TEMPE – It's been just over two months since Richard Figueroa's life changed forever.
In front of 16,000 at the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri, on Saturday, March 23, Figueroa stared down Iowa's Drake Ayala in 125-pound final at the NCAA Championships, winning 7-1 and delivering Sun Devil Wrestling its first individual title since 2019.
Figueroa sat down with Sun Devil Athletics to reflect on that historic day, providing an in-depth look at one where triumph, tears, passion and legacy outshined a gray, mid-40s spring day in the heart of downtown Kansas City.
Richard Figueroa is your 125-pound NATIONAL CHAMPION!#NCAAWrestling x @ASUWrestling pic.twitter.com/CRTfwj1B40
— NCAA Wrestling (@NCAAWrestling) March 23, 2024
Friday, March 22
Ticket punched. Richard Figueroa was finals bound after making his way past Lock Haven's Anthony Noto, 4-3, in Friday evening's semifinals for his fourth consecutive victory in Kansas City and his second straight one-point win.
Twenty-four hours later, he'd compete on the biggest stage in the collegiate space. But first, recovery.
“[Leaving the arena Friday night], I was like, ‘OK, let’s see if the weight’s good.’ I’ll eat, see if I can eat, or take a bath or whatever and get the last few pounds off. I got to the room, weighed myself, was only like a pound over and went to go cut weight. I ate, wasn’t too worried about the next day. I’ve always had that where I was like, beat the first person, which is the scale. Beat the scale, beat the scale, beat the scale. Then I had no trouble sleeping, knocked out real quick, wasn’t tossing and turning.”
Up to this point, there was a lightness to Figueroa. Weeks removed from his first career Pac-12 Championship title, Figueroa entered the NCAA Championships as the eighth-seed in the 125-pound bracket.
“Once I saw what I got seeded, I was like, 'I’m about to shock the world. This is going to be crazy.' It’s funny. The guys who I needed to get through, they have no clue what’s going to hit them. When I got to the arena [that week], I knew it was game time. Our first day out there to get our last workout in, I felt like, this is going to be crazy. I’m going to shock the world. I’m going to win it. I already feel it. It was that type of mentally that I had going in.”
Saturday, March 23
Saturday morning – pre-meet
Upon waking up on Saturday morning, staring down quite possibly the biggest day of his life to this point, Figueroa's head was clear.
"I woke up, went to go make weight – last weigh-in of the year, I was happy about that. I got to the arena, saw how the layout is and what’s different between state and nationals from high school compared to this. I walked in, just feeling like I had no care or no worry. I didn’t have to wrestle that morning, so I weighed in, ate a bit, worked out and went back to the hotel. After a workout, I got a 30-minute massage from [team masseuse Amanda Keams], got my body right, went back to the hotel and slept and ate.
"My goal was not to sleep for too long but also not to be up stressing, worrying about the match. It can be either good or bad, because sometimes people think about it for too long and it gets their mind messed up. For me, it was sleep for a few hours, wake up around 1:00 or 2:00, go walk around, get something to eat."
Then, a knock on the door from teammate Tony Negron.
“He knocked on my door and was like, ‘Are you hungry? Let’s go walk around.’ I needed to get out of the hotel. I walked around, got something to eat and I fell asleep for another 30 minutes and by that time, I had about an hour left to go to the arena. It was smooth. It was perfect.”
One more. pic.twitter.com/A5sF0F1nq6
— Sun Devil Wrestling (@ASUWrestling) March 23, 2024
Saturday afternoon – arriving to the arena
Figueroa and his teammates made the quick walk from the nearby Marriott they were staying at to the T-Mobile Center, dodging gray skies and light rain.
Upon arrival, a mere hours before he'd step onto the mat, Figueroa was loose. He made it a point to be social and chatty with teammates and coaches, ditching his noise-canceling headphones for a chance to soak in the final hours of the season.
“I’m laughing, joking with the coaches, with the guys, having a good time. We had the [pre-meet, All-American] ceremony, went to workout for a little bit, me and Julian [Chlebove]. Zeke [Jones] was like, ‘What’s the game plan?’ You could tell he was worried. It was my first time seeing Zeke worried. I was like, ‘Chill, bro. I’m going to win,'" he laughed. ”That was my mindset. I’ll do whatever it takes to win. I was keeping calm … studied matches. With social media, it's easy to game plan.
