Considered one of the top collegiate wrestling prospects after amassing an undefeated high school record, Bassett committed to wrestling for the Virginia Tech Hokies beginning in 2026.
He is currently signed to the Featherweight division of Real American Freestyle (RAF), where he is scheduled to debut at RAF 03.
Early life
Bowen William Bassett was born in Windber, Pennsylvania, the son of nurse Karissa (née Hamilton) and educator William Bassett.[1][2][3]
He grew up being a fan of Spencer Lee, and cites him as his inspiration for taking up wrestling.[4] Bassett and Lee have trained together at the Young Guns Wrestling Club in Ebensburg, Pennsylvania.[4]
We have an unbelievable room at Bishop McCort. We have eight guys ranked in the country. We joke that our wrestling room is called the "Shark Tank." Not everyone that comes into our room can handle it.[8]
—Bo Bassett
In 2021, Bassett transferred to Bishop McCort High School, where his father was named the head varsity wrestling coach. However, his father was issued a two-year ban from coaching that same year by the PIAA after he violated state recruiting policies.[9] Bishop McCort was found to have improperly recruited Jax Forrest and other out-of-state students to build their wrestling program.[10] As part of sanctions against the school, Bishop McCort and its wrestlers were barred from competing for a state championship during Bassett's freshman season.[9]
Bassett has an undefeated record of 126–0 in folkstyle wrestling at Bishop McCort High School between 2022 and 2025.[11] He won two PIAA class AA state championships in his sophomore and junior seasons.[12]
Critics have attributed Bassett's success to reclassification, as he was held back a year in school, making him older and more physically mature than his competition.[16]
College career
Prior to his senior year of high school, Bassett committed to wrestling for the Virginia Tech Hokies beginning in 2026.[17] His adopted brother, Melvin Miller, also committed to the Hokies, joining in 2027.[18][19] Their younger brother, Keegan Bassett, graduates in 2028 and has not yet committed to a college.[20] Bassett originally announced that he would be joining the Iowa Hawkeyes, but later decommitted.[21][22]
Bassett was offered a NIL sponsorship deal worth $1 million from Chael Sonnen, which he turned down.[23]
Bassett at age 14 became the youngest world champion in history when he won a gold medal in freestyle at the 2021 World Cadets Wrestling Championships.[25][26] At the same event, he lost his opening round match of the Greco-Roman competition to Ruslan Lukiaev of Russia.[27]
He competed at the 2025 US World Team Trials in freestyle, defeating Beau Bartlett in a quarterfinal match before losing to Brock Hardy in the semifinals, and Marcus Blaze in a consolation semifinal.[32]
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