Curtis Blaydes and Chris Daukaus find themselves caught up in the logjam that has formed behind reigning Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight titleholder Francis Ngannou.
The two Top 10 contenders will lock horns in the UFC on ESPN 33 headliner this Saturday at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio, where they hope to improve their stature in a weight class riddled with uncertainty. Blaydes has rattled off five wins across his past six outings. The Elevation Fight Team star last competed on Sept. 25, when he laid claim to a unanimous decision over Jairzinho Rozenstruik at UFC 266. Daukaus, meanwhile, has posted a 4-1 record since he linked arms with the UFC a little less than two years ago. He last appeared at UFC Fight Night 199, where he succumbed to punches from Derrick Lewis in the first round of their Dec. 18 main event.
As Blaydes and Daukaus make final preparations ahead of their forthcoming battle, a look at some of the numbers that have accompanied them to this point:
31: Years of age for Blaydes, who was born in Naperville, Illinois, on Feb. 18, 1991.
10: Blaydes victories by knockout or technical knockout, accounting for 67% of his career total (15). His list of UFC victims: Junior dos Santos, Shamil Abdurakhