Shortly after the Games, Williams compensated for his Olympic defeat with a bronze-medal effort at the 2005 World Wrestling Championships in Budapest, Hungary, and then defended his fifth straight title in the U.S. Nationals. He missed a chance to compete for his 2006 U.S. world wrestling team, but came back with a top five finish in the 84-kg division at the 2007 World Wrestling Championships in Baku, Azerbaijan, losing the bronze medal match to Iran's Reza Yazdani. In early 2008, Williams announced his retirement from competitive wrestling.