In the early days of the pandemic, Brady Hankin and his older brother, Jess, could be found in a tiny makeshift wrestling room, converted from their dad Casey’s old pottery studio.
Their sibling squabbles and intense offseason training resulted in a few holes in the walls of the small studio, but also helped Brady prepare for his junior year, where he’d be fighting for a third-consecutive state wrestling championship.
“It’s really intense, but I think that helps. Especially wrestling my brother, we get so mad at each other and we fight all the time wrestling, so it kept me in shape and got me motivated for the season,” Brady said.
Jess, a 2015 graduate of Coronado, won the 5A 113-pound state championship in 2013. At just 10 years old, Brady watched his brother celebrate a state championship at the Pepsi Center and dreamed of one day doing the same.
“At that time I was really young so I didn’t really understand the magnitude of it, but watching how excited he got and how excited my family was and everyone around us kind of pushed me to want to do that,” Hankin said.
And he has done just that — three years in a row.
In a dominant performance at the 138-pound weight class, Hankin finished his junior year undefeated and claimed his third consecutive Class 3A state championship, earning him the title of Gazette Preps 2021 Lower-Weights Wrestling Peak Performer of the Year.
Brady Hankin, junior at Woodland Park High School, poses for a portrait on Monday, April 12, 2021. Hankin is The Gazette Preps Boys’ Wrestling Lower-Weights Peak Performer of the Year. (Katie Klann/The Gazette)
For his third state championship, Jess and Casey Hankin were in Brady’s corner as Hankin pinned his opponent in the state finals in 1 minute and 32 seconds.
“My family has always been close with each other and wrestling kind of brings us even closer,” Hankin said. “My brother was always my role model when I was growing up and my dad was coaching both of us, so having them there to support me through just made me feel a little more comfortable. There’s nothing I have to worry about impressing them or any added pressure.”
While Hankin said his third state championship was less climactic than his previous wins because of the pandemic, Hankin said he’s focusing on his dominant reputation around the state.
“An undefeated season doesn’t mean as much this year as it would in a normal year with 40-plus matches, but it kind of solidifies that I am dominant at that weight and that’s how I want to make myself feel and be seen as dominant,” Hankin said. “So getting that pin in the finals and being undefeated in general is a really good thing to be seen as the dominant one in the weight class.”
Hankin said he was relaxed heading into the state championship match after winning in sudden victory over Valley’s Zach Brown in the semifinals.
“I think coming into it I knew that Zach was going to be my toughest match … and wrestling him in the semis, I was calmer than I ever have been in the finals match,” said Hankin.
Hankin said Brown has a very similar wrestling style to his brother — straightforward and strong.
“I’d say his style in particular is the one I have the most trouble with so having (Jess) there really helps me improve from where I’m at,” Hankin said. “We are pretty much opposite. Jess is a short, stocky guy and strong, and he’s pretty straightforward, blast doubles and high crotch. I’m a little more slick and I like to get angles, so our styles clash pretty well.”
Brady said he and Jess have both improved in their makeshift wrestling room throughout the pandemic, but is also eager to get back on the mat for large national tournaments, including Junior World Team trials next month.
And before you know it, Hankin will be competing to become the first four-time state wrestling champion from the Pikes Peak region.
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April 20, 2021 at 08:25AM
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Gazette Preps 2021 Lower-Weights Wrestling Peak Performer of the Year: Brady Hankin, Woodland Park - Colorado Springs Gazette
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