The 32-year-old David Taylor defeated Iran’s Hassan Yazdani in the title match in Serbia last September. It was his second world championship (2018). 

Taylor also topped Yazdani, a past world champion and Olympic gold medalist, for the gold medal at 86 kilograms at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, recording a last-second takedown for the win. 

Taylor’s Final X opponent will be Aaron Brooks, who was the 86kg champion at the 2023 U.S. Open Wrestling Championships in April.

Subscribe to FloWrestling and the FloSports app to watch Final X Wrestling presented by Tezos 

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2023 Final X Wrestling Matchups

This year’s edition of Final X Wrestling presented by Tezos will take place at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, on June 10. The event will feature the top two wrestlers at every weight class in a best-of-three series, with the winners making the 2023 United States World Team. 

The world team will travel to Belgrade, Serbia, to compete at the 2023 Senior World Championships from Sept. 16-24. 

Check below for the current matchups for Final X and a brief explanation of how each wrestler qualified for the 2023 event.

David Taylor brought Aaron Brooks as his practice partner to the Tokyo Olympics.

What has changed about their training situation since that time? pic.twitter.com/i81ovw1wKe

— FloWrestling (@FloWrestling) May 25, 2023

Here’s what to know about David Taylor:

David Taylor Had Early Success, Was Late To The Team USA Party

Taylor had Olympic aspirations as a child. He won multiple Cadet national titles. He was 180-2 during his career at St. Paris Graham High School in Ohio, won four individual state titles across three weight classes, was the 2009 Ohio State Wrestling Tournament Outstanding Wrestler, earned Ohio Wrestler of the Year multiple times and collected a variety of other titles and awards.

He went on to star for Penn State Wrestling, where he collected two NCAA titles, four Big Ten championships and was a two-time Dan Hodge Trophy winner as the nation’s top wrestler.

Despite all of that success, plus wins all over the world, it took Taylor until he was 27 years old to make his first U.S. World/Olympic team. It was his seventh attempt.

David Taylor Coming Off Award-Winning Year

Along with his success on the mat, Taylor was named the 2022 John Smith Award winner as the Freestyle Wrestler of the Year by USA Wrestling. He also won the award in 2018, the same year he was United World Wrestling Freestyle Wrestler of the Year.

David Taylor Preparing Next Generation 

Taylor created and opened the M2 Training Center in Pleasant Gap, Pennsylvania, to help wrestlers learn and develop. 

The facility uses the same ideas and things Taylor has done in his own career to find continued success. It offers wrestlers from youth to high school the chance to learn technique and train year-round, offering classes and camps for wrestlers of all skill levels.

David Taylor Wrestling Ranking 

In the most recent Domestic Men’s Freestyle rankings on FloWrestling, Taylor ranked first in the 86kg weight class. 

Here are the top 5: 

1. David Taylor
2. Aaron Brooks
3. Mark Hall
4. Trent Hidlay
5. Brayden Thompson

Here are the complete rankings.

How Wrestlers Qualify For Final X Wrestling 2023

A wrestler can qualify for Final X in one of three ways.

First, all 2022 senior world medalists automatically qualified for Final X. There were seven wrestlers in men’s freestyle, six in women’s freestyle and zero in Greco-Roman who met this criterion.

Next, all champions from the 2023 US Open (held April 26-30) automatically qualified for Final X.

Finally, for the weights that didn’t have a returning world medalist, the World Team Trials Challenge Tournament (May 20-21) champion will earn a spot in Final X. 

Men’s Freestyle Matchups At Final X Wrestling 2023

• 57 kg: *Thomas Gilman vs Zane Richards
• 61 kg: Vito Arujau vs Nahshon Garrett
• 65 kg: *Yianni Diakomihalis vs Nick Lee
• 70 kg: *Zain Retherford vs Tyler Berger
• 74 kg: *Kyle Dake vs Jason Nolf
• 79 kg: *Jordan Burroughs vs Chance Marsteller
• 86 kg: *David Taylor vs Aaron Brooks
• 92 kg: Michael Macchiavello vs Zahid Valencia
• 97kg: *Kyle Snyder vs J’den Cox
• 125 kg: Gable Steveson vs Mason Parris

*Denotes 2022 World Medalist

Women’s Freestyle Matchups At Final X Wrestling 2023

• 50 kg: *Sarah Hildebrandt vs Audrey Jimenez
• 53 kg: *Dominique Parrish vs Katie Gomez
• 55 kg: Alisha Howk vs Jacarra Winchester
• 57 kg: *Helen Maroulis vs Xochitl Mota-Pettis 
• 59 kg: Michaela Beck vs Jennifer Page
• 62 kg: *Kayla Miracle vs Adaugo Nwachukwu
• 65 kg: Mallory Velte vs Macey Kilty
• 68 kg: Forrest Molinari vs Emma Bruntil
• 72 kg: *Amit Elor vs Joye Levendusky
• 76 kg: Kennedy Blades vs Adeline Gray

*Denotes 2022 World Medalist

Men’s Greco-Roman Matchups At Final X Wrestling 2023

• 55 kg: Brady Koontz vs Dalton Duffield
• 60 kg: Dalton Roberts vs Ildar Hafizov
• 63 kg: Hayden Tuma vs Xavier Johnson
• 67 kg: Robert Perez III vs Alejandro Sancho
• 72 kg: Justus Scott vs Patrick Smith
• 77 kg: Kamal Bey vs Aliaksandr Kikiniou
• 82 kg: Spencer Woods vs Ryan Epps
• 87 kg: Alan Vera vs Zachary Braunagel
• 97 kg: Josef Rau vs Christian Dulaney
• 130 kg: Cohlton Schultz vs Adam Coon

How To Watch Final X Wrestling 2023 

Final X will stream live on FloWrestling and the FloSports app. 

FloWresting will also serve as home of match archives and provide the latest news from Final X.