Quarterfinal draws decided for 2026 Hyundai Archery World Cup Final
Due to the sheer exclusiveness of the Hyundai Archery World Cup, the match-ups for Saltillo 2026 were always going to deliver.
The only way to become one of the eight archers in each of the compound men’s, compound women’s, recurve men’s or recurve women’s categories was to either win one of the season’s four stages or accrue enough World Cup ranking points across the season.
Following a packed opening ceremony at Plaza de Armas, the venue for this weekend’s action – so full that some fans resorted to sitting on the stands’ steps – Thursday night’s draw determined the brackets for one of the last major outdoor competitions of the season.
The evening included speeches from World Archery President Greg Easton and Saltillo Mayor Javier Díaz González, as well as a dramatic, colourful drone show that impressively brought together images associated with archery and the host nation, Mexico.
Andrea Becerra and Brady Ellison now know their paths to victory as they aim to defend their World Cup trophies from last year in Nanjing, while Sara Lopez is now aware of who she must face to win her 10th title.
Scroll down to find out the quarterfinal line-ups.
Compound women
- Sara Lopez, Colombia versus Katharina Raab, Germany
- Lisell Jaatma, Estonia versus Alexis Ruiz, USA
- Hazal Burun, Türkiye versus Dafne Quintero, Mexico
- Andrea Becerra, Mexico versus Ella Gibson, Great Britain
Can Lopez secure her 10th World Cup trophy?
This line-up was never going to disappoint. The level each and every archer on the list has shown over the last couple of years – their efforts littered with medals – proves that the ceiling in compound women has never been higher.
But straight away, your attention turns to Andrea Becerra against Ella Gibson. A real clash of titans, these two battled throughout last season for the number one world ranking spot, and still find themselves coming into Saltillo as the top two in the current world rankings. But who will get the last say of the 2026 season?
Lisell Jaatma versus Alexis Ruiz is another one to watch, following their excellent 149-149 match in Shanghai this year, which Jaatma won in the shoot-off en route to gold in China.
Compound men
- Sebastian Garcia Flores, Mexico versus Pablo Gomez Zuluaga, Colombia
- Nico Wiener, Austria versus Nicolas Girard, France
- Mathias Fullerton, Denmark versus Martin Damsbo, Denmark
- Mike Schloesser, Netherlands versus Rodrigo Gonzalez De Alba, Mexico
With reigning champion Emircan Haney absent, we are guaranteed a new victor.
Sebastian Garcia Flores has had his finest season yet at 50 metres, and given his hometown of Monclova is just under 200 kilometres north of Saltillo, he really does have the best home advantage of the bunch in compound men.
Pablo Gomez Zuluaga was a surprising winner in Madrid, but the fact that he beat the great Mike Schloesser in stage four shows he might be peaking at just the right time, so don’t be too surprised if he causes another upset here.
Mathias Fullerton versus Martin Damsbo is also an interesting dynamic. Niels Dall has been Fullerton’s main coach this year, but in previous years, Martin Damsbo has often been the one in the Hermosillo 2023 winner’s coaching box, including last year in Nanjing, where Fullerton won silver.
It’s a case of the master versus the apprentice.
Recurve women
- Ana Paula Vazquez Flores, Mexico versus Marie Horackova, Czechia
- Alejandra Valencia, Mexico versus Roberta Di Francesco, Italy
- Katharina Bauer, Germany versus Elia Canales, Spain
- Elif Gokkir, Türkiye versus Zhong Qixuan, China
Can Horackova win her maiden World Cup Final at the first time of asking?
Arguably the most unpredictable category of the lot, there could have been countless different draws from the recurve women’s line-up and you still could have made a case for any of the eight competing to win the coveted trophy in Saltillo.
Ana Paula Vazquez Flores versus Marie Horackova is certainly one of the more interesting quarterfinals taking place on Sunday. Somehow, these two elite athletes have never faced one another despite sharing many international competitions and often going deep into them.
Both are in form ahead of Saltillo, with Mexican Vazquez Flores taking silver at the Central American and Caribbean Games in Santo Domingo 2026 and Berlin 2023 World Archery Champion Horackova victorious at Madrid. That booked her first-ever appearance at the circuit’s ultimate event, which is certainly a surprising statistic given how good she’s been in recent years.
Recurve men
- Matias Grande, Mexico versus Mete Gazoz, Türkiye
- Junya Nakanishi, Japan versus Mauro Nespoli, Italy
- Brady Ellison, USA versus Jean Charles Valladont, France
- Dhiraj Bommadevara, India versus Berkim Tumer, Türkiye
The Hyundai Archery World Cup Final is the one major outdoor competition Gazoz is yet to win.
Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games Champion Mete Gazoz stated his excitement at the draw at Nanjing 2025 to face Matias Grande for the first time, and the archery gods have made them face off once again.
They literally did face off at Plaza de Armas too, as did all the match-ups, with Grande and Gazoz’s the most comedic. Grande folded his arms, looking straight at Gazoz, with the 27-year-old superstar giggling before then pulling off his trademark clenched-fist pose in response.
It was all fun and games, with the crowd also amused, but it won’t be come Sunday morning, as the World Cup Final is a trophy neither has yet had the pleasure of holding.
Gazoz narrowly won in China, 6-5, but this time Grande is shooting in his hometown of Saltillo, so will it be repeated in a home-versus-away situation?
Dhiraj Bommadevara and Berkim Tumer, too, had an interesting stare-down as they seemed to be separated by mere millimetres.
