Anthony Knox couldn’t be stopped on the wrestling mat and couldn’t be found afterward.
Knox, who is eyeing a fourth New Jersey high school state wrestling championship after a judge overturned a ban issued by the state’s governing body, easily won the Region 7 title Saturday in the 126-pound weight class.
The St. John Vianney High School star bound for Cornell University then no-showed for the medal podium and champions photo and declined interview requests in a hurry to leave, according to NJ.com.
Superior Court Judge Patrick J. Bartels issued a temporary restraining order Friday that is allowing Knox to continue his pursuit of becoming just the fifth four-time state champion in the history of wrestling-crazed New Jersey.
Knox’s bid looked finished after he was disqualified by the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association for his role in a fight that broke out in the stands involving his father at one of St. John Vianney’s district matches. Districts are the round before regionals.
Both father and son were photographed in handcuffs leaving the scene of the fight.
But Knox’s attorney filed a lawsuit challenging the NJSIAA’s definition of “leaving the bench area during an altercation” in its disqualification decision.
If nothing changes in the courts before then — and the NJSIAA is requesting a stay to re-issue a disqualification and make sure its authority is not neutered in the future — Knox will be a heavy favorite to win his fourth state title when the state championship bracket plays out Thursday through Saturday in Atlantic City.
After taking the mat to “polite applause from a capacity crowd” at Lacey Township High School, as the Asbury Park Press described it, Knox won his two bouts Saturday on the second of the two-day regional tournament by scores of 18-3 and 17-1, with neither match lasting beyond the first two-minute period.
He only found out that he would be allowed to compete an hour before weigh-ins on Friday.
Knox made a beeline for the gymnasium’s front exit Saturday, after leaving Friday with a police escort through the back door, according to NJ.com.