[pensive music playing]
[Tom Brands on TV] I understand that sometimes it could be difficult,
but, uh, what profession isn't tough
if you're trying to be the very best?
[Matt McDonough on TV] My ultimate number one goal is to win the national title.
[announcer on TV] In Iowa, it's either first or failure.
[Brands on TV] In order for me to be successful,
or in order for my athlete to be successful,
he better be selfish,
he better be mean, he better be a dick,
he better be an asshole.
It's you or the other guy.
Win you live, lose you die.
[crowd cheering]
All right, this is what you worked for.
You deserve this.
You've given yourself the opportunity to be a national champion.
Enjoy it, 'cause you'll never be here again.
All right, I want you to take the center and be patient.
Let him come to you. Don't chase.
Are you listening?
Hey! Look at me!
There's no future. There's no Iowa.
There's just this match, you understand?
-Understand?! -Mm-hmm.
All right, let's go!
[announcer] Ladies and gentlemen,
introducing from Mesa High in Mesa, Arizona,
Anthony Robles.
[crowd cheering]
[♪ Nelly: "Heart of a Champion"]
♪ I guess he's back 'urr dirty, S-T-L derby ♪
♪ I'm like Magic to Kareem, man...
[whoops]
♪ I ain't speaking 'bout a jersey ♪
♪ I'm speaking 'bout income...
Oh, my God. Is that guy missing a leg?
Is this a joke?
Maybe a charity sports thing?
[announcer] And from Calvary Chapel High School
in Santa Ana, California, Dustin Keefe.
[girl] But, you know, he's really wrestling.
I mean, is that even fair?
[girl 2] I'm pretty sure I could beat him.
-[girls laugh] -That's my son.
[announcer] Okay, let's get underway with our national 112-pound finals.
-What, you're not gonna cheer? -[crowd cheering]
Let's go, Robles!
[whistle blows]
[crowd exclaiming]
[Williams] Be smart.
Get in center. Get in center.
Center! Center!
Wrist control!
[grunting]
Watch it, watch it!
Come on! Get out of there!
There we go.
Nice escape. Nice escape.
Ah! Now ball and chain!
[grunting]
That's it. Come on, come on, come on!
All right.
Get him, Anthony!
[Williams] Good drag.
Two! That's two, baby.
[mutters]
[crowd cheering]
-[whoops] -Nice.
Too high, too high!
Ball and chain!
Ball and chain! Ball and chain!
Go, go, go, go, go, go!
-Nice. -[crowd cheering]
Take him down!
-Switch! -[straining]
[whistle blows]
[crowd cheering]
Yes! Yes!
[triumphant music playing]
[cheering swells]
[whoops]
-[laughing] -Yes!
[both grunt]
[laughing]
-[whoops] -[Judy] Let's go!
Where's she, where's she, where's she?
God!
[announcer] Your 2007 high school champion at 112 pounds,
Anthony Robles!
[crowd cheering]
Thanks, Coach.
Appreciate it. Yeah, man.
[indistinct chatter]
-[gentle piano music playing] -[lively chatter]
♪ ♪
I got to say, that shit was amazing.
So you could totally cash in now, right?
Nah, man.
Cashing in for me is a full ride to college, so--
Bro, college is dudes in tights wrestling for free.
You need to head straight to the WWE.
It's not even real.
Is a million dollars real?
You could have a character.
A heroic Peg Leg Pete type dude who comes in
and beats the dude's ass with a cane like, "Bop, bop, bop!"
[laughs]
I don't know, man.
I think, for me, it's college and then... wrestling's over.
Why you think people go to college? To get paid.
Plus, you seen the muscled-up wrestling girls?
[both laugh]
I should probably watch more WrestleMania.
-You should. You definitely should. -Yeah.
Anthony. I want you to meet somebody.
Hey, watch, I'll see you out on TBS in a hot minute
-after your first class at college. -[chuckles]
Anthony, this is Gary Sherman.
I'm the wrestling coach at Drexel here in Philly.
Oh.
You were very impressive out there.
Thanks.
That's fine work, Coach.
-It's all him, but-- -Oh, no, no, that's not true.
I mean, I-I wouldn't be here without him, seriously.
We're very excited, Anthony.
Want to let you know we would love to have you at Drexel.
-Really? -Yeah.
That's good news.
-Yeah, yeah. -[Judy] What would Drexel have to offer?
We would come with the full ride.
That means everything.
Four years, tuition, room and board, stipend.
[laughing]
We think you're a Dragon, Anthony.
-I look forward to giving you the tour. -[Anthony] Wow.
Uh, I mean, thank you, Mr. Sherman, uh, just for everything.
-Means a lot. -You bet.
Uh, I do actually... I-I need to be somewhere right now.
So, uh, thank you again.
[clears throat] Mom, I'll see you at the hotel.
Yeah.
Not past 11:00.
Someone should tell him he won.
[pensive music playing]
♪ ♪
[dog barking in distance]
[TV playing quietly]
The champ is here!
[excited chatter]
Did it hurt? Did it hurt?
-Did you have to pee on the plane? -Where's your medal?
Yeah, I did have to pee on the plane, weirdo.
-Where's the medal? -Ah, I brought this back for you.
-[gasps] For me? -Yeah, of course. Here you go.
Wait. I'm sorry, you're not Bo.
-Here you go, Andrew. -Wait, I'm not Andrew.
-I'm Andrew. -Oh, I'm sorry. It's been a long time.
I-I guess I'm just gonna hold this for myself 'cause I don't know who's who.
[clamoring]
I'll tell you what. You can wrestle me for it.
[playful clamoring]
[Ronnie] Bo, get it! Get it, Bo!
Where's your father?
-He went out to go get dinner. -[Bo] I got it!
-When? -I got it.
-[Nicholas] Couple hours ago. -[Anthony] Ah, you're tickling me?
Trying to tickle? [laughs]
All right, let's get washed up.
-[door opens] -I got it! -You got it?
-Get it! -[laughing] -[door closes]
[playful clamoring and laughter continues]
Anybody want to say hi to me?
-Oh, hey, Dad. -In-N-Out! -[excited chatter]
Ah, yeah, yeah, I got what you need, right?
Hey. Burgers and shakes.
-Mwah. -Yes, it's a celebration dinner
-for Anthony! -[Nicholas whoops]
[Rick] Oh, is that what this is?
[laughter, chatter]
So, he had me around the neck,
and he's choking me until he slips! [grunts]
And then I wait for his hesitation, and I use my reverse grip.
[straining] Ah, and I pin him! Oh!
-Two, three, champion! -[cheering]
[laughing]
Your mom told me about Drexel. Praise the Lord, my man.
-Yeah. Thanks. -All right?
I know you been sweating waiting on that scholarship.
You know, people like to talk a big game about trying to help people like you.
Yeah, well, I'm gonna keep my options open.
What?
[laughs] Hey, you heard what your son said?
He's gonna keep his options open.
So, if you're in the middle of the ocean
and one of them lifeboats comes along, what you gonna say?
Uh, "Hey, I'm-a keep my options open"?
No, right? We're gonna get in the boat.
Listen up.
Only other reason somebody gets a scholarship
is for schoolwork achievement, okay?
And we all know that ain't what's happening here.
I don't know what you're talking about. Anthony gets great grades.
Oh, yeah?
So... so, where's his academic scholarship, then?
It's only March, so...
Schools don't finalize their rosters till April 3rd.
And I've been writing to Iowa.
Iowa, huh?
When you could go to school for free?
Come on, man, if I had your opportunities,
I wouldn't be looking up convicts' assholes for dime bags, would I?
I-I don't know, but if that's what you do,
you should probably wash your hands before you eat.
[laughter]
Listen, Anthony, I'm only telling you this because I care, okay?
Can't be grabbing ass with your friends in the gym forever, man.
That don't pay the bills. Look around, bro.
Right? All these kids. How many kids we got now, baby?
In fact, who are you?
I don't know. She don't look like you, babe.
You know what? I'm-a take her back to the factory.
-Come on. Back to the factory. -Daddy.
-Daddy, no! -Come on, let's go back!
-I'm-a take her! Quick! -[laughter]
[Anthony] I want to go to Drexel.
I just... I don't want to seem needy, you know?
Okay, I hear that. Make them come to you.
But still, you got to know your weaknesses, right?
Like, if nobody's asking you to the prom,
maybe you think twice about that heavyset honey
who gave you her number a couple months ago, right?
-Okay, stop. -[laughs] What?
He's a man now, right? That's what you always say.
"He's a man now," right? So he got to know man shit.
Not your kind.
Wrestling is a miniature battle between two guys who both have strong wills.
You know, they're calling it a brawl.
No, it's not a brawl. It's a fight.
You got to remember, it's a fight out there.
You got to fight every position. You don't give them anything.
[Matt over TV] You know, I love wrestling.
I think it's a really good sport.
Really break somebody, break his spirits,
make him a different person the rest of his life.
[TV continues playing quietly]
[♪ Jimmy Eat World: "The Middle"]
-♪ Hey ♪ -[lively chatter]
♪ Don't write yourself off yet ♪
♪ And don't you worry what they tell themselves ♪
♪ When you're away ♪
♪ It just takes some time, little girl...
