Fans never know who they'll be watching at the Montana Open Wrestling Tournament

And, spectators will have a chance to see Montana wrestling royalty competing.

Those are just two of the perks for those interested in witnessing the three-day event, which once more was capped at the first 2,500 wrestlers to register online at trackwrestling.com. What’s even more incredible is those 2,500 spots were filled in only 11 hours after registration began at 6 a.m. on Feb. 1, which tops the 2024 registration process when 2,500 wrestlers had signed up in 17 hours.

Longtime tournament director Jason Wiers of Bozeman was thrilled when following the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships held last weekend in Philadelphia as an athlete who once competed at the Montana Open captured an individual title.

Ridge Lovett, a 149-pounder for Nebraska, claimed the national bracket for the Cornhuskers. Wiers said that the senior from Post Falls, Idaho, had once competed at the Montana Open. According to results from the 2015 Montana Open found on trackwrestling.com, Lovett won the 15-and-under 88-pound weight class that year. Results from the 2014 Montana Open show Lovett winning first place in the 15U, 81-pound class. In 2013, Lovett claimed the 15U 74-pound class and the 12U 74-pound class. Lovett also won the 12U, 70-pound bracket in 2012 and he was the 10U, 65- pound Montana Open champ in 2011.

“We’ve had former Division I All-Americans that wrestled in it when they were kids,” said Wiers, mentioning that over the years there has been plenty of up-and-coming talented wrestlers that competed in the event.

This year, two Montana four-time state champions are also entered in the Open division in brothers Jarrett Degen and Sawyer Degen of Belgrade, said Wiers. Jarrett Degen was a four-time state champion from 2013-16 and Sawyer Degen claimed four state titles from 2014-17.

On Friday, wrestling will begin at 5:30 p.m. and run until approximately 8 p.m. with the 12U, 15U, 18U, and Open divisions.

“If you want entertainment, come up on Friday night and watch the opening rounds of the Open division,” said Wiers with a hearty laugh.

The tournament, with both boys and girls divisions, is a folkstyle, double-elimination format.

On Saturday, opening ceremonies will start at 8:15 a.m. and wrestling is slated to start immediately after. From 8:45 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., the 6U, 8U, and 10U divisions will compete. Then, from 6-9:30 p.m., the 12U, 15U, 18U, and Open divisions are scheduled.

On Sunday, wrestling will start at 9 a.m. and all remaining brackets will be contested.

Wiers said wrestlers would be coming from 20 states, including many of the regional states. There are also wrestlers entered from as far away as Florida and there is a high school team traveling from Pennsylvania with a handful of its wrestlers. Wiers said many of the participants will have wrestled in the Montana Open before, but every year there are “plenty of new” wrestlers.

Host clubs are the Summit Wrestling Club of Bozeman, the Belgrade Wrestling Club, and the Butte Wrestling Club.

One thing Wiers has been impressed with is the growth of the girls divisions at the Montana Open.

“There’s 670 girls wrestling this weekend,” he said. “Not three, four years ago, we were excited when we hit 300. So, in the last three or four years, the number of girls competing has doubled.”

Those organizing the event are looking forward to this weekend, which is the second-straight weekend of a large-scale wrestling event at the Metra after the Montana State AAU Wrestling Tournament March 21-23.

When asked why wrestlers from near and far continue to flock to the Magic City year after year to compete in the Montana Open, Wiers said it’s a combination of factors — including being able to wrestle inside the Metra.

“We put on a good event. I think it runs well and everything that way. We’re not hurting ourselves from having an event that runs sloppily or anything like that,” he said. “But honestly, that’s not why people come. I think there’s a mystique to the event that’s been created over the years by the attendance, the attendees.”

“I think people just have fun with it. They enjoy the tournament. There’s always going to be, I think it’s the guys that announce the MHSA (Montana High School Association) tournament, you know they call it, the Metra, the Big House or something like that. I think the kids love to wrestle in it.”

NOTES: Fans traveling to the tournament should be aware of Metra’s clear-bag policy.