The Bay of Plenty is set to host some of New Zealand and Australia's best wrestlers when the Wrestling NZ Nationals come to town this weekend.

The event is being hosted by Mount Maunganui Wrestling Club at the QEYC Memorial Hall on Friday and Saturday.

Photo: File.

The best of the country's Olympic-style wrestlers will converge on the Mount for Wrestling New Zealand's premiere event.

Wrestling NZ National coach Mark Grayling says with more than 150 entries from 11 clubs based around New Zealand, there will be some competitive weight groups – none more so the 86kg senior freestyle.

'New Zealand's top Junior, Josh Downes from Dilworth, is stepping up to the senior division to take on some seasoned seniors,” says Mark, 'including Olympic hopefuls Caylen Greenwood from Mount Maunganui and Toby Fitzpatrick from Hamilton.”

Mark went on to tip Mount Maunganui's Female team as ones to watch, with Olympic hopefuls Merinda Bramley and Chanel Kavanagh among them, battling it out with two Australians with similar Olympic aspirations.

'Ella Derry will be trying to add her first nationals gold to her pile of other medals,” adds Mark.

Tayla Ford, who picked up bronze at the 2014 Commonwealth Games, will have her final hit-out before flying to Las Vegas with Mark for this year's World Championships in September.

The Senior National Championships provide a qualifying pathway for the 2016 Olympic Games in Brazil. The senior gold medal winners at the this week's tournament will qualify for the Oceania Championships to be held in Hamilton in March next year.

From there, the Oceania champions qualify for the Oceania/Africa Olympic qualification tournament in Algeria, where the top two from each weight division will book an Olympic berth.

The program opens with 10/13-year divisions along with Junior Freestyle and Senior Greco-Roman on Friday.

Saturday ushers in the Cadet divisions with Senior Freestyle and Junior Greco-Roman also taking centre stage.