• San Diego (SD): 10 (Poway w/8)
• Los Angeles City (LA): 4 (all Birmingham H.S.)
• Central Coast (CC): 3 (all Gilroy H.S.)
• Sac Joaquin (SJ): 2 (Both Pitman H.S.)
• Northern (N): 1
• North Coast (NC): 1

*All-American honors include Fargo Nationals (FS/GR), Folkstyle Nationals, and age group World Trials.

ALL-AMERICANS BY WEIGHT GROUP – 57 

106: 3

113: 2

120: 4

126: 5

132: 6

138: 5

144: 7

150: 6

157: 3

165: 3

175: 5

190: 3

215: 2

285: 3

MISC. STATS

• Wrestlers on age group Pan Am teams – 6 
• Wrestlers on US World Teams – 5 (4 medals overall)
• School w/most college commits – Buchanan (CS) / Poway (SD): 4
• CIF Section w/most college commits – Central (CS) / Southern (SS): 8 

COLLEGE COMMITS BY COLLEGIATE DIVISION – 33 

PAC-12: 11

BIG 12: 8

BIG 10: 6

ACC: 6

IVY: 1

SOCON: 1

NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL WRESTLING RANKINGS BY BILLY BUCKHEIT, SI (FLO Rankings inclusive)

106 – Michael Bernabe (Clovis, CS, 9) #2 (#2 FLO)

106 – Thales Silva (Buchanan, CS, 9) #3  (#3 FLO)

106 – Tyler Sweet (Clovis North, CS, 10) #5 (#4 FLO)

106 – Luke Loren (St. John Bosco, SS, 9) #6 (#5 FLO)

106 – Kingston Cruzat (Folsom, SJ, 12) #28

113 – Jorge Rios (St. John Bosco, SS, 10) #3 (#4 FLO)

113 – Anthony Garza (Clovis, CS, 11) #4 (#11 FLO)

113 – Thiago Silva (Buchanan, CS, 9) #12 (#13 FLO)

113 – Max Murillo (Esperanza, SS, 11) #30 

113 – Phillip Hernandez (Clovis North, CS, 9) HM

113 – Eli Mendoza (Gilroy, CC, 10) HM

113.- Aiden Garcia (Palma, CC, 11) #22

120 – Rocklin Zinkin (Buchanan, CS, 12) #2 (#2 FLO)

120 – Sammy Sanchez (Esperanza, SS, 10) #5 (#4 FLO)

120 – Henry Aslikyan (Birmingham, LA, 12) #6 (#16 FLO)

126 – Paul Ruiz (Buchanan, CS, 10) #7 (#9 FLO)

126 – Siraj Sidhu (Clovis North, CS, 12) #8  (#18 FLO)

126 – Sean Wilcox (St. John Bosco, SS, 12) #15

126 – Thunder Lewis (Del Norte, NC, 12) #27 

132 – Ashton Besmer (Buchanan, CS, 12) #2 (#3 FLO)

132 – Slater Hicks (Valencia, SS, 11) #7 (#5 FLO)

132 – Nathan Carillo (St. John Bosco, SS, 12) #16 (#16 FLO)

132 – Arno Vardanyan (Birmingham, LA, 12) #24

132 – Cael Humphrey (Sultana, SS, 11) #25

138 – Moses Mendoza (Gilroy, CC, 12) #1 (#1 FLO)

138 – Chris “CJ” Huerta (Buchanan, CS, 12) #15 (#10 FLO)

138 – Vinnie Gutierrez (Fountain Valley, SS, 11) #16 (#20 FLO)

138 – Matthew Orbeta (Poway, SD, 11) #17  (#11 FLO)

138 – Mathius Garza (Etiwanda, SS, 11) #13 

144 – Jesse Grajeda (St. John Bosco, SS, 11) #4 (#10 FLO)

144 – Joseph Toscano (Buchanan, CS, 12) #22 (#4 FLO)

144 – Chris Arreola (Clovis North, CS, 10) #29 

144 – Arseni Kikiniou (Poway, SD, 11) #21 (#12 FLO at 150s)

144 – James Ruiz (Esperanza, SS, 11) HM

144 – Ames-Michael Hoevker (Granite Hills, SD, 12) HM

150 – Michael Romero (St. John Bosco, SS, 11) #4 (#5 FLO)

150 – Ivan Arias (Buchanan, CS, 12) #20 (#11 FLO)

150 – Alias Raby (Anderson, N, 12) #23

150 – Tommy Holguin (Bellarmine Prep, CC, 12) #26

157 – Christopher Creason (El Diamante, CS, 12) #7 (#9 FLO)

157 – Jacob Perez (Everett Alvarez, CC, 12) #22

157 – Wyatt Lewis (Del Norte, NC, 11) #25 

165 – Slava Shahbazyan (Birmingham, LA, 12) #2 (#16 FLO)

165 – Kaleo Garcia (Gilroy, CC, 12) #20 

165 – James Curoso (Clovis, CS, 10) #21

175 – Mario Carini (Poway, SD, 11) #1 (#1 FLO)

175 – Mason Ontiveros (Pitman, SJ, 12) #2 (#2 FLO)

175 – Isai Fernandez (St. John Bosco, SS, 10) #14 (#14 FLO)

175 – Travis Grace (Gilroy, CC, 12) #23 (#18 FLO)

190 – Jonathan Rocha (Clovis North, CS, 12) #12  (#16 FLO)

190 – Mason Savidan (St. John Bosco, SS, 10) #20 

190 – Carter Vannest (Pitman, SJ, 12) #21

190 – Dominic Dotson (Poway, SD, 12) #22

215 – Wes Burford (Oakdale, SJ, 12) #6 (#3 FLO)

215 – David Calkins (Liberty-Brentwood, NC, 12) #7 (#4 FLO)

215 – Daniel Moylan (Poway, SD, 11) #12 (#9 FLO)

215 – Adan Castillo (Clovis, CS, 11) #25 

215 – Brian Haran (Gilroy, CC, 11) #27 

285 – Coby Merrill (J.W. North, SS, 12) #2 (#2 FLO)

285 – Sammy Seja (Buchanan, CS, 10) #25 

285 – Andrew Arroyo (Clovis, CS, 10) #26 (#19 FLO)

285 – Matthew Cooley (Oakdale, SJ, 11) #28

285 – Noah Larios (Imperial, SS, 11) HM 

CALIFORNIA TEAMS RANKED NATIONALLY BY SI / FLO (January 2026)

• Buchanan (CS) #1 (SI) / #1 (FLO)
• St. John Bosco (SS) #6 (SI) / #6 (FLO)
• Poway (SD) #8 (SI) / #9 (FLO)
• Clovis (CS) #12 (SI) / #14 (FLO
• Clovis North (CS) #22 (SI) / #25 (FLO)
• Gilroy (CC) #31 (SI) / #29 (FLO)

Photo Credit – John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com