Sour Grapes

Pano Sereti vs Edi Xhepaj, ZMAK 57 (ZMAK Wrestling)

This submissions match was fourth on the card on March 19th this year in Athens, Greece. Sereti defeated Xhepaj back in January in nearby Piraeus. Then Xhepaj demanded a rematch on his home turf. Pano Sereti wears green trunks; Edi Xhepaj wears blue.

This is a match I wish I could have seen up close and live. I've long wanted to visit Greece, especially for a wrestling event. The Greeks didn't invent wrestling, but they did put it front and center in their culture, not just as athletic competition but as central to education, military training, and citizenship. This match is based on US/UK styles of professional wrestling, though there are aspects that look like what I imagine ancient Greek wrestling was, specifically the long holds.

The crowd in Athens seems to like Edi better than Papo. I don't understand Greek, so I relied on an online translator, not always accurate, but usually close enough. My title "Sour Grapes" alludes to the Aesopian fable of the fox and grapes, of course.

There are spoilers in the GIFs below, but not in the ones above.

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