[cheering]
♪ Everything, everything'll be just fine ♪
♪ Everything, everything'll be all right, all right ♪
♪ It just takes some time, little girl ♪
♪ You're in the middle of the ride ♪
♪ Everything, everything'll be just fine...
[song fades]
[Williams] 'Cause you haven't returned my calls.
Okay.
It's risky on paper.
No, he's a great kid.
I'm-I'm-I'm confident that he'd excel at any program.
Because I'm trying to help.
No, no, no, no, no, no, no. You-you should be begging me.
Unreal, these guys.
[school bell rings]
Hey, Coach.
Hey, champ.
-How's it going? -It's kind of hard
having, uh, my fate in somebody else's hands, you know?
-Yeah. -Yeah.
Well, Hereclitus said, "A man's character is his fate."
Have you heard from Iowa?
There's other schools besides Iowa.
And there's other medals besides gold.
Look, every big college has seen you wrestle--
Iowa, Cornell, Oklahoma State--
and so far, Drexel's the only one that made the offer.
And I got to tell you, it-it's a good offer.
Drexel's never had a national champion.
Iowa's had 73.
Coach, the best people.
-The best people go to Iowa. -A school doesn't make a man.
A school is just the people that go there.
All right.
[jet passing in distance]
[Eddie] You know, if you work hard enough,
maybe next time you can clean the windows from the inside.
-Hey, all I need is a wing and a prayer, right? -[laughs]
Thought you were gonna get us lunch.
Yeah, well, I thought you worked for me.
Nah.
I report to you. I work for whoever buys lunch.
Huh? Well, when you get finished with all this over here,
I've got, uh, two G4's and a Hawker you can report to.
-Okay. -Some kind of conference tonight.
Pretty sure it's the American Association
-for Rich People with Airplanes. -[laughs]
It might get a little hectic.
Don't worry about it. I got you, all right?
Okay-- It's a school night. You sure?
Yeah, man. I mean, I never quit.
Wing and a prayer, baby. Check me out.
Boy, if you don't get down from off that wing.
Hey, hey, hey.
Now, how would you feel if this airplane crashed?
Mixed?
See, that's low-down.
You are not cut out for the window washing business.
Hey, you're supposed to tell me that if I work hard enough, this could all be mine.
Well, what I'll tell you is
next time I see you on a wing, it better be a chicken wing.
[chuckles] Okay, that's a good one.
[jet passing in distance]
[lively chatter]
[bus brakes squealing]
Come on.
[horn honks outside]
-Bye, Mom. -[sighs] See you, honey.
-[♪ A Tribe Called Quest: "8 Million Stories"] -♪ I think I'll pull out my suit ♪
-♪ For Sunday service ♪ -[exhales sharply]
♪ My little brother wants Barney, cool, I'm getting it...
Uh, can you be home with them today after school?
I picked up a shift.
I already made food. There's enchiladas in the fridge.
Oh, where's Dad?
Can you or not?
Mom, you can't just spring stuff on me like this, you know?
I mean, Coach Williams has someone he wants me to meet at ASU today.
-ASU? -[door closes]
Did something happen with Drexel?
Drexel's good.
But Coach wants to talk to me, so...
It's fine. I-I can blow it off.
-It's fine. -No, no. [sighs]
Look, I'll see if someone can cover.
Aren't you already covering someone else's shift, though?
Hey, you the man, yo!
Sweep the leg! Cobra Kai and shit!
Don't wave at him. He's not your friend.
-It's just Manny. -"Just Manny"?
Manny and some bullshit you don't need.
I know all about the "just Mannys" of the world.
-Okay? Trust me, I know. -[sighs]
Look, I can get someone to take care of the kids after school.
You don't have to worry.
Heard you cooking at 2:00 a.m.
I couldn't sleep. Cooking helps.
Why couldn't you sleep?
Anthony, go to ASU.
Okay? It's fine.
[♪ Nas featuring Lauryn Hill: "If I Ruled the World"]
♪ Life ♪
♪ I wonder ♪
♪ Will it take me under? ♪
♪ I don't know ♪
♪ If I ruled the world ♪
♪ Imagine that ♪
♪ I'd free all my sons ♪
♪ I love 'em, love 'em, baby ♪
-♪ Black diamonds and pearls ♪ -♪ Could it be? ♪
♪ If you could be mine, we'd both shine ♪
-♪ If I ruled the world... -[song fades]
[sighs]
-[whistle blows in distance] -[door opens]
Hey, Anthony.
Shawn Charles.
Um...
You know, let's take a walk.
-Sure. -Okay.
[Charles] You know, I'm-a tell you a story.
It's more like a parable, actually.
There's a Chinese farmer.
And he's using an old horse to till his fields.
Well, one day, this horse escapes into the hills.
Now, the farmer's son is devastated.
He says, "Without a horse, we're not gonna be able to plow.
This is terrible luck."
Couple days later, the horse returns from the hills with a herd of horses.
Son says, "Oh, my God, all these horses. This is incredible.
Our lives are gonna be so much easier."
Farmer says, "Good luck, bad luck, who knows?"
So, uh, one day, the son's riding one of the new horses.
Falls off its back, breaks his leg.
"Sorry, Father, now I can't help out with the farm."
Farmer says, "Good luck, bad luck, who knows?"
So, couple weeks go by.
Now the army comes through town, drafts every young man
to fight in the war, but farmer's son has a broken leg.
They can't take him.
"Lucky I broke my leg," he says.
To which the farmer replies, "Good..."
-"Good luck, bad luck." -Exactly.
Uh, look, um...
I agreed to meet with you on Coach Williams' behalf
out of respect for what you've done.
It's clear you are a very serious young man.
But I never lie to my wrestlers and I'm not gonna lie to you.
We recruit very hard.
And mostly we get who we want.
It's the same with these other big schools,
so if you haven't heard from them by now, you know, you're probably not going to.
Now, Coach Williams, he's a personal friend.
He wanted me to give it to you straight.
If you're even considering coming here, the best I could offer you is to walk on,
you know, hope you make the team,
and that's-that's highly unlikely given our current recruiting class.
But, Anthony, it's like the story goes, okay?
Doesn't mean it's over.
You're very talented. You just got to keep going--
And I have a full ride from Drexel as well, sir.
Well, I strongly suggest you take that.
I admire everything about you, Anthony.
I wish you the best of success, okay?
[pensive music playing]
-[door opens] -[Rick] What's up?
You look surprised to see me. I live here.
-[door closes] -Anthony.
-Hey, Anthony. -Hey, Anthony.
I thought you were working is all.
Oh, I know everybody expect me to work 24-7,
but even I get a day off, right?
I was out running errands.
[water running]
-You make this dinner, Anthony? -[water stops]
-Mom did. -Mom did. Right.
You-you think Mom might appreciate it
-if maybe you made dinner? -Yeah.
I can get up at 2:00 a.m. and I can cook.
Oh! Check it out.
We got Chris Rock living in the house. He got jokes. Hey.
Why you got to get lippy with me, huh?
Why?
Remember, you... you fight boys, not men.
I'll teach you a lesson real quick.
Same way I had to teach a convict a lesson
-last night. -[door opens]
So the lesson is to beat on a guy who can't defend himself?
Tough.
Those men are locked up because they didn't make
the right choices. Stop!
You need to remember that, okay?
All of you need to remember that.
Choices, okay?
Choices. Let me hear you say it.
Come on.
Choices. Good.
So nobody's in prison by mistake?
No, Scrappy-Doo, they're not.
Okay? Which one of us works in a prison every day
to put food on your wise-mouth plates?
-All right, stop. -Huh? Whoa, whoa, whoa.
-You don't have to talk to them like-- -Whoa, whoa, whoa.
Hold up a second, now. Who you talking to?
Damn, man, you know, I come home, I try to have a nice family dinner,
and I got to listen to bullshit from everybody. Really?
Goddamn. And you.
Get some humble, son.
Those men are criminals because they broke the rules,
and rules are there to protect us, right?
I keep the population safe.
"The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few."
[laughter]
You got something wrong with you, too, now?
No, no, it's--
-It's from Star Trek. -Yeah, I know what the fuck it is, Anthony.
Okay, they get it.
[mutters] Where's my phone?
Goddamn phone.
What's going on?
Sorry.
I just wanted to play a game.
[Rick] Okay.
I'm going out with some fellas from work.
Anthony, you clean this shit up for getting wise with me, okay?
Choices.
[sighs]
[mockingly] "Choices!"
-"Choices." -[laughter]
[Anthony] Why'd he make the choice to wear that shirt?
That's what I want to know.
I'm about to make a choice to eat some ice cream.
-Anybody want to join me? -Me! -Yeah, yeah, yeah!
[excited chatter continues inside]
[engine starts]
[sighs]
-Hey. -Morning. Morning.
How are you?
Why don't you get mail sent home? You hiding something?
[laughs]
Thank you.
[pensive music playing]
[exhales softly]
♪ ♪
[sighs]
I-I don't know why you wanted to go to Iowa anyway.
I mean, what they got, huh?
White folks and corn.
We got white folks.
