Video: Youth wrestler sucker-punched during post-match handshake by losing opponent

Cellphone video caught the moment a youth wrestler was sucker-punched during a post-match handshake by the opponent he defeated earlier this month.

What are the details?

The shocking cheap shot went down April 8 at Oak Park River Forest High School in Oak Park, Illinois, at the "Beat The Streets" wrestling competition for ages 8 through 18, TMZ Sports reported.

The clip shows the end of the match between an 8th-grade SPAR Academy wrestler — in a beige and red uniform — and his opponent in blue. The outlet said the SPAR wrestler won the match 14-2, and indeed he got the best of his opponent in a final move.

After the 125-128 pound freestyle third-place match was over, TMZ Sports said things "suddenly took a disturbing turn."

As the winning SPAR wrestler put out his hand for a post-match shake, his opponent used the moment to sucker punch the SPAR wrestler in the face, after which he hit the mat.

Image source: TMZ Sports video screenshot

The referee grabbed the attacking wrestler and walked him off the mat, after which a couple of dumbfounded adults ran over to attend to the victim.

Image source: TMZ Sports video screenshot

What happened next?

TMZ Sports said it learned the victim suffered a nose injury and was subsequently forced to wear a face mask during matches while it heals. The outlet added that he is doing okay.

"He is making the best of the situation and is already back to training," SPAR Academy founder Justin Pearch told TMZ Sports on Tuesday.

"As you may know, wrestling matches can get heated, but nothing leading up to the punch would give cause to such bad decision-making on the opponent's part," Pearch told the outlet, adding that "it’s not tolerated in our sport, and Spar Wrestling will never condone that behavior."

An Oak Park police spokesperson told TMZ Sports Tuesday that the incident is under investigation, and the parents of both minors are cooperating.

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