Curtis Blaydes Believes There’s ‘No Doubt’ He’s Next in Line for UFC Heavyweight Title

Outside of a loss to Francis Ngannou in his debut, Curtis Blaydes is unbeaten inside the Octagon and getting better with each fight. After adding Alistair Overeem and Mark Hunt to his resume in 2018, the Chicago native believes he’s risen to the top of the division.

At UFC 225, Blaydes ended Overeem’s night in emphatic fashion, as he bloodied the Dutchman’s face with a series of violent elbows from top position for a technical knockout victory at the 2:56 mark of the third round. Four months earlier, “Razor” Blaydes landed 10 takedowns en route to an convincing unanimous verdict over Hunt at UFC 221.

“I put it all together [on Saturday],” Blaydes said of his victory against Overeem. “I knew this fight was a big one and I wanted to make sure I stepped up in my moment.

“Overeem is a legend and a world champion. There’s no doubt that I am the next one in line for the title. Give me Stipe [Miocic], give me [Daniel Cormier], all that matters is that I’m the next one in line.”

Miocic will defend his heavyweight crown against 205-pound king Daniel Cormier in the UFC 226 headliner in Las Vegas on July 7. At the UFC 225 post-fight press conference, promotion president Dana White was non-committal regarding Blaydes’ status. Blaydes, of course, has no such doubts.

2018 is my year https://t.co/3P0UqlZDi8

— Curtis Blaydes (@RazorBlaydes265) June 11, 2018

Blaydes is 10-1 with one no contest in his professional career, and also owns triumphs over Alexey Oleynik, Daniel Omielanczuk and Cody East in the Octagon.