Curtis Blaydes has been a perennial top-five heavyweight for the largest a part of his UFC profession so there have been various curious appears when his subsequent combat was booked towards relative unknown Rizvan Kuniev.
It’s to not say that Kuniev is an unskilled fighter however he’s making his UFC debut towards Blaydes after two fights on The Contender Sequence, a single look within the PFL, and spending a yr on the shelf after he was suspended following a optimistic drug take a look at for a number of steroids. Blaydes admits he didn’t know any of that as a result of he had by no means heard of Kuniev earlier than the UFC got here to him with that title as an opponent.
“I did [a double take] however like I all the time say, the cash’s the identical regardless if it’s Jon Jones or if it’s a debut man,” Blaydes instructed MMA Combating. “The cash’s the identical so I’ll all the time be down.
“I needed to Google him. I watched his combat on The Contender [Series], that’s actually the one combat of his I watched. He appears like your conventional heavyweight — swings heavy and hopes to knock you out early.”
As soon as Blaydes began doing his analysis he got here throughout Kuniev’s title for the suspension he confronted from the Nevada Athletic Fee after he examined optimistic for a cocktail of banned substances. Kuniev was penalized after a drug take a look at found drostanolone, metenelone, boldenone, and 19-norandrosterone, that are all anabolic steroids, in his system.
Discovering that info would possibly give somebody pause earlier than a combat however Blaydes didn’t lose any sleep over it.
“I heard about that additionally,” Blaydes mentioned about Kuniev’s suspension. “Who is aware of that may be a part of this. Possibly he has to get it out of his system however I heard about rumors like that about [Jailton] Almeida and I imply he’s very sturdy and he did have expertise, however roids usually are not going to be the distinction. It’s not going to be sufficient.
“Even when he’s on some stuff, I don’t imagine it’s going to assist him together with his sprawling or assist him take a punch. I’m all proper with it, even when he’s on some stuff.”
Maybe the largest hazard on this combat is that Blaydes walks into UFC 313 as an awesome favourite to win primarily based not solely on his previous resume but additionally as a result of he’s dealing with an octagon rookie.
Meaning the expectations are excessive for Blaydes to tear by way of Kuniev however he realized a very long time in the past that simply because one thing is meant to occur doesn’t imply it’s going to occur.
“I feel that’s one of many advantages developing by way of wrestling,” Blaydes defined. “I’ve been on this place earlier than the place I used to be a junior in highschool, extremely ranked, No. 4 within the state, obtained some unknown dude. I went on the market messing round with him, took him down a couple of occasions, let him up, I’m enjoying with my meals so to talk, after which obtained hit with a headlock and I obtained pinned by some unknown unranked heavyweight.
“After that, I’ve by no means approached something athletic like ‘Oh this dude’s a bum.’ He’s right here for a motive. He will need to have some kind of talent. I’m not going to not strategy him with the respect he deserves. He’s right here. He’s within the UFC. They’re not bringing in unskilled heavyweights. I’m approaching it as if he has the flexibility to beat me, which he does. That is heavyweight. It solely takes one sloppy haymaker and lights out.”
Whereas Blaydes didn’t get upset that the UFC supplied him a newcomer, he initially had his sights set on a unique opponent.
Coming off a knockout loss to present interim heavyweight Tom Aspinall this previous July, Blaydes thought a showdown towards Ciryl Gane was the combat that made essentially the most sense however he additionally didn’t get his hopes too excessive that may occur.
Blaydes has by no means thought of himself a trash talker and he doesn’t exit of his option to fire up hassle however he’s obtained receipts to again up his perception that Gane has little interest in ever dealing with him.
“I usually don’t do that however he has turned [it down] — I’ve heard this from my administration talking with Hunter [Campbell], who does the contracts and negotiations for [heavyweights], he has turned me down 3 times over the previous 4 years,” Blaydes revealed. “I bear in mind I requested for him initially in 2021 they usually gave me Volkov. I needed him once more after that one they usually gave me Derrick Lewis. I’ve requested for him a couple of occasions.
“Initially that’s the one I needed after the Aspinall combat. OK, I suppose I’ll go for Gane and he results in there with Volkov. I don’t assume we are going to ever combat, sadly.”
As a lot because it bugs him that Gane seemingly has little interest in the combat, Blaydes understands the logic, at the least primarily based on the visuals of how he expects that matchup to play out.
“We perceive why,” Blaydes mentioned. “I’m going on the market and I smash him, he loses loads marketability. The aura of the Frenchman who does all the flowery stuff. In the event you see me go on the market and simply physique slam him on his head like 4 or 5 occasions and elbow him into oblivious, it sort of removes the marketability. So I get it.
“It simply sucks as a result of I feel it could be an amazing combat for me. I beat him, that ought to be sufficient to get one other title shot. Beating the man I’m about to combat proper now, it’s exhausting to say. He doesn’t have any worth as a reputation proper now. I don’t even know his title. Rizvan Kuniev? Proper now doesn’t have lots of title worth.”
Beating Kuniev won’t do a lot for him in the long term outdoors of incomes one other paycheck however Blaydes is proud that he didn’t scoff on the provide when the UFC got here calling.
He’s nowhere close to executed together with his profession however Blaydes holds his head up excessive realizing when the day comes that he lastly hangs up his gloves that nobody can ever say he backed down from a combat.
“That’s a legacy I’ll brag about,” Blaydes mentioned. “I gained’t brag concerning the names. I’ll brag that I by no means mentioned no. By no means ever mentioned no.”