Saturday evening – match time
At 6:21 p.m. local time, Figueroa made his descent from the tunnels of the T-Mobile Center to the mat, walking down a red carpet in front of the Sun Devil coaching staff as Mac Dre's “Feelin' Myself” boomed overhead. The Selma, California, native Figueroa paid homage to the Northern California rapper in Dre, approaching center stage as the chorus echoed through the arena.
“I'm in the building and I'm feeling myself. Man, I'm feeling myself.”
“I heard the horns and sirens [over the stadium speakers]. I was like, ‘Oh, I didn’t know we had that around here.’ Once that horn went off and that Mac Dre dropped, it was wraps. It was wraps. Back where I’m from in Selma, we always play old school Mac Dre. We like to dance where I’m from. Having that, keeping the mojo up, being excited out there, all I thought when walking in was, remember where you came from. Remember the hard work you put yourself through. Remember where you started. Not too many people get to do this or call themselves a national champion. It was like, ‘Let’s do it.’ Let’s do it for the people back home, for myself, for my family, for ASU, for the ASU community, for athletics, for academics and those who put their heart and soul into my career. I love to give back. I’m a kind-hearted person. I want the best for everyone, stay loyal to everyone.”
This was a familiar walk, a stroll he took earlier in the day alongside volunteer coach Mark Perry Jr.
“Even before the ceremony, we walked around the mat, got a feel, envisioned it. When you do that stuff, it’s a different type of feeling because you feel like you’ve already wrestled the match. When I first saw Ayala, I knew we were going to go to war. I knew it was going to be a cat-and-mouse game, boom, boom. It was like a Chess match, a high-level Grandmaster chess match. I don’t know if he was a little worried. It’s hard to tell how they feel, but once I got that first takedown, I knew it was over. He knew it.”
Showtime. pic.twitter.com/IzfJJQoPuU
— Sun Devil Wrestling (@ASUWrestling) March 23, 2024
Saturday evening – mid-match
After a scoreless first period, Figueroa opted to go on bottom. His mother's words rang in his head as he did so, providing humor in the heat of competition.
"As a kid, my mom said, ‘If you don’t get out, that’s a butt-spanking.’ Just get out, he can’t hold me. He rode me for a few seconds, I got out, and I knew he wanted to slide by – I’ve seen him do it in other matches and I know he likes that. I hit a foreign type of move, a back-step and got the three-point takedown at the end of the period. It felt great because I was like, ‘OK, boom, one more period. We can ride him for as long as we want.'
Up 1-0, Figueroa added a last-second takedown to close out the second period. An official's review confirmed three points for Figueroa, but the Iowa staff threw the challenge brick to review the call. A lengthy delay ensued.
“I knew it was three. If it wasn’t I would’ve heard the whistle right away. When I got to his ankle and had it, there was still time on the clock because the ref didn’t blow it until, like, two seconds later. I was like, ‘OK, that’s three. Go ahead and challenge that.’ I could see Zeke pacing back and forth. Zeke, [Eric] Thompson, Frank [Molinaro] were like, 'You’re chilling, [if it's reversed] we’ll take him down again. You already know what you can do.' The whole time, I was like, nah, it’s three. At that point, I’m staring at Drake, trying to look into his eyes. I’m going to beat you. When I looked into his eyes and I saw him look down and pace back and forth, I knew I got him, mentally and physically. Even if this gets overturned, I’ll take him down again because he knows I’m going to beat him.
"I was getting kind of bored [during the delay]. Let’s get this thing going. Let’s go. In those moments, you have to stay calm and composed like nothing happened. That’s what I’m pretty great at, keeping my composure, staying relaxed.”
The officials confirmed what Figueroa already knew – a three-point takedown, taking a 4-0 lead into the final two minutes.
Sensing victory, Figueroa stayed calm and patient, but maintained an attack. He added a third-period takedown to clinch a 7-1 win.
A national champion at last.
Asked if he ever let himself take a peek and absorb the crowd of 16,000 surrounding him, Figueroa shrugged.
“Not once. Not once until the final whistle of the match. My vision went clear instead of black and I just saw all kinds of people. I was like, ‘Dang, I could do this again and again and again.’ It felt like a rush that was hard to explain. It was a great feeling. It pumped me up because it shows how much the wrestling community supports us. Some die-hard fans out there, even if they’re not cheering for us, they love the sport of wrestling. The sport is growing, growing, growing. It makes me happy because I love that crowd energy.”
The referee raised his hand, prompting a celebratory dance from the Selma native.