And you can get corn on sale right down the street.
The best college wrestlers in the world go there.
Oh, do they?
That's what they say.
And you got a scholarship to Drexel.
And they want to hear back from me soon.
Or I could walk on at ASU.
And pay?
Now... now, let me make sure I got this right.
It's stay here and walk on to a team that does not want you
and go to a school that you cannot afford
or move away to Drexel, a school that does want you,
for free.
Hmm.
"Hmm."
Well, when you put it like that...
Either way, I'm gonna need more hours.
I got you.
[imitates static]
Control tower, this is Air Robles.
[imitates static]
I'd like to request a fleet full of dusty-ass airplanes
that need cleaning while this young man makes up his damn mind.
-Over. [imitates static] -[laughing]
[pensive music playing]
[door closes]
-Mom? -Hey, baby.
What happened?
[panting softly]
Nothing. I'm fine. You hungry?
No, I'm not hungry.
-Let's go into the kitchen-- -Mom.
What happened?
You know when I...
I come home and I'm tired, and I was in a mood,
and I accused him of something that turned out to not be true.
Okay, I just-- I should've never said anything.
I was wrong.
And that's a reason to put a hole in the wall?
[sniffles]
He left, Anthony.
He left us.
Mom.
I got you. I'm here.
[Judy sobbing]
I'm not going anywhere.
[sobbing continues]
[quiet chatter]
You're Anthony Robles.
-Mm, yeah. -Nice to meet you, man.
Okay, everybody, take a seat. Let's go. Circle up.
[chatter quiets]
Hurry, hurry, hurry, hurry, hurry. Let's go.
So you going for 125, right?
So are they.
Listen up. [clears throat]
How many of you were the best wrestlers on your high school team?
How many are state champions?
How many of you came in second place?
Hands down.
There are 55 men in this room right now.
When I turn in this roster in November, we will be 33.
That means 22 of you will have either quit or you won't be good enough.
That's just how that is.
Coach.
How many walk-ons I got in here?
Okay.
You are gonna have to beat out men
who were recruited ahead of you to be here.
You're gonna have to prove everyone wrong just to make the team.
You starting to feel that pressure?
That's good, 'cause it's not gonna get any easier than that.
And if you don't like it, there's the door right there.
Right now, today, in this room, you are gonna work hard.
You are gonna work harder than you have ever worked in your life before,
then you're gonna work harder than that.
Or you might as well just give up your spot to the next man and go home.
Does everybody get that?
All right, let's go. Let's go!
-[murmuring] -Work hard. Mean it.
[♪ Portugal. The Man: "Live in the Moment"]
Come on, let's go.
You want to be a Sun Devil, show me. Let's go!
[panting]
Don't cheat yourself, treat yourself.
Gonna be a long day.
♪ Ooh, la, la, la, la, la ♪
♪ Let's live in the moment ♪
♪ Forget Sunday morning...
Want it, want it, want it.
[whistle blows]
♪ Goodbye, so long, farewell ♪
♪ Ooh, la, la, la, la, la ♪
♪ Let's live in the moment ♪
♪ Forget Sunday morning...
Let's go. Go, go, go.
♪ When you're gone, goodbye, so long, farewell ♪
[grunting]
♪ God only knows we don't ♪
[grunting]
♪ Need history...
Show me something.
Show yourself something.
Let's go!
ASU wrestling.
You want to be a Sun Devil?
Right now, let's go.
[panting]
♪ Ooh, la, la, la, la, la ♪
♪ Let's live in the moment...
Keep going! Keep working, keep working!
You want something easy, you picked the wrong sport.
♪ Goodbye, so long, farewell ♪♪
[song fades]
[quiet chatter]
Hey, it's nice to meet you, man.
It's good meeting you, man.
Hey. You sure you don't want to run track?
[laughs]
[whistle blows]
All right.
Today is about balance.
Defined as weight evenly distributed so as to achieve equilibrium.
Stance.
When something is out of balance, it is out of harmony with itself,
and it cannot sustain its own weight.
You take balance for granted.
You shouldn't do that.
Okay.
-Let's work. -[whistle blows]
[grunting]
Get him off your head. Get him off your head, Anthony.
Get him out of your face, out of your face.
Get out of there. Back out, back out.
Yes.
-All right. -[whistle blows]
Work here, gentlemen.
Let's go.
Come on in.
Get him out of your face, out of your face.
Keep working, keep working.
Fight, fight, fight, fight, fight.
[whistle blows]
[pensive music playing]
[Holcomb sighs heavily]
[quiet chatter]
[school bell rings]
[Williams] Look, I don't know what you're mad about.
Like, he-he took out your one leg. I mean, this isn't high school, all right?
Everyone's gonna do that.
Your advantage is that you know they're gonna do that.
Guess all I need is another leg.
No, you don't need another leg.
You just need to make that leg as strong as two.
Yeah, well, I wish I heard that one before.
-Thanks, Coach. Helpful. -Hey, hey, hey.
No, no, no, no, no, no, no. Hey.
I'm not wasting either of our time, okay? I'm here because I believe in you.
If you don't believe in yourself, you're welcome to leave.
No, you think I don't believe in myself?
Coach, if I didn't believe in myself, I'd have been long gone by now.
Okay, good, good.
You have a point to prove.
Great. Perfect. Use it.
[pensive music playing]
[birds chirping]
[uplifting music playing]
[grunts]
[panting]
[quiet chatter]
[coach] Let's go.
[chatter continues]
Let's get it going. Go.
All the way to the top now.
-[scoffs] -Move! Move!
[Charles] Three miles to the top, gentlemen.
-Let's go. -[coach] Let's go.
[Charles] Let's go, let's go, let's go!
[panting]
♪ ♪
[Charles] Let's go! Little more. Let's go!
[grunts]
-[wrestler] You okay? -Yeah, I'm okay.
You sure?
Yes, I'm good, guys. Go ahead. Keep going.
Keep going. Just keep going.
[Charles] Push yourself. Push yourself.
Let's go!
♪ ♪
Surprised to see you.
Don't be.
All right.
[pensive music playing]
[panting]
[grunting]
[panting]
[inspirational music playing]
[panting]
[pained grunting, panting]
Lord have mercy.
[♪ Davina: "So Good"]
[Judy talking playfully in other room]
Yes. Yes.
[Judy laughing]
-No, no. Come on. -No.
[laughing]
[Rick talking quietly]
[Judy laughs]
[Judy laughing]
[quietly] Why don't you take it off? Huh?
[whispers] He's here.
What's up, champion?
[Judy] Dad's back.
Where you been?
Work.
And...
I had to look at my life.
My choices, right? That's what a man does.
A real man knows how to apologize, too.
I had to appreciate what I got at home, what kind of woman I have.
And what I got to do to make her happy.
[Judy] Things are gonna be better around here.
Easier.
Yeah, that's right. A lot better, believe that.
Okay.
[Rick] Goddamn, girl, you look so good.
-Come on, is your mama good? -[laughs]
Come on.
-Oh. -You like it?
We got it today.
-You like it? -I love it.
-Yeah? -Yeah.
Ah, no.
-[laughing] -How come you still got them moves, huh?
-You can't keep up with me. -I'm-a try. Look-it.
-Ah. -[laughing]
-[Judy] Two hundred fifty, 300, 400, 500. -[playful chatter]
-We're at 520,000. -[Rick] Go, go, go, go, go, go.
-[Ronnie] I have, yep, $50,000. -[Judy] Yes. -[Rick] Fifty thousand dollars.
Bang. We just made $50,000.
-[Judy] How'd that happen? -[Rick] Y'all didn't even see that happen, but trust us--
-So now we got $34,000 more. -I have 450,000.
Thirty-four thousand dollars. Don't ask any questions.
-One-- -Extremely legitimate.
-[Judy laughs] -[chatter continues]
-Hey, Mom, are there any chips? -[Judy] Yes. -[Rick] "Twenty K"?
-Where'd you learn how to talk like that? -Hold on.
-Six. -Don't touch Mommy's paper.
-She needs that. -Do not touch my money.
-[Ronnie] Can I move your car? -[Rick] Mama wants a new bag.
[playful chatter continues]
We don't have chips, but we have popcorn.
-That works. Right? -[Nicholas] That works.
[Rick] Hey, what would you guys do if somebody handed you $10,000?
-[playful chatter continues] -[Anthony panting sharply]
-[Ronnie] Now we have $350,000. -[Rick] Whoa, whoa.
What does this mean? What does this mean?
[TV playing quietly]
[pensive music playing]
[Judy] Who wants hamburgers for lunch?
Anthony, you want cheese with lots of extra pickles, right?
[Rick] Kickoff is in 30.
-Tell them not to oversalt the fries again. -Okay.
-Be right back. -[car door opens]
Be good for your father.
[Young Anthony] Love you, Mom.
-[Judy] I love you, babe. -[car door closes]
[kids chattering quietly]
This is his dinner.
[Anthony] Nom, nom, nom, nom.
[quiet chattering continues]
[Rick] Anthony.
I want to tell you something.
You know I'm not your dad, right?
Hey.
You're old enough to hear this, okay?
You're a big boy.
Your brother, that's my son.
