A possible pioneer wrestling event will be going down Saturday night in Austin, Texas, - the 8-Man challenge. Over $40,000 in payouts will be dispersed among the eight competitors with each win putting a little more money in their pocket. Below is a brief breakdown of each match along with a lot of other content surrounding the competitors and the FloWrestling staff predictions. If you want to try and predict your own bracket and win a Flo t-shirt you can do so HERE.

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October 31, 2020 | 8 PM ET

If you want to dive even deeper, check out some of the other awesome preview content out now.

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Quarterfinals

Keith Gavin vs Shakur Rasheed

Keith Gavin is a huge question mark for Saturday. He’s an NCAA champion, World Team member, and has an unbelievable hit list, but we haven’t seen him since the 2016 Olympic Trials. Does the Pitt head coach still have enough in him to beat Div I All-American Shakur Rasheed? Can the most credentialed man in the field come out of a four-year retirement and win it all?

Keith Gavin's Exceptional Hit List | Crafty Keith Gavin Out Of Retirement To Run the 195 lbs Gauntlet | Shakur Rasheed Finally Feeling Good For 8-Man | Why Keith Gavin Is Back For The 8-Man | Where Did Keith Gavin Get That Nasty Arm Drag?

Ben: Gavin

CP: Gavin

Bratke: Gavin

Bray: Gavin

Spey: Gavin

Rader: Gavin

Bray: Gavin is the only guy to make a Senior World Team in the bracket, and his style is tough to replicate. Shakur could make him pay an aging tax, but I’m going with Gavin.

Gabe Dean vs Taylor Lujan

Speaking of coming out of retirement, Gabe Dean wrestled for the first time in over two years at Senior Nationals three weeks ago and won the dang tournament. In the quarterfinals, he beat Taylor Lujan. Lujan has a reputation for being able to get funky and win. Can he make some major adjustments and/or get throw enough at Gabe Dean to reverse the result?

'Not Going To Waste Opportunities,' Gabe Dean Comes Out of Retirement | What Did Lujan Learn From First Match With Dean? | When And Why Gabe Dean Decided To Wrestle Again | The Tough 'End' To Gabe Dean's Competitive Career | Gabe Dean's Thoughts On The 8 Man Bracket | 

Ben: Dean

CP: Dean

Bratke: Dean

Bray:Dean

Spey: Dean

Rader: Dean

CP: The three weeks in-between Senior Nationals and now is not enough time to crack the code that is Gabe Dean. 

Sammy Brooks vs Nate Jackson

Talk about a wild rivalry. Just watch the video below.

The Crazy Rivalry Between Nate Jackson and Sammy Brooks

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Expect A Wild Ride When Nate Jackson & Sammy Brooks Meet | Sammy Brooks Workout In ATX

Ben: Brooks

CP: Jackson

Bratke: Brooks

Bray: Jackson

Spey: Jackson

Rader: Jackson

Bray: Brooks owns the series, but Jackson is coming off a finals showing at Senior Nationals where he looked locked in.

Ben: I think Brooks wrestles a little bit smarter match, lowers his stance, doesn’t give up as many points early, and picks up the W. Although, this is the least confident match I’m going to pick in the whole bracket.

Myles Martin vs Drew Foster

An interesting matchup here as Myles Martin is the favorite on paper, but Drew Foster won the 2019 NCAA bracket Myles was supposed to win. Martin got his revenge at the 2019 World Team Trials Challenge Tournament, but the only time the two have wrestled outside of that, it was a two-point match. Can Foster double-down on his 2019 NCAA tournament or will Myles Martin prove why he’s the #10 wrestler in the world?

Drew Foster's Jump From Heartbreak To Glory | Quit Sleeping On Myles Martin | Drew Foster's Success Could Hinge On This One Position | Myles Martin Rides Ohio RTC Momentum, Kollin Moore Scraps Into Flo 8-Man | Drew Foster's Bracket Prediction

Ben: Martin

CP: Martin

Bratke: Martin

Bray: Martin

Spey: Martin

Rader: Martin

Rader: Foster is a guy who has steadily gotten better; from barely recruited out of high school, to losing record, to All-American, to national champion. He looked as great at Senior Nationals as well, making it to the semis, but I think we see an even better version of the 2019 Senior Nationals Myles Martin. That version of Myles beat Alex Dieringer and Nick Heflin.

Semifinals

Top Semifinal

All FloWrestling employees went chalk, picking a Keith Gavin vs Gabe Dean semifinal on the topside. If this is the case, it will be NCAA champion vs NCAA champion and University World bronze vs Junior World bronze. The wisdom, slickness, and toughness of Keith Gavin vs the pace, physicality, and youthfulness of Gabe Dean. 

Ben: Gavin

CP: Gavin

Bratke: Dean

Bray: Dean

Spey: Dean

Rader: Dean

CP: I think we see a bit of an overzealous hand fight from Gabe Dean, which leads to something slick from Gavin.

Spey: Sometimes it seems like a year or two off can be good for wrestlers as they use the time to heal up and recharge their batteries. After a tune up at Senior Nationals, I think Gabe Dean is ready to prove that he is an elite upper weight who belongs in the Olympic hopeful category.

Bottom Semifinal

The bottom side of the bracket is a little more unpredictable. Sammy Brooks holds the head-head-head advantage over everyone, but Nate Jackson has twice been one-point away from tech falling him only to lose. NCAA champion Drew Foster was up 8-2 before Brooks stormed back at Senior Nationals. And Myles Martin is the most credentialed. So who knows what will really happen?

Ben: Brooks

CP: Martin

Bratke: Brooks

Bray: Martin

Spey: Martin

Rader: Martin

Rader: With Sammy Brooks historically having the upper edge on Myles Martin, I might lean towards Brooks coming out ahead, but since I picked Jackson over Brooks, it's a different story. Myles Martin by decision. 

Ben: It always comes up that Sammy Brooks is undefeated against Myles Martin, and I think, "how is this possible?" But that's the trend, and I'm not going to go against the trend because it's the trend for a reason.

The Final

The big one. The winner of this match will bring home an extra $10,000 for a total of $20,000. With six matches leading up to this, there is a number different matches we could see. The matchup could make all the difference depending on who makes it out of their side of the bracket. Here's how the Flo team sees it playing out.

Ben: Brooks

CP: Gavin

Bratke: Dean

Bray: Martin

Spey: Martin

Rader: Martin

CP: I think Keith Gavin is a champion no matter who he sees. I think Myles and Jackson would be a tougher matchup for Keith than Sammy Brooks.

Bray: Gabe looked great at Senior Nationals, but I can’t stop thinking about 2019 Senior Nationals where Myles took out Dieringer in dramatic fashion. I think he gets it done in a barn burner.