“I knew I had to do a handstand, something smooth. That’s just me, just showing me and who people don’t get to see. It was me having fun, being myself. A kid from Selma living his dream. That’s not the end for me. There’s still more I have to win.”
He leapt into the arms of head coach Zeke Jones, shared a moment with his coaches and athletic trainer Jessica Battilochi, before finding his family sitting mat-side.
“Seeing my mom, my dad, my sister, my step-dad there, the support they always gave me. My mom always worked two jobs, sometimes three, just to provide for us before meeting my step-dad. The hard work of her traveling me to different cities and states, taking me to the best tournaments to get my name out there, it cost a lot of hard work and money and dedication. Missing work – thank God her bosses let her do those things. She had a vision I did not believe in. I was like, ‘I do not want to wrestle,’ but she knew what’s best for me. I’m just glad I was able to win a national title and get it off her bucket list. We’re always joking around like, 'How much more do I need to win for you, Mom?' It’s a funny thing I always do with her. She’s like, ‘Nope, you need to win more and more and more.’ I’m like, ‘OK, I like winning, let’s do it.”'
Stunnaman 💯 pic.twitter.com/oqvXEizuTO
— Sun Devil Wrestling (@ASUWrestling) March 24, 2024
Saturday evening – post-match
The rest of the evening is a bit of a blur for the Sun Devil junior. After celebrating on the floor with his family, and a quick interview with ESPN's Quint Kessenich, Figueroa is ushered away into the tunnel, where he meets with members of the media detailing his latest win in Kansas City – the one that will define his Sun Devil legacy. He greets teammates Jesse Vasquez and Tony Negron, two guys he's developed brother-like relationships with.
“Those guys were on the floor, and I gave them a hug. I did it. We did it. It takes a village and it felt good hugging those guys. The connection, the bond we have, it’s crazy. Not too many people have that in their lives, good friends like that.”
His phone pings with text after text, congratulations pouring in across all sorts of social media platforms.
“My phone kind of bugged out. I couldn’t open my messages. I’ll put it that way. I had to get a new phone. Either the messages were too many, or it just kept on glitching on me. It shows the support and the community – the people you met that you didn’t know were cheering for you this whole time. It’s a very humbling, special moment."
By the time he gets to the team reception and banquet at the nearby Westin hotel, it's almost 11 p.m. He shakes hands with parents, ASU staffers, reporters, donors and even some fans who trickle their way into the reception.
“At the reception, all the fans and donors, some people even snuck in and you’re like, ‘who the heck is this guy?’” he laughed. “It was cool seeing the support of fans. I was talking to them, got to eat some great food, the coaches did a great job with us like always for the end of the year.”
Post-NCAA Championships
Richard Figueroa is a national champion. This much he finally realizes.
He's avoided reliving that moment too much, for the fear of getting stuck in that euphoric haze. Instead, he watches himself back and wants to be better than the wrestler who comfortably beat Iowa's Ayala.
“The thing is, you can watch it so much but you don’t want to get into that or sticking to one thing. By the time I watched it once or twice, I deleted it off my phone. I know I’ll see it on social media but let’s work on the next thing. How can we dominate the next season? How can we put more points up? How can we strategize better and focus on my skills and strengths better?”
It took him some time before it's all settled in. There have been reminders, of course. He was given a hero's welcome shortly after when he visited his hometown and family, friends, fans and media met him at the airport gate, drowning him in signs and cheers and hugs. Tempe Mayor Corey Woods declared that March 23, 2024, will forever be known as Richard Figueroa Day. Even his mother, his most devout supporter, can't help but offer subtle reminders here and there.
"When I go back home, my mom always has the video of the match running. It’s funny. I’m like ‘Mom, turn it off. Put on a movie or something.’ She’s like, ‘No, I’m cleaning the house and watching it.’
But it's hit him now. And with this realization that a lifelong dream has finally been met comes emotion and gratitude for those who helped him get here.
“When I got back home, I’m by myself. I took some time to – and I’ve never done this – but for some reason, this hit different. I cried a little bit. Tears of happiness and relief and feeling kind of sad – I wish my loved ones who had passed were there to see. I know spiritually that they were there with me in the fight. It was a good thing for me to reflect that I did this, for once in my life. Whenever I’ve won, I never got to thank myself and appreciate what I do. I’m always like, I’ll do it for family and for friends, but I never thought of myself for once.
I did it."