Okay?
Be grateful you got somebody looking after you.
More than I ever had.
Come on, look happy for your mom.
She's coming back.
-[car door opens] -[Judy whoops]
[car door closes]
[sighs]
[lively chatter]
[whistle blows]
-All right, bring it in, y'all. -[chatter quiets]
Let's go.
Okay.
Roster is due.
Y'all know how this works.
After tonight, some of you are gonna be
on the Arizona State University wrestling team.
For some of you, it's the end of the road.
We can't choose when to be great, gentlemen.
We can only hope to be great when it counts.
-Oh. There we go. -[kids chattering]
Go, Mommy.
-Cooked the hell out of this pasta. -[Judy] Mm-hmm.
There's more on the stove.
What'd y'all do at school today?
-We had a Wiffle ball game, and we won. -[Nicholas] You guys won? Good job.
[Rick] What position did you play?
-[Andrew] Second base. -Tell Mommy.
[Andrew] Played second base again.
-That's good. -[Judy] I want you to eat all of that.
You didn't have any lunch today.
[chatter continues]
Mm-hmm.
What's wrong?
[sighs] I have a match tonight.
I have to wrestle to keep my spot on the team.
-I want to go. -Yeah, can I come?
-[Andrew] Yeah, me, too. -Yeah, let's go.
[Anthony] No, it's not like that.
I have to wrestle one of my teammates to stay on the team, so...
Well, you're gonna do great, right? You're gonna crush it.
-[Nicholas] Yeah, you got this. -You got this.
How about this?
Let's all go.
-[Bo] Yeah. -As a family, right?
-Really? -Yeah, right? I think it's a good idea.
-We'll make it a family trip. -Yeah.
We got to see this.
Well, you've never come to any of my matches before.
-Yeah, but-- -Why all of a sudden now?
Because this is different, okay? I wouldn't miss this, man.
Okay, it's one thing to take on your enemy,
but we got to fight each other to survive, too.
Please?
[chuckles] All right.
Well, I have to go and get ready now.
-[Judy] Okay. -Thanks for dinner, Mom.
-Of course. I believe in you. -[Andrew] You got this, Anthony.
We're all gonna be there.
Tell you what, I'm ready to fight somebody after this meal.
It's not fighting. It's wrestling.
All right. Whatever you say, Hulk Hogan.
[♪ Lennox B: "Love Vibrations"]
-Hey, Anthony. -Hi, buddy.
You're gonna win.
I know it.
Nobody can beat you.
Uh, we'll see.
This guy's tough.
He's naturally bigger than me.
And I'll tell you a secret I've been hiding.
I only got one leg.
That don't mean shit.
-[laughs] -Don't tell Mom.
We can talk like that in private, okay?
I'll tell you a secret.
Yeah?
At night, when I say my prayers...
...I tell God to take away my one leg
if I could be like you.
You don't need to do that.
You'll be plenty strong with both legs, okay?
I like living here with you.
[whispers] You're my favorite.
[whispers] Thanks, buddy.
Now get out of here.
-Got to get ready, all right? -Bye.
Bye.
[door closes]
[family chattering]
[Rick] My guy, he needs a haircut.
[Anthony] All right, see you guys over there.
-[phone ringing] -Can you grab that for me?
-[Anthony groans] -Boy, your hair is getting long.
-[sighs] -[chatter continues]
Hello?
[man over phone] Is this the home of Rick Robles?
Sure.
I won't bother asking if he'll come to the phone.
He's been avoiding me all week. Give him a message.
When you get fired, you have to take your shit with you
or it ends up in the trash. Got that?
-Uh, y-yeah, I-- -[line clicks]
Hello?
[Rick] Who was that?
Assistant coach.
Wants to make sure I'm on the way.
Better get your ass in gear, then.
You want that respect, you got to show up early.
Right. Yeah.
-Bye, guys. -Can't wait. -[Andrew] Bye, Anthony.
[Rick] Come on, let's cheer him out, guys. Come on.
[chanting] Anthony! Anthony! Anthony!
Anthony!
Anthony! Anthony!
Even better: Robles.
-Robles. Robles. Robles. -Yeah. Get them to hear my name.
[chanting] Robles. Robles.
Robles. Robles.
[crowd cheering]
[whistle blows]
-[grunts] -[crowd murmurs]
[grunting]
[crowd exclaims]
Come on, Anthony!
[strained grunting]
[Judy] Got to get out! Got to get out! Got to get out!
[Williams] Fight him off! Fight him off!
[excited chatter continues]
[crowd exclaiming]
Come on.
Let's go, let's go!
[excited chatter continues]
Move!
Lock him up, up, up!
[straining]
[crowd cheering]
Got to get out, baby!
Anthony! Come on, baby, up!
Come on, move!
[excited chatter continues]
Bridge! Bridge! Bridge!
Come on! Come on, Robles!
[Williams] Come on! Get out of there!
[whistle blows]
[crowd cheering]
It's okay. It's okay.
Not tonight. Not tonight.
Yo, what was that?
[Anthony] I had an off night.
An off night?
-[scoffs] -Yeah.
And now I'm gonna lose my spot on the team.
Well, shit.
Who the hell told you to go to ASU in the first place?
What? I told him he should go to Drexel.
What'd you say?
Oh, what? You hard of hearing?
You heard me.
You have put everybody in this house
under a lot of pressure because you had to wrestle.
Okay, well, now that that's over, maybe now you can get serious about life,
get a job, help out around here.
I can't do everything.
You want to tell everybody why you're really here or should I?
-What? -Why you're playing with the kids.
Why all of a sudden you want to come watch me wrestle.
Rick, what's he talking about?
-I quit my job. -That's not what I heard.
Shut your mouth.
My boss and I disagree about what needs to go down in there.
He thinks that the inmates need one thing, I think the inmates need another,
but I'm the one that's on the floor, right?
I'm the one getting results.
They don't like that. Makes them look bad.
But I can't work that way.
Why didn't you tell me?
Because I didn't want this. I didn't want you to get upset.
-We are barely getting by! -I know, babe. I know.
That's why it's a perfect opportunity
-for Anthony to pitch in. -To pitch in?
Maybe I should quit school, too, follow in your footsteps?
Hey, listen here, player. You want to be bad?
Huh? You want to be bad?
You want everybody to talk about how great you are?
Well, you need to hear the truth, then.
You just got flexed out there. And like a woman, too, on the bottom.
-Real talk, that shit was embarrassing, bro. -Stop!
But your prideful ass had to pass on the one chance you had at a free ride.
But you ain't gonna say, "You were right, Rick."
Because that's the kind of character you have.
Somebody had to stay in the house. I wouldn't leave the family.
That's the kind of character I have.
You think you can just talk to me like that, why, because you're a wrestler?
Bro, I don't play them wrestling games.
I will Floyd Mayweather your ass down to the canvas, okay?
Okay. He had a bad night. Leave him alone.
Why are you always riding him?
[Rick] You want your son to disrespect me like that?
Is that why you never say shit?
I'm not letting him quit wrestling, and I'm not letting him quit school.
So what, you're gonna get a real job? Huh?
You're gonna get a real job, really?
And you're gonna tell me what to do in my house?
You better think about what you have
-and if you're ready to lose it. -[kids whispering]
Go to bed!
Mom.
Go to bed, Anthony.
[pensive music playing]
[door closes]
[Charles] So what happened?
I have some personal issues.
I let that affect me.
Yeah. [sighs]
Yeah.
Hmm. [clears throat]
Well...
You know, they say the greatest warriors of all time
were the horseback warriors in ancient Tibet.
Yeah, they destroyed every enemy they came in contact with
until it became obvious they'd never be defeated.
So they chose to become peaceful instead,
to, um, spend their lives in Buddhist meditation as monks.
Choosing to better themselves rather than fight others.
Uh...
but Buddhist monks also begged in the street for food.
Yeah, you're damn right they begged. They-they were, um, renunciants.
They gave up everything.
Plus, the villagers realized that the monks
were doing their spiritual work for them,
so, yeah, they were obliged to fill the bowl.
Okay, Coach, are you asking me to become a monk now and start begging?
Look, all these stories kind of lead to the door, so am I cut?
-Listen, listen, listen. -I'm cut, right?
Listen, listen.
I'm moving Dorian to 133.
I'm-a leave you at 125.
This isn't a gift, Anthony.
Dorian's better at 133. One twenty-five robs him of strength.
He's gonna do great.
You lost a match.
A match.
I can live with that if you can.
If you can take the wise lesson from it.
Because, Anthony, your greatest opponent?
Never gonna be somebody standing across from you on a mat.
You get what I'm saying?
[quietly] Yeah.
Okay.
Welcome to the team.
-[door closes] -[Judy] Hi.
Hey.
Coach moved Dorian up to 133.
And what does that mean?
It means, even though I lost,
I still get to keep my spot on the team.
[laughs] Yes! I knew it.
Congratulations!
Oh, I knew you'd do it.
Didn't I tell you all you got to do is believe in yourself?
Oh! You can do anything.
You should see the other guy. [chuckles]
Look, can you please not worry about anything else today?
Okay? You made the team. [chuckles]
Besides, I can take care of myself.
