Photo courtesy of University of Virginia

Brent Jones (right) won his weight class in the University National Freestyle Championships, which earned him a spot in the Olympic Trials.

Brent Jones is in Las Vegas, looking to beat the odds.

But he's not trying to win big in blackjack or at the slots. He's hoping to make it to Beijing.

Jones will compete today in the U.S. Olympic wrestling trials at UNLV's Thomas & Mack Center. He will be competing in the 96-kilogram class (211¹₂ pounds) of the freestyle division.

Making the Olympics "has been a dream of mine for God knows how long," Jones said in a phone interview from Las Vegas.

This is the final day of three-day trials, which are not only for freestyle wrestling but also for the Greco-Roman and women's divisions.

Jones prefers freestyle wrestling to folkstyle wrestling, which is the style practiced in high schools and colleges. He likes to perform throws, where he lifts his foe and tosses him back down on the mat -- "launching a guy," as Jones puts it.

Throws are emphasized in freestyle more than they are in folkstyle.

"I really have more fun when I wrestle freestyle," said Jones, a former junior national freestyle champ. "I love the throw, and I love big amplitude moves where we're just throwing a guy head over heels.

"I'm a flashy wrestler. ... I'm like an entertainer, I guess, because I hit all the big moves and the high-flyer moves. Freestyle, it's so much easier to get them, and you get rewarded for hitting those throws."

Folkstyle wrestling emphasizes control over the opponent, while freestyle has a bit more action.

"In freestyle, the rules kind of play into my style of wrestling," he said. "In folkstyle, a lot of the guys I wrestle, they know I'm big on upper-body throws and stuff like that, big moves, so they always run to the out of bounds. In freestyle, if they do that, all I've got to do is push them out and I get a point."

Jones, a rising fourth-year junior from Burke, qualified for the trials by winning the University National Freestyle Championships in April.

But Jones is the bottom seed among the 10 wrestlers in his weight class vying for a spot in tonight's best-of-three finals against Daniel Cormier. Because he took bronze at the 2007 World Championships and won his sixth U.S. Nationals title in April, Cormier clinched a spot in the finals prior to the trials. Cormier, 29, finished fourth in the 2004 Olympics.

The winner of the finals earns the Olympic berth in each weight class.

Jones, 21, is one of only two college wrestlers in his weight class.

"I'm definitely going to be in the Olympics [someday]," he said. "This one, it wasn't top priority. I didn't think I'd get this shot so early. But now that I have it, I've got to run with it.

"But definitely by next Olympics, I hope to see myself on the Olympic podium."

Jones might go to medical school when his UVa career ends in two years. Despite his knack for being an "entertainer," don't look for him to try out for Vince McMahon and the WWE.

"WWE is fake wrestling," Jones said.

Jones was a Group AAA champ at James W. Robinson High School in Fairfax. He picked UVa over Virginia Tech and Lehigh.

He took fourth place at 197 pounds at the ACC championships this year. He went 32-12, and the 14 falls he recorded were the second-highest single-season total in UVa history.

Jones said he makes "foolish mistakes" at times when he wrestles for the Cavaliers.

"Sometimes I don't wrestle strategically [in college]," he said. "I go for the kill all the time.

"I have the tools and stuff to become a national champ in college. I've got to put everything together, and that includes winning that mental battle."

Jones and his family arrived in Las Vegas on Thursday. He wasn't worried about becoming distracted by Sin City before his time to wrestle.

"For a lot of people -- weak-minded -- it could affect them," Jones said. "But you've got to look at it [like] you're here to wrestle; you're not here to gamble or go out.

"Because this is a wonderful opportunity. You've got to capitalize on it."