NCAA champ Wyatt Hendrickson details how it felt to shock the world, praises Daniel Cormier's call

“Wyatt Hendrickson just beat Gable Steveson.”

“Wyatt Hendrickson just beat Gable Steveson.”

“Wyatt Hendrickson just beat Gable Steveson.”

It’s a call that will forever go down in NCAA wrestling history – a simple sentence, but one that tells it just as it is. But reading that sentence doesn’t encapsulate the energy by which Daniel Cormier exclaimed that sentence.

Wyatt Hendrickson experienced that moment firsthand. It will be with him until the day he dies, and he doesn’t think he’s alone in that. But even he, watching it back, thinks the moment was captured perfectly by his fellow Oklahoma State University Cowboy Cormier.

“Just hearing that commentary, every time I rewatch that last situation with DC commenting, I get off my seat like I don’t know what happened,” Hendrickson told MMA Junkie on Thursday. “I get so into it. The goosebumps are just flowing every single time and that commentary was nothing short of absolutely outstanding. Just reliving that moment and hearing him yell, ‘Wyatt Hendrickson just beat Gable Steveson. Wyatt Hendrickson just beat Gable Steveson.’ Oh my gosh. That clip is going to be running through my mind rent free for the rest of my life.”

But nothing will beat being in Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia on March 23, Hendrickson explained. And being in his own head? Hendrickson doesn’t think the English language – or any language for that matter – can do it justice.

“All I can really say is that it was just unreal,” Hendrickson said. “I mean, it was unreal. As soon as that happened and the final buzzer sounded, I came back into reality. Walking out there, the only way I could describe it is there are a lot of great movies. I think ‘Creed’ is a good one where whenever the boxers are in the center, the only people in the arena are you and your opponent. You can’t hear anything, you can’t see anything, you’re just in focus. You’re in battle.”

285 NCAA Final : Wyatt Hendrickson (OSU) defeats Olympic Champion Gable Steveson (Minnesota) to win the national title!!!! Biggest Upset in NCAA History!!!!! pic.twitter.com/Q2HTNJ8d4Z

— Saturday Night Lights (@WrestlingSNL) March 23, 2025

Hendrickson, a fifth-year senior at OSU who had transferred from the U.S. Air Force Academy through the World Class Athlete Program (WCAP), was the No. 2 seed heading into his final vs. Steveson – but a massive underdog.

Steveson was an Olympic gold medalist who was 18-0 on the season when he entered the match at 103-2 in his NCAA career.

But with his flag draped over his shoulders and who he calls his “big boss” Donald Trump, sitting mat-side, the second lieutenant Hendrickson said he not fazed by Steveson’s aura.

“It kind of felt like it was in slow motion but I knew I took that shot,” Hendrickson said, of his match-winning takedown with just seconds left on the clock. As soon as I decided to pull that trigger, I’m like, ‘This is the one shot I’m going to have, so I need to make it worth it.’ I was starting to lose it a little bit but I just had that confidence of, ‘I’m going to get this takedown. I want it. I want it bad.’ It took a lot of heart just to continue with that.”

Back in Stillwater, Okla., the work doesn’t stop. With the 2028 Summer Olympics in the distance, Hendrickson is already back in the training room. A different kind of gold is on his mind now – achieved by similar means.

“This was a really big benchmark and it was something exciting that happened. It’s not a time to take the foot off the gas. We’re still getting that work in and grinding. I still have a lot of stuff I can improve on. I want to improve on everything I can. I’m just excited to keep the ball rolling. I’m still hungry. I’m excited. Yeah, it was nice. But I’m not content yet. I’ve still got more goals I want to achieve.”

As for what’s beyond that, Hendrickson isn’t quite sure. At the end of his competitive career, he’ll serve in the Air Force for at least five years. Could that competitive career also include MMA? Only time will tell.

“I think that’s an exciting journey,” Hendrickson said. “Obviously, I respect fighters. They’re very tough. For me to make that crossover, I haven’t had much experience in hand-to-hand combat outside of wrestling. I think I definitely need to develop as a fighter because, as you know, I can’t just step into that arena and expect to rise to the top off the bat. It’s going to be a tough transition if I decide to do that. Maybe in the future. Maybe, we’ll see. Getting punched in the head doesn’t sound like it’s super fun, so until I’m going to be confident that I’m going to dodge some of those big blows, we’ll see what happens.”