One of the most mercurial and talented 86kg wrestlers in the United States will compete at the U.S. Open in Las Vegas a week from now. Pat Downey, the "Unattached Assassin," has been notching impressive wins since he first started wrestling on the men's freestyle senior circuit. Join us as we take a look back at his career and tally up his greatest hits. 

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While David Taylor remains the prohibitive favorite to win the Open and punch a ticket directly to Final X, PDIII is right there in the mix in the next tier of contenders. And if we trace Downey's freestyle tournaments back to the 2015 U.S. Open, it's not hard to understand why.

2015 U.S. Open

Downey was stopped by Richard Perry in the wrestles backs but not before he took out two-time NCAA finalist Robert Hamlin by the score of 6-5 and two-time NCAA champion Quentin Wright via pinfall. 

2015 University Nationals

The University Nationals were less than a month after the Open, but that didn't slow Downey down, as he entered both and beat two more All-Americans in Akron. This time besting Aaron Studebaker and Sammy Brooks on his way to a fourth-place finish. 

2015 Bill Farrell

While enrolled at Iowa State and competing for the Cyclones, Downey kept a toe in the freestyle scene, entering the Bill Farrell and finishing in the top six at the New York Athletic Club. Before he was stopped by Richard Perry (again), Downey picked up a win over two-time finalist and four-time All-American Tyler Caldwell. 

Watch Downey's match with the former Oklahoma State Cowboy:

2016 NCAAs

Downey finished the 2016 NCAA tournament in fifth place at 197 pounds, beating future finalist Jared Haught twice, once on each side of the bracket. 

2017 U.S. Open 

Downey got back into the freestyle scene with a one-and-done outing at the 2016 Poland Open but then turned up the heat back home at the U.S. Open. Downey placed fifth, running the gauntlet against eight opponents. Among his conquests were five All-Americans who earned a total of 10 trips to the podium. They were Vic Avery, Pete Renda, Josh Asper, Gabe Dean, and Kyle Crutchmer. 

Watch Downey take out former NC State NCAA third-place finisher Pete Renda:

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Watch Downey dispatch former Maryland two-time All-American Josh Asper:

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2017 World Team Trials

Downey would tech Kyle Crutchmer in the opening round before falling to David Taylor in the next round and then bowing out in the consolations against Austin Trotman. 

Watch Downey's first-period tech fall of Crutchmer:

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Downey's most recent action was at the 2017 Dave Schultz in November, which landed in him into a tough pool of four other competitors that he would face in a round-robin format. Downey was stopped twice by the stout Aleksander Musalaliev of Russia and Downey's American nemesis, Richard Perry. Downey finished the tournament 2-2 and in third place. 

Which bring us back to the tournament in which Downey seems to thrive, the U.S. Open. This year's tournament will be unlike previous Opens in that there are two new weight classes on either side of 86kg: 79kg and 92kg, which should thin out some of the competition. 

Richard Perry will be there, and of course David Taylor as well. But after that, the field starts to open up. Will Downey be able to add to his collection of marquee wins in Vegas? If history is any indication, then the answer is likely yes.