"This bracket is maybe the toughest I've ever been in" - David Taylor excited for potential clash with Abdulrashid Sadulaev at World Championships

David Taylor recently regarded the 92kg weight class, in which he will be compete at the 2024 World Wrestling Championships, as one of the most challenging divisions he has ever featured in. Taylor will conclude his amateur career by competing in the 92kg class at the World Championships in the non-Olympic categories.

Taylor, who had retired from wrestling after failing to qualify for the Paris Olympics, announced his comeback by participating at the 2024 US World Team Trials in Omaha, Nebraska. There, he once again showed his dominance by getting past Zahid Valencia in the best-of-three championship series to qualify for the USA’s World Championships squad.

Ahead of his participation at the World Championships in the 92kg class which commences on October 30, the three-time world champion (86kg) reflected on his career in a video shared on Instagram. In the voiceover, he remarked:

“I've been competing my entire life at the highest of the highest levels, just counting my blessings and you know, realizing the sport has given me everything that I ever could have dreamt of as a little kid.”

The 33-year-old expressed excitement for his potential clash against Abdulrashid Sadulaev, a two-time Olympic and four-time World Champion, saying:

“This bracket is maybe the toughest bracket I've ever been in. I have this huge task ahead of me, the rest of Sadulaev. I've wanted to wrestle for a long time. I'm obviously really excited about that match. Haven't had a match that I lay down at night and think about for quite a long time.”

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David Taylor on competing at 92kg weight class at World Championships 2024

Aaron Brooks (red) and David Taylor (blue) at Olympic Wrestling Team Trials (Image via Getty Images)

David Taylor weighed in on competing at the freestyle 92kg weight category at the 2024 World Wrestling Championships in Tirana, Albania. In an exclusive interview with Olympics.com, the 2020 Tokyo Olympic champion said:

“I'd wrestled all the best guys at 86kg, there was nothing more for me. It's all new opponents for me at 92kg and really good ones. So I think there's a lot of excitement and just competing in different people…The weight cut’s not nearly as significant as it was for me to get to 86 kilos - 92 is a more natural weight for me. It feels new and that also helps give you a little more energy.”

In addition to Abdulrashid Sadulaev, Taylor may face other top contenders in the 92kg class, such as Miriani Maisuradze, Kamran Ghasempour, and Batyrbek Tsakulov.