Getty Curtis Blaydes
Highly ranked UFC heavyweight Curtis Blaydes was finished via strikes by Sergei Pavlovich on Saturday night, and MMA analyst and bettor Luca Fury called “Razor’s” approach to the fight a “boneheaded” performance.
Blaydes, who is regarded as possibly the best wrestler in the promotion’s heavyweight division, decided to stand and trade with Pavlovich — a man known for his ruthless knockout power — during their UFC Fight Night 222 headlining tilt. And the Russian fighter only needed three minutes to take out Razor at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Considering Pavlovich finished both Tai Tuivasa and Derrick Lewis within a minute during his last two outings, Fury took to Twitter to roast Blaydes for his Octagon strategy.
“All time boneheaded performance by Curtis Blaydes,” Fury tweeted. “There’s a reason I absolutely BURIED this dude’s mental game and fight IQ on my podcast. Friends don’t let friends bet on Curtis Blaydes.”
“It was clear from like 30 seconds in that Blaydes was getting slept,” he continued. “Absolutely comical strategy choice. This dude should be champ but he loves to shoot himself in the foot like no other. Wish I could have live [bet] the fight, I would’ve [hammered] the Sergei line live.”
The MMA analyst, who has in his Twitter bio that he’s been a “top pro MMA bettor for 13 years,” runs a sports betting business called Fury’s Fight Picks. And he continued his lambasting of the No. 4-ranked Blaydes.
“I was at a bar with my girl and her friends, streaming this from my phone, laughing out loud as Curtis Blaydes chose to stand and trade until he inevitably got slept,” Fury tweeted. “One of the funniest performances I’ve seen in a while. It was so obvious it was coming but he kept standing.”
Blaydes Suffered His 4th UFC Defeat
Blaydes has sat at the top of the weight class for years, however he’s never received a title shot as he’s dropped multiple title eliminator bouts. He has an overall professional mixed martial arts record of 17-4 with one no contest.
With the defeat to Pavlovich, his three-fight win streak was snapped and the 32-year-old fighter must likely string together several victories to place himself back into title contention.
‘Where’s My Belt?’ Pavlovich Reacts to His First UFC Main Event
Pavlovich (18-1, 15 wins via KO/TKO) has gone on an impressive run since losing his promotional debut to Alistair Overeem in 2018. He’s earned six first-round KO/TKO wins in a row and is currently ranked No. 3 in the division.
Mixed martial arts great Jon Jones is the current heavyweight belt holder and has been linked to a clash with former heavyweight king Stipe Miocic in November. But, during his post-fight interview with color commentator Paul Felder, Pavlovich called for the championship.
“Thank you very much for everybody who was rooting for me,” Pavlovich said through an interpreter. “You don’t understand how hard I was working. There was so much work done. And hopefully this time I’ll get a bonus again. And hey, where’s my belt?”
Pavlovich, who later received “Performance of the Night” honors and the $50,000 that came with it, was the official backup fighter for Jones’ title-winning effort against No. 1 Ciryl Gane last month. “Bones” used his wrestling and grappling to dominate Gane, leading to a first-round submission. Going into the fight, many believed Blaydes would expose Pavlovich’s takedown defense and deficiencies on the mat. But, the Russian never tangled up with the American.
“Big respect to Curtis Blaydes, he’s great,” he continued. “But, hey, somebody was saying that he would easily take me down. What are you going to say now?”