For someone who has been the best at every level in the sport of wrestling since elementary school, it’s incredible that David Taylor has continued to jump levels like he has. The past two years the Magic Man has separated himself from the 86 kg field. And not just the 86 kg field in the US. Taylor is now 2-0 against two 86 kg World champion and 2016 74 kg Olympic champion Hassan Yazdanicharati, including once by pin.

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Whoever David Taylor steps on the mat against, if it’s at 86 kg, he’s going to be the favorite. Myles Martin is no different. Now, let’s take a look into the staggering statistics that prove just how much and why he’s such a big favorite. 

The data below is compiled from Taylor’s last 27 matches excluding the Drew Foster match where DT was injured and the 2018 Yasar Dogu matches because those are quite hard to find on video. However, David did pin all four opponents at said tournament, so make of that what you will. These 27 matches date back to January of 2018 and include 2020 Pan Am Olympic Qualifier, 2020 Pan Am Championships, 2018 Worlds, 2018 Final X, 2018 Pan Ams, 2018 US Open, 2018 World Cup, and 2018 Yarygin final against Fatih Erdin.

Shot Rate: 1.32 x minute

What It Means: David Taylor’s pace is talked about all the time. Where he truly wears opponents down is in the hand fight. Not only does DT almost always have his hands on his opponents, he is constantly snapping, pulling, pushing, and moving. However, he is firing off an extremely high rate of legitimate attacks for an 86 kg wrestler. This doesn’t include half shots, leg slaps, or any sort of snap, drag, or upper body attack, only legitimate hard leg attacks. It also doesn’t subtract the amount of time Taylor spends on top. Meaning, his rate of leg attack per available time is much less than 1.32 x minute.

Ratio Of Shot Rate To Opponent Shot Rate: 3.02:1

What It Means: David Taylor is shooting more than three times the amount of times his opponents are. This just reiterates how hard his pace is. Taylor’s attack rate compared to his opponents is why he has never been on the shot clock in these 27 matches. In fact, he has only been warned for passivity once. Many of the world’s highest paced wrestlers cannot say that. Taylor doesn’t slow down even against the best.

Shot Success Rate: 54.33%

What It Means: I defined success as scoring points. So no, David Taylor does not finish every leg attack in either a takedown or step out. However, he has only given up points on one of his own attacks three times. Russia’s Daren Kurugliev ended up on top once, Yazdani picked up a step out, and Aleksander Gotsiev of Azerbaijan scored a crotch lock. So, there really isn’t much harm in shooting a lot for Taylor. For the most part, he either picks up points or at least makes his opponent work and get tired faster.

Opponent Shot Success Rate: 14.29%

What It Means: Almost no one can shoot and score, either by takedown or stepout, on David Taylor. Only five opponents have successfully scored on David off of their own shot, and none of them are American. This does not include Nick Reenan’s slick slideby from Final X, or Tim Dudley’s slideby from the Open, however, as those were not shots. So, for the most part, David Taylor doesn’t get taken down. When he does, it was probably either not a leg attack or done by one of the best wrestlers in the world. And it still won’t matter because he still gets more. Also, only giving up three total takedowns while going through his 2018 Worlds bracket is quite impressive.

Watch Mike Mal and Bader breakdown DT’s 2018 World Championship run below.

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Times Being Turned: 0

What It Means: In the rare occurrence that DT does get taken down, he’s not giving up any more than two points. Now, I do believe Ahmet Bilici might have turned Taylor in the 2018 Yasar Dogu semifinals, but once again, video evidence cannot be located to accurately recount the match. But in the 27 matches that were included - 0 turns.

Tech/Pin Rate: 77.78%

What It Means: David Taylor finishes people early. In those 27 matches, 15 were tech falls, six were pins, and six were regular decisions. Of those six regular decisions, Torreblanca accounted for three, and two of those matches were 8-0. Yazdani, Kurugliev, and Perry were the other three to hold Taylor to a regular decision.

Chants of ‘USA, USA, USA’ ring out at Carver-Hawkeye Arena after David Taylor (@magicman_psu) gets a technical superiority in the finals of the 2018 World Cup. pic.twitter.com/fKwsHOpNix

— Trackwrestling (@trackwrestling) March 29, 2020

So, is Myles Martin a bad wrestler? Absolutely not. But do I think he can withstand the David Taylor onslaught? No I do not. DT by tech fall.