[pensive music playing]
[uplifting music playing]
♪ ♪
[lively chatter]
[Charles] Quiet. Hey, quiet, quiet.
-Quiet! Quiet. Look. -[chatter quiets]
Yes, the wrestling program has been cut.
Okay, this year at least, there's no... there's no wrestling season.
-[clamoring] -Hey, hey.
-Hey, hey! Hey! -[pounds desk]
-Listen. -[clamoring stops]
I know this is hard.
The fact of the matter is,
wrestling doesn't make the school any money.
Football brings in millions.
Now, I don't like it any more than you men do, but that's the way of the world.
If you don't make people money, they are not beholden to you.
I did everything in my power to prevent this.
[sighs]
[voice breaking] I let you men down.
I'm sorry.
So...
Look, I've reached out to some schools to see if they can
make some room for some of you men on their roster.
Meanwhile, your academic year, that continues.
Do not use this as an excuse.
Do not.
To-to lose focus, to fail.
You men are here to get an education.
You're here to get a degree.
That's what matters.
They-they can't just cut the program like that.
Yeah, well, they did. Just like that.
[Judy sighs]
Well, you have a lot of other options.
Mom, it's just a sport.
Doesn't put food on the table.
Wrestling is what you do. It's who you are.
-Maybe not. -[sighs]
A dreamer is only as big as the dreams they chase.
[sighs] Yeah, well, I got to grow up someday.
He wasn't wrong about everything.
Well, this gives me time to make more money.
And I'll go to the gym, I'll keep training,
and... I'll come back and try and transfer next year.
Mom, I'll keep wrestling.
[scoffs softly]
[quietly] Promise me.
I love you.
[pensive music playing]
[♪ Talib Kweli: "Get By"]
♪ Yeah ♪
♪ We sell crack to our own out the back of our homes ♪
♪ We smell the musk of the dusk and the crack of the dawn ♪
♪ We go through episodes, too, like Attack of the Clones ♪
♪ Work till we break our back and you hear the crack of the bones ♪
♪ To get by, just to get by ♪
♪ Just to get by, just to get by...
-[man] Look at the paperwork. -[Judy] I looked at it.
-[engine shuts off] -[song stops]
You need to look at the paperwork. I know you must have the wrong address--
[man] No, I'm confident that I have the right place.
[man stammers]
[Judy] But you need to make sense.
You're not making any sense.
[man] I can't think of another way to say it, ma'am.
Uh, he wasn't making the payments
-that he said he was making. -What's going on?
I-I'm Bennett Karobedian from Harper National Bank.
Anthony, go inside. I can handle this.
I've been trying to explain to your mother that
you are six months behind on the mortgage.
Mom, where is he?
He's not answering.
You have 90 days to vacate.
I was supposed to come here with a police officer to serve you, but...
[door closes]
I-I'm required by the bank to post this, but I--
-Just get out! -Ma'am.
Leave my property right now!
-I do not grant you permission to be here! -Ma'am--
-Mom. Mom. -I will call the police!
-Mom. -Okay. -You are trespassing!
I do not know you, and I need you to leave
-right now! -Okay, ma'am.
Get out!
[car door opens]
What are you looking at?!
[car door closes]
[engine starts]
[car departing]
How could I not know he wasn't making the payments?
Why don't you tell me? You're supposed to be the adult, right?
I mean, how could I not know?
I mean, he said he was paying the mortgage.
He said he would take care of it. He said he had two jobs!
Does he?
I mean, what's he been doing with the money?!
[drawer closes]
Where are we gonna go?!
[drawer closes]
And all this time, making me feel like I was...
so stupid for even asking!
And I just stood by.
[somber music playing]
Mom.
-Mom. Mom. -[sobbing softly]
Mom!
[gasps]
You have to find a way out of this.
Don't text him.
Don't call him.
And if he tries to call you, don't pick up.
-Promise me. -[sniffles]
-[sobs, sniffles] -Mom, say it.
Say it.
[breathes deeply]
[softly] I promise.
[blowing nose]
[sniffs]
[sighs]
[suspenseful music playing]
♪ ♪
[sighs]
[vehicle door opens, closes]
[quiet chatter]
What are you doing here?
I'm helping. They need blood.
Yeah?
-Okay. -Where are you going?
I'm gonna see if I can get somebody fired.
They've been letting you come here every day?
Mom. Mom.
Have they been letting you come here every day?
[quietly] I go to different locations.
-For how long? -[sighs]
For how long have you been doing this?
Hey.
I just do it sometimes.
Without him, we need it.
Let's go, Anthony.
[newsman over radio] The foreclosure crisis
may have started as a problem for low-income households,
but it's now become a problem for all households.
[announcer] Over two million prime mortgages,
loans considered traditional for people with good credit,
are now delinquent,
over 500,000 more than last year.
[newsman 2] We didn't expect the levels we are seeing right now.
[announcer] You could sell your house or refinance in the past,
not anymore.
[pensive music playing]
[dialing]
Yes. Hello. Um...
I was just trying to find out when my last mortgage payment was made.
Well, if you don't have that information, can you tell me who does?
Eight-five-oh-three East Harmony Avenue.
Is this Global Lending Inc.?
What do you mean not anymore?
[sighs]
Eight-five-oh-three East Harmony Avenue.
That's right.
Yes. Thank you.
I just need a physical copy of my mortgage.
Would it be possible for you to send me one?
[pen scratching on paper]
[sighs] Okay.
[knock on door]
-Coach. -Hey.
-Uh, said you wanted to see me? -Yeah. Come on.
Have a seat.
[clears throat]
Eh, hold on to this.
I was just, uh...
thinking back about when we first met each other, you know?
Seems like it was just yesterday, kind of, you know what I mean?
Um, anyway, uh, several of the alumni
are taking us losing the wrestling program personally,
so personally, in fact, that they pledged money
to get us back up and running.
So, that's good news.
And, um, I've already talked
to everybody on the team about this because
there were some conditions that were placed on them.
You-you talked to everybody on the team already?
Yeah, I have.
[sighs]
What's the bad news, Coach?
There's gonna be an overall reduction in spending.
So, less money, less wrestlers.
You know, even the athletes that aren't on scholarship, they cost money.
We just-- we can't afford to keep everybody.
I understand, Coach.
Look, I'll have you know that one of your teammates said
they weren't gonna come back unless you did.
-What? -Yeah, but in order for that to fly,
every scholarship athlete is gonna have to agree
because, well, they're gonna be taking less money.
So, we got to put something like that to a vote.
We have to be fair.
Um, two jars,
one pro, one con.
Every scholarship athlete got a vote, and it had to be unanimous.
So...
Oh, wait. That-that was the wrong jar.
[laughing]
[applause]
[excited chatter]
It wasn't just one wrestler. It was all of them.
We didn't just vote to keep you on the team.
It's for a full ride.
Yeah, it was either that or none of us was coming back.
[laughter]
Okay, what's the bad news, Coach?
Good news, bad news. We don't know. You haven't voted yet.
-Right choice. -[excited chatter]
[Brian] I can't even lie, man.
I wanted to keep the money,
but there has to be one person I can beat up The Peak.
[laughter]
[rousing music playing]
[Charles] Turn out of that. Guard it.
-[whistle blows] -Go, go, go, go, go, go!
Hey! Hey. Ref.
Ref. Ref.
Keep your head. Don't lose your composure. Don't lose your composure.
Anthony!
[grunting]
Yeah! Yeah! Yeah, yeah, yeah! That's a good pin!
-[whistle blows] -All right.
[crowd cheering]
-[excited chatter] -It's too much.
We got to calm down.
♪ ♪
[both chuckling]
♪ ♪
Come on, Anthony. You're making us look bad.
-[grunts] -[crowd cheering]
[whistle blows]
[referee] Two. Three.
Anthony.
-You were awesome. -You were so good.
-Thanks. -We're rooting for you.
-[laughing] -See ya.
♪ ♪
-[grunting] -[crowd cheering]
♪ ♪
[bell jingling]
[panting sharply]
[quiet chatter]
Judy Robles, here to see Bennett Karobedian.
Karobedian, of course.
Thank you.
As you know, you had three months.
I do, and I've, um...
been reviewing our loan.
And you did in fact discover that it is overdue?
What I discovered is that it qualifies as predatory lending.
I'm sorry?
[Judy] And the interesting thing about
what the courts are doing to predatory lenders
is that they are...
they're finding the banks themselves liable for the outstanding loans.
Well, what you're saying is, uh, technically accurate.
And not only are the banks liable for the outstanding loans,
uh, to be proven to have lent money or received money
in any predatory way puts the lending institution
on a federal database of offenders that requires a lengthy appeals process
with the FDIC and the state to be removed.
Until which time you are prohibited from any further lending activity.
But you already knew that.
So I have filed an extension.
This should give me about 18 months to rectify the situation...
[quiet chatter]
Yeah, he's-he's kind of nice, though, I'm not gonna lie.
[laughs]
I used to wrestle with this dude right here.
-That was kind of smooth. -Hey, don't touch my computer.
Yo.
The Iowa dude, no joke.
-National champion. -Anthony.
Check this out.
