There’s a new player in the UFC’s heavyweight division, and he possesses two valuable commodities for a big man: a durable chin and a strong wrestling base.
Curtis Blaydes showed both at UFC 221 on Saturday night in Perth, Australia. After a pair of right hands from Mark Hunt put the 26-year-old on wobbly legs in the opening frame, Blaydes went to his bread-and-butter to earn a relatively dominant unanimous verdict over “The Super Samoan.” Blaydes finished the night with 10 takedowns landed – the second most ever by a UFC heavyweight in a single bout.