Curtis Blaydes is handling his situation with class.
Unfortunately for the top UFC contender, he was passed up in the heavyweight title picture with the UFC choosing Ciryl Gane instead of him to fight Jon Jones for the vacant title.
Blaydes: ‘It Wasn’t Based Off Meritocracy’
You can argue that Blaydes had a better case for the golden opportunity as Gane gets the super-fight after rebounding with one win against Tai Tuivasa. Meanwhile, Blaydes is currently on a three-fight win streak, beating the likes of Tom Aspinall, Chris Daukaus and Jairzinho Rozenstruik.
While ‘Razor’ didn’t get what he so desired, the 31 year-old understands why the UFC would rather go with Gane.
“Obviously I’ve seen the news, Gane is getting another title shot vs. Jones,” Blaydes wrote on Facebook. “Most likely I’ll be getting [Sergei] Pavolich who just beat [Tai] Tuivasa.
“That’s cool with me, I get why Gane got the shot and it wasn’t based off meritocracy and that’s not a news flash, the UFC is always gonna to match make based off who puts the most asses in the stands and eyes on the fight. I hope I’ll only need one more win to prove I can put asses in the stands and get a title shot.”
Instead of beating himself up about it, Blaydes is eager to prove to the world that he can be a draw as well. The next challenge for Blaydes may end up being Sergei Pavlovich who recently passed him in the UFC rankings at #3.
One more win over another top contender will be the icing on the cake for Blaydes’ title case. However, Stipe Miocic might be in the way as the former champion has called for the winner of Gane-Jones in July.