Matt McDonough.
Never lost a match, never lost a period in his college career.
You make it to the finals, that's who's waiting for you.
[whistle blows]
[ominous music playing]
[whistle blows]
Yeah, I seen him.
Why you think I'm always here early?
-Well, silver ain't nothing. -[laughing softly]
-[whispering] Shut up, dude. -Yeah, I suck.
[♪ Kevin Rudolf: "Let It Rock"]
♪ I see your dirty face ♪
♪ High behind your collar ♪
♪ What is done in vain ♪
♪ Truth is hard to swallow ♪
♪ So you pray to God to justify...
[Quint Kessenich] Day two at the Qwest Arena in Nebraska
has not disappointed.
All eyes now on a pair of 125-pounders:
-Matt McDonough of Iowa, -[whistle blows]
-Anthony Robles of Arizona State. -Yeah!
These two on collision course.
This is a match that wrestling fans across the globe want to see.
[Adam Amin] Anthony Robles, one of the great stories
in this tournament thus far, trying to take down
Minnesota's top 125-pounder.
Gets the takedown here!
[crowd cheering]
He's got back points going.
Can he finish this off?
Come on, Anthony!
[Amin] Robles continues to ride.
-Yeah! -[Amin] Right back to the mat.
[referee] Three. Four.
-[Charles] Come on, ref. -[whistle blows]
-[crowd cheering] -[Amin] And there it is!
Anthony Robles picks up the victory.
He's headed to the national championship match.
[Charles] Man, you're a bad man!
-Getting strong! -[shouts]
Hope you feel good. Let's go!
Let's go!
-[voices fade] -[cheering continues]
That's a decisive win for Arizona State's Anthony Robles,
and he's headed to the finals at 125.
[Don Kurring] Every fan is focused on Matt McDonough's
-next match in the semis. -[whistle blows]
[Amin] Yeah, and if he wins that one,
it's gonna be he and Robles in the finals,
each of them eager to answer the question:
Who is the best in the country at 125 pounds?
[crowd cheering]
Dude looks like a pussy to me.
-[man] Done! -[whistle blows]
-Yeah! [grunts] -[crowd cheering]
Come on, man.
Go out there and whup his ass just like you do everybody else.
He's not like everyone else.
His father started him wrestling at three, recruited at Iowa by 13.
Can do a 4.5 40 and bench press 245 for ten.
He's never lost a match.
[man] One thirty-two point eight.
[woman] Everything out of your pockets.
-Hi. -[lively chatter]
[Amin] Day three of the NCAA wrestling championships,
McDonough against Robles,
and Matt McDonough has yet to lose this season.
Few expect him to today.
-All right, Anthony! -[crowd cheering]
[Kurring] And as for Robles, his whole season
has been leading up to this moment.
[Amin] It's coming your way next,
the national championship at stake at 125 pounds.
All right, keep your focus.
It's just another match.
[crowd cheering and shouting]
[arena announcer] Wrestlers to the center of the mat.
[woman] Yeah, Anthony! Let's see what you got!
You're ready, baby!
[Amin] And here we go
at 125 pounds with the national championship at stake.
-[whistle blows] -[grunts]
-[Amin] And a quick shot attempt from Anthony Robles. -Don't force it. Don't force it.
[Amin] And again.
Three quick attempts from Robles.
Much more aggressive Robles than we've seen before.
He's coming out strong on offense, trying to overpower McDonough.
All right, easy, easy!
[Charles] Take your time. Take your time. There you go.
Lock it in. You got it.
-Okay, got-- Nice! -[Amin] Push out once again
defended by McDonough again.
It's almost as if Robles is abandoning some of his technique,
almost fuel more of the fire than anything else.
He's got to be careful.
He might be the one that gets burned on this.
[Brands] Wear him down.
Patience, baby, patience!
[Amin] Why Robles has to be careful here.
Trying the front headlock.
[pained grunt]
Ref! Ref!
[Amin] And able to roll out of it.
[Brands] Go to work. Stay on him!
[Amin] It's McDonough the aggressor this time.
Robles able to turn it into two points.
-[crowd cheering] -[Charles] That's two, Anthony.
Keep working. Keep working.
[Amin] Trying to lock up the wrist and trying to get him into a tilt.
[pained shout]
Trying to lock in that ball and chain, and McDonough with the escape for a point.
[woman] Come on, Anthony!
We're good still. We're good still.
[Amin] Oh, quickly in was Robles!
McDonough pins him down!
-[whistle blows] -And it's over!
[crowd cheering]
McDonough takes advantage of Robles's aggressiveness
and puts those shoulders on the mat for the title.
[cheering and whooping]
[contemplative music playing]
[crowd chanting] Iowa! Iowa! Iowa! Iowa! Iowa! Iowa!
[chanting continues]
[Amin] A disappointing showing from Robles,
as he allows the emotion to overtake him.
In a sport built on technique, Anthony Robles went for brute force,
and the reigning champ makes quick work of him.
It's okay!
[Amin] To the surprise of very few, Matt McDonough has won
his second consecutive national championship.
-[quiet chatter] -[birds chirping]
[Williams] So what happened?
When you want something so bad and...
you lose like that, that fast,
I haven't experienced a pain like that in a long time.
You ready?
There's no joy without pain.
There's no success without failure.
Gain and loss, they're two sides of the same coin.
-How was that? Would that work? -Mm-mm.
-No? -No.
Nah, not at all.
Thanks, though.
So why do you do this?
Why do you wrestle?
-Why do I wrestle? -Yeah.
'Cause it's the only sport
where a guy can't run away from me.
Oh, yeah.
[laughing]
-You know? -Yeah.
No, but seriously.
Why do you do it?
When... when people look at me,
the first thing they see is what's missing.
I got all the way there and I lost.
Maybe there's...
...I don't know,
something missing in me that I can't see, you know?
-No. -I mean, Coach,
most people, even people like you, right?
They spend their whole lives trying to achieve their goal.
No matter how many times they fall or stumble,
people are like, you know,
"Get back up. Go again. Try again. It-it's not over.
It's not about winning."
I'm 21 years old, and I have one more year to achieve my goal.
After that...
...get a job and do something.
I-I don't know. I'll probably sit at a desk.
If I don't win, if...
if I come in second,
for the rest of my life, I'll be telling everybody that I came this close.
And they'll listen.
They'll s... they'll smile.
But for the rest of my life, everyone will just...
...feel a bit sorry for me.
But, Coach, if I win...
...having one leg won't be the most important thing about me.
I'm running out of time to be someone.
[♪ Bobby Sessions: "Fight (Declaration Remix)"]
-♪ Yeah ♪ -♪ Something is throwing me off ♪
-♪ Maybe I'm thinking too much ♪ -♪ Ha ♪
♪ Blocking out all of the noise ♪
♪ Adrenaline give me the rush ♪
-♪ Yeah ♪ -♪ Remembering what I was taught ♪
-♪ I'm never down for the count ♪ -♪ Uh ♪
-♪ This the fight of my life ♪ -[panting sharply]
♪ This the time of my life ♪
-♪ Life ♪ -[grunts]
♪ I am a soldier, belong on a poster, I rise ♪
♪ Lighting the fire inside, carry the pride ♪
♪ I will do more than survive ♪
♪ Keep the tradition alive, now is my time ♪
♪ Countdown is starting at ten, then it will drop to a five ♪
♪ Four, three, two and one, I'm glad the battle is won ♪
-♪ World acknowledge his son ♪ -♪ Fight ♪
♪ You wanna take my life ♪
♪ Better be ready to fight ♪
[song continues over car stereo]
♪ You wanna take my rights ♪
♪ Better be ready to fight ♪
Hey.
♪ My back against the wall, gotta be ready to...
-[engine shuts off] -[song stops]
What's going on?
It's locked.
Okay. Why?
How long has he been here?
Like 20 minutes.
Okay. Stay here. Stay here with them.
You okay? Look at me. Okay?
-Yeah. -You promise?
-[glass shatters] -[Judy in distance] Stop it!
-Okay, stay here. -[Rick shouting indistinctly]
-[Judy] Leave me alone! -[Rick shouting indistinctly]
Get off of me!
Do not touch me!
[Rick] Where you going?! Get back here!
-Go, Anthony. Go outside. -Hey!
You don't talk to me like that! Get back here!
Hey. It's between your mother and me, man.
-You need to get out my face. -No, Rick. Stop.
-Anthony, please go outside! -What's up, son? Huh?
I need you to leave! Go!
-Get out of my way. -You need to leave and don't
come back here again. Don't come back here.
You're gonna be the man of the house, huh?
'Cause if I'm fighting a man, I ain't gonna have no mercy.
-You understand? -Do not touch him!
I will call the cops.
You pick up that phone and call the police, you're not my son.
[quietly] I never was.
Yeah, that's right, 'cause you ain't got no father.
That don't make you no man.
So you better get out of this real man's face.
You haven't been a man a day in your life.
What's that?
-Huh? Huh? Huh? -Stop.
Oh, really? Huh? Huh? You ready for this, huh?
-Stop it! -Ready?
You ready, man?!
[pained grunting]
-Stop! Anthony! -[Rick groaning]
-[choking] -I'm ready, Rick.
