Piedra Vista wrestler Anthony Juckes 'loves to be the villain'

Boos are music to the ears of Anthony Juckes, a senior wrestler at Piedra Vista (Farmington) who hopes to win his record-tying fifth state championship this weekend at the Santa Ana Star Center in Rio Rancho. Only four wrestlers have won five titles.

Piedra Vista coach Mike Bejar told MaxPreps, "The louder the crowd boos ... he loves to be the villain. He's just a great competitor and loves to put a show on. Everybody likes to see us lose."

Juckes, who is 5-foot-10 and will wrestle at 145 pounds, knows that opposing fans enjoy heckling big winners.

"It's just motivating," he said. "I just kind of laugh it off. I usually just (face the crowd) and flex."

Kolbe Fraley of ZiaWrestler.com has followed Juckes closely throughout his career.

"Anthony Juckes is one of the most emotionally-charged wrestlers in our state," he said. "An interesting example of this is his pre-match routine: he methodically paces back and forth, similar to that of a caged animal, ready to be unleashed before the masses. He wrestles with a tremendous amount of heart and confidence, which is evident by his desire to dominate his way through each and every match. He wrestles to win."

The Piedra Vista superstar will enter Friday's Class 5A round with a 39-6 record. Five of the losses were to out-of-state wrestlers and the one in-state loss was to a Class 6A opponent early in the season when he was wrestling at 152 pounds. His career record is a sparkling 182-17. He also wrestled 20 to 25 matches each summer and made All-America as a freshman at Virginia Beach, Va.

Referring to Juckes' six losses, Bejar explained, "He's never been undefeated. We put together a tough schedule  and try to have kids who do not have undefeated records. He wants to wrestle the best kids possible. He doesn't run from anybody."

Juckes, who began wrestling at age seven, launched his string of championships following two undefeated seasons at Mesa View Middle School. Called up to the varsity as an eighth-grader, he soon made the starting lineup at 103 pounds and was seeded No. 4 in the state tournament.

He stunned the field by upsetting the No. 1 seed in the semifinals and the No. 2 seed in the finals. He showed potential for greatness by rallying from a 4-1 deficit in the semifinals and capturing the title match in overtime.

"It was awesome, especially that final match," he said. "I was losing 3-2 going into the third period."

Bejar noted, "What you saw was that competitor come out of him when the lights got bright. His sophomore year just opened some people's eyes. Each year he just got better and better."

Juckes continued on a trail of greatness by winning the 113-pound crown as a freshman, 132 as a sophomore and 145 as a junior. The latter year was the closest he came to being undefeated, going 38-1. Each year he handled the pressure and lived up to the billing as the No. 1 seed. The last two years he made the state's prestigious Dream Team.

The Panthers' leader actually got off to a rather rocky start as a senior, coming off summer surgery and starting the season at 152 pounds. He also was fielding calls from college coaches and Bejar believes he may have been under more pressure than usual.

He still has not settled on a college. He carries a 3.1 GPA and would like to study either engineering or pharmacy.

"Wherever he goes, he can red-shirt his freshman year and get on a good weight program," Bejar said. "He would be good at 140 to begin with and build on that. He still is a sponge about wrestling and will do anything to get better. He has a willingness to listen and learn."

Whatever pressure he may have felt early in the season, Juckes feels none as he prepares for Friday's opening round.

"My team is tough, he said. "I believe in those guys and they believe in me, too."

Piedra Vista has qualified wrestlers in all 14 classes and is on track to notch its fifth consecutive team championship.

"Right now it's pretty much do or die," said Juckes. "I've come this far and need to finish in my mind. It's huge. It's exciting."

If Juckes and his team both come through with championships, he will stand alone as the first wrestler in New Mexico history to win both five individual and five team state titles.

It's no wonder Bejar says, "With all these accolades you have to say that he ranks as the best to come out of PV so far."