[whimpering]
-[dispatcher] Nine-one-one. Where's your emergency? -[Rick] Get off me.
Get this boy off me before I get serious, Judy.
[dispatcher] Nine-one-one.
[groaning]
[dispatcher] Where's your emergency?
[indistinct police radio chatter]
[pensive music playing]
[car door opens, closes]
-[car door closes] -[engine starts]
[sobs softly]
Okay, come on. Let's go inside. Let's go.
[sighs, sniffles]
[pensive music playing]
♪ ♪
[knock on door]
Hey, Coach.
Good morning, Mrs. Robles.
Hey, uh, is Anthony here?
-Uh, no, he's not back yet. -No.
No. Okay, um, do you mind giving him this box for me?
-Of course. -Yeah.
You know, it got sent to the, uh, to school.
Yeah, I'll make sure he gets these.
Okay. Ma'am.
Um...
You know, you might want to read some of those.
Yeah, I, you know...
You know, you spend your whole life, you know,
coaching young men, and it can be frustrating at times.
-Oh, I can imagine. [laughs] -Yeah. Yeah.
But, uh, with Anthony...
...it's, uh...
You must be an extraordinary mother.
[chuckles]
Well, this is just Anthony.
I mean, that... this is who he is. [chuckles]
Well, with all due respect, you know, in my experience,
it-it doesn't work that way.
So...
Enjoy the reading.
Thank you.
-[lively chatter] -[rap music playing]
[Charles] All right, y'all, bring it in. Hey.
-Come on in, guys. -[chatter and music stop]
Okay. Uh...
So, for most of you, this was the last match of the season.
You know, for some of you, it was the last match as a Sun Devil,
but I want to acknowledge that every single one of you
got better this year.
And, um, one of you guys, who will remain nameless-- Cory...
[laughter]
...even learned how to read a clock this year,
so congratulations, Cory.
-Thank God for small miracles. -[cheering, laughter]
Uh, six of you are going on to the NCAA championships in Philadelphia.
It's an incredible achievement, and we're all very honored
to have you represent us on that national stage,
so give yourself a hand for that.
[encouraging chatter]
Now, there is one accomplishment that's even greater than all of that.
We have somebody on this team who was a walk-on.
And, uh, despite being discouraged by their coach,
unrecruited, without financial aid,
took a full-time job to support their family
and has also managed to maintain the third highest GPA on this team.
He also just notched an undefeated senior season.
[encouraging chatter, whooping]
So I for one, I'm gonna tip my damn cap
to this very impressive young man, and I just...
I just want to say, Anthony, uh, I-I failed to realize who you were.
I didn't really understand your character.
But you have more than compensated for my error,
and for that I am truly grateful.
And just know that...
know that I see you now.
-[claps] -So I invite all of you to stand with me,
because, uh, someone pointed something out to me the other day:
Anthony only has one leg.
[laughter]
I mean, how is he doing it? Anthony Robles.
[cheering, excited chatter]
You want to say something, son?
[sighs]
We're not done yet.
That's right.
We're gonna be champions.
[sighs]
-One, two. -[all clap in unison]
What's all this?
"Dear Mr. Robles, Mr. Balcombe said we needed to write to a living hero,
and you are definitely my hero."
"Dear Anthony, I'm in the third grade.
When I watch you wrestle, I feel like I can fight past my asthma..."
"Dear Anthony, my name is Alex.
I wanted to let you know how much your story has impacted me."
[voice trembling] "Dear Anthony Robles,
my name is Tim and I am in the fifth grade.
I just wanted to tell you how much I look up to you."
Anything that makes you feel you are not perfect
and beautiful the way you are is my fault.
Because as a mom, you make choices.
How long you stay.
How much damage is done.
It's not your fault.
It is my fault.
I always thought that it was my fault that you were born this way.
Because God was punishing me for my sins.
Mom.
You know, I never told you this.
But when you were about a year old, things got messy.
I started drinking and hanging out again.
And my mom came to me,
and she said she wanted to take you away from me.
Raise you as my brother.
And I looked into your little face, and I thought,
"If his mother doesn't accept him, how will he ever accept himself?"
I chose you.
But I also chose him.
[voice breaking] And I am sorry.
[sniffles]
I am so sorry.
Who you are already is enough.
You make people believe in something.
When they see you, they don't see someone who's missing a leg.
They see someone who is unstoppable.
[sobs softly]
And that makes them believe in themselves.
You can show them that anything is possible.
I know...
because you showed me.
[pensive music playing]
[♪ The Hives: "Tick Tick Boom"]
[excited chatter]
[Shane Sparks] Welcome to coverage of the 2011 NCAA wrestling championships
here inside Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
I'm Shane Sparks alongside Don Kurring.
Don, the big story here is Anthony Robles going undefeated.
Four years ago, he won the high school championship
right here in Philadelphia, and now he's back to where it all began.
[Kurring] And the place is packed here, Shane,
to see the best athletes in the world fighting for
-wrestling immortality. -[whistle blows]
[Brands] Let's go! Yes!
[crowd cheering]
[Charles] Stay on him! Stay on him! Stay on him!
♪ So what you waiting for? ♪
-♪ Yeah... -[coaches chattering]
[referee] Two. Three.
[whistle blows]
[crowd cheering]
♪ 'Cause I have done it before...
[arena announcer] Robles.
♪ I got my eye on the score...
[excited shouting]
♪ It's too late, it's too soon, or is it? ♪
♪ Tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, boom ♪
Three more.
♪ ♪
[Sparks] Anthony Robles, a runner-up a year ago.
Can he take that final step
to the top of the podium and be a champion?
This year, the refs have been rough on Robles.
[whistle blows]
Given that added pressure, question is:
Will he go all the way or will he fall apart like last year?
[Charles] That's it. Get-- Yeah, yeah, yeah!
Lock that in! Lock that in! Yes!
[Sparks] And Robles will roll him through.
He's got it totally locked up.
-Robles looking for a fall. -[whistle blows]
And he's got the pin here in the quarterfinals!
All right, son. All right.
♪ 'Cause I have done it before ♪
♪ And I can do it some more, I got my eye on the score ♪
♪ I'm gonna cut to the core ♪
♪ It's too late, it's too soon, or is it? ♪
♪ Tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, boom ♪
♪ Check it...
-[crowd cheering] -[coach shouting]
[excited shouting]
-[grunting] -[coach] Yeah, yeah!
Turn it, turn it, turn it! Yeah!
-Hey! -Hey, hey, ref, watch that foot!
-[grunting] -Pin him! Get him down!
[whistle blows]
-[whoops] -[crowd cheering]
Yes!
♪ You know I've done it before ♪
♪ And I can do it some more...
One more. That's it.
One more. One more.
-[cheering] -One more, baby!
[crowd chanting] Robles! Robles!
Robles! Robles! Robles!
Robles! Robles! Robles! Robles!
-[chanting fades] -[song ends]
[grunting]
-[whistle blows] -[crowd cheering]
So it appears as if the championship at 125 will be
a rematch of last year's final.
And, Coach Brands, I thought it was interesting.
Other coaches saying that Anthony has
a significant advantage because he has one less leg to grab.
Others saying that he should have to weigh in with a prosthetic leg.
Look, at Iowa, we don't accept excuses.
Matt is the reigning national champion for a reason.
There's not a wrestler in the building who has any possibility of winning.
[Kessenich] Matt, your thoughts?
[Matt] ASU was supposed to wrestle us earlier this season,
but they backed out for whatever reason.
Anthony's beaten some good guys this year, but he's still got to go through me.
[Kessenich] Robles is wrestling like a boa constrictor,
suffocating his opponents, and the crowd loves him.
Are you telling me he's not a worthy adversary?
At Iowa, we believe second is the same as last.
[Kessenich] Whew.
Shane, back to you. Shots fired.
[scoffs]
"You lose, you die."
"No pity, no weakness."
All that scorched earth bullshit, that ain't no way to live in the world, son.
I used to be angry all the time.
Even on the mat after I'd win.
-Mm. -Guess I kind of just used that.
But I'm not angry anymore.
So what are you?
I'm a little scared. [chuckles]
[laughs]
Hey, me, too.
[Charles laughs]
-Don't tell anybody. -[laughing]
I got you.
You think it's, uh, too late for us to become monks?
Well, let me see if I can find some horses.
We'll get the hell up out of here.
-Uh, yeah, please. -[both laugh]
Hey, ain't nothing to it but to do it, Anthony.
I like that one.
[uplifting music playing]
♪ ♪
[rousing music playing]
[official] One twenty-four point two.
One twenty-four point nine.
[crowd murmuring]
[♪ M.O.P.: "Ante Up"]
[crowd cheering and song playing faintly]
-♪ Ante up, yap that fool ♪ -[doors open]
-[loudly] ♪ Ante up, kidnap that fool ♪ -[crowd cheering loudly]
♪ It's the perfect timing...
[arena announcer] Ladies and gentlemen,
from Arizona State University, Anthony Robles!
[cheering continues]
[song fades]
[Sparks] We have reached the championship finals.
We will crown ten champions.
We'll begin at 125 pounds.
Don, this is one of the stories of the season.
Undefeated Anthony Robles of Arizona State
-against Matt McDonough from Iowa. -[laughing]
Come on, now, whup that boy's ass.
[kids cheering]
[arena announcer] From the University of Iowa,
-Matt McDonough! -[crowd cheering]
[Sparks] This is Robles-McDonough chapter two.
Last year, the Hawkeye got the better end of the deal.
Can Robles right the wrong here in 2011?
Robles this season, he's looked really good.
Last year, was a little bit overaggressive.
This year, more patient, more mature.
-I like what I've seen from Anthony. -[Kurring] So far.
I think you can't underestimate the adrenaline that goes through.
Twenty thousand people here.
I do wonder whether he's gonna
go back to that initially aggressive style.
All right.
-What's the plan? -What are you thinking?
-What am I thinking? -You've been here before, son.
You're an expert.
Okay, you know this guy as well as his coach does,
so yeah, what are you thinking?
He's expecting me to come out the gate like last time.
-That's right. -Make him wait on the mat.
-Show him I have discipline. -That's exactly right.
That's exactly right.
He's gonna try to goad you into making the same mistake you made before,
but we're not gonna fall for that today, are we?
No, we are not.
You're gonna be patient, as long as it takes.
You're gonna wait, make him come to you.
Okay? This is your match, Anthony.
Find a way to win. You hear me?
-Find a way to win. Let's go. -[claps]
[crowd cheering]
-Here we go! -[Sparks] Championship Saturday night!
All eyes on the right stage.
-The collision course at 125 pounds. -Let's go!
[Sparks] The number one seed, Anthony Robles,
undefeated from Arizona State.
And across the opposite line,
the reigning national champion, Matt McDonough from Iowa.
-[whistle blows] -Here we go!
Robles wearing the red ankle band, McDonough in the green.
First period three minutes followed by two two-minute periods.
Seven minutes stand between these two and a national championship.
[Brands] Stalk him. Stalk him.
Same as last time. That's it.
[Charles] Fight hard! Fight here! Fight here!
[both grunting]
Fight here! Fight here!
-Now, come-- No. -All right, all right. Okay.
[grunts fiercely]
[Brands] Okay, get on him. Don't let him breathe.
-Don't let him breathe. -[Charles] Back out of there.
Clear it! Clear it! Clear it!
[Sparks] Trying to control those wrists of the Hawkeye McDonough.
No score.
Twenty seconds into this national final.
Here's a single leg from Robles.
[Brands] Fight it.
Set the leg back!
-[Brands] Yeah! -[Sparks] And a switch off, and he is rolled through by McDonough.
[Charles] Oh, get your head out of there, Anthony.
Get your head out! Get your head out!
There you see Robles with that wrist, once again clearing the tie.
[Charles] Back out! Back out! Back out!
Back out!
Get your head out! Get your head out!
-Get him off his head! -Come on, Robles!
-[bell dings] -[referee] Two! Takedown!
And now Anthony Robles strikes first.
-There's two for the Sun Devil. -Two! Yes!
[Sparks] He genuinely surprised McDonough right there.
[straining]
Robles with that signature grip, but the ref not awarding points just yet.
They need to see that clean release from Robles.
Three! Four! One!
[Sparks] But Matt McDonough capitalizing on the moment.
He makes Robles pay. The Hawkeye's on the scoreboard.
Two! Takedown!
-[Sparks] And McDonough closes the gap. -Keep fighting! Keep fighting!
[Sparks] Working off an underhook throw by, he scores the two.
He is right back into this match.
[Charles] Get off your belly! Get off your belly!
Get up, Anthony!
Hey, get off your belly, Anthony! Get off your belly!
-[Sparks] And he's got Robles on his back. -[referee] Two!
And that top position as well.
The Hawkeye scores a couple.
-We got ourselves a new match. -[whistle blows]
An exciting first period in this 125-pound final.
[mouthing]
Break his leg!
Stupid bitch, I will beat your ass!
-[clamoring] -[Nicholas] Mom, Mom, Mom!
-How about I break your face?! -Mom, Mom, Mom.
Calm down, calm down.
Green. Your choice.
[Sparks] The disc comes up to McDonough.
Takes a look at Tom Brands. He'll defer. The choice goes to Robles.
And the Sun Devil Robles wants to stay neutral.
-It's okay. I'm sorry. -[crowd cheering]
[Sparks] A match characterized by early discipline...
-Okay. Let's go, Anthony! -...descending perhaps into emotion,
as these two men clearly have no fondness for one another.
[whistle blows]
[Brands] Don't waste time, Matt.
[Sparks] Second period, tie score.
[Charles] Get a wrist. Get his wrist.
-[both straining] -Clear that!
Clear that, Anthony! Clear that! Clear that!
[Sparks] McDonough heavy with those power ties, physicality.
Doing a nice job taking territory, moving forward.
[Brands] Chest to chest, Matt!
[Sparks] Good pummeling action going on between these two right now.
[excited shouting]
[Brands] Get your head in the match!
[panting]
You have to break him!
[Sparks] Counterattack there from Robles.
Feeling each other out a little bit in this second period.
Don't want to make a mistake.
You want to be aggressive but not too aggressive.
And now McDonough with an attack. Seat belt position.
Gonna switch off to a single leg.
High whizzer from Robles.
Anthony trying to square his hips.
Does a really nice job, but McDonough relentless,
as they scramble center mat and Robles kicks out!
[excited shouting]
[Sparks] Some good flurries on both sides.
Great fake by Robles!
And you see that scrambling ability from McDonough.
[whistle blows]
[Kurring] Last year, Robles made a critical error
going for a ball and chain tilt on McDonough
when he was in desperate straits.
I expect possibly to see a repeat of that.
[Sparks] That'd be a mistake in my opinion, Don,
because we know McDonough would certainly be expecting that.
[grunts]
-[Brands] Come on, Matt. -Top.
[referee] Green chooses top.
[Charles] Right away, Anthony. Right away.
[Sparks] Well, this is it.
A lifetime of dreams and hard work comes down to these two minutes.
[crowd murmuring]
[Brands] We need a point here. We need a point.
[Sparks] Put your seat belt on, Don.
-[referee] Set. -[whistle blows]
-[crowd cheering] -[Brands] Keep him down.
Pressure forward.
[Charles] All right. Come on, son. You good.
[Sparks] McDonough really good in this top position.
Good forward pressure.
But credit Robles staying active and busy on bottom.
You don't want to get caught underneath McDonough.
He'll make you pay.
Working hard for that top position.
[Charles] Fight here! Fight here! Fight here!
Get your head out of there!
Heavy hips! Heavy hips!
[Sparks] Great battle here in this 125-pound final.
Get out of there!
Get off your belly!
[Sparks] Robles looking to avenge the loss from last year's final.
And there's an escape takedown! Another for the Sun Devil!
And diving right back into the single leg of McDonough.
[Brands] Get him off your leg, off your leg!
-Okay, son, get up now! Son, get up! -[crowd chanting]
[Sparks] You hear the chants, Don.
"Robles! Robles!"
This place is electric!
[crowd chanting] Robles! Robles!
Robles! Robles! Robles! Robles!
Robles! Robles! Robles!
[Charles] Keep him down!
[Sparks] And Robles rolls him through for two more!
-Takedown! -[crowd cheering]
-Two! -Yeah, yeah, yeah!
[strained grunting]
Turn him now. Turn him, turn him!
[straining]
-Yes! -[crowd cheering]
Yeah! Yeah, baby!
[Sparks] Robles back to that ball and chain tilt
late in this third period!
Trying to roll him through.
McDonough giving it a fight on bottom.
[straining]
[Charles] Turn him now! Turn him!
[audio fades]
[gentle inspirational music playing]
♪ ♪
-[whistle blows] -[crowd cheering]
-Yes! -[Judy screaming]
Yes!
[screaming happily]
[whooping]
[Charles] Yes!
[Charles whoops]
[crowd cheering]
[Sparks] Anthony Robles, a runner-up in 2010,
takes that step to the top.
He will forever be called a champion.
-[cheering] -Anthony Robles at 125 pounds
defies all odds.
Congratulations to the Sun Devil.
[triumphant music playing]
Yes!
[Judy] Yes!
Yeah!
[exclaiming]
[grunting, laughing]
Yeah!
♪ ♪
-Yes! Yes! -Let's go, Anthony! -[cheering continues]
-[Charles] Yeah. That's it. -Yeah.
[shouts]
[Charles laughing]
[sobs] You did it.
We did it. We did it.
We did it. I'm so proud of you.
♪ ♪
[pensive music playing]
[quiet chatter]
Hi. Nice to meet you. What's your name?
-Samari. -Samari. Nice to meet you.
-[teacher] This way. -[child] Whoa.
-Whoa. -[teacher] Gather round.
That's so cool.
[quiet chatter continues]
[optimistic music playing]
[inspirational music playing]
♪ ♪
[pensive music playing]
♪ ♪
[uplifting music playing]
♪ ♪
[pensive music playing]
♪ ♪
[uplifting music playing]
♪ ♪
[pensive music playing]
♪ ♪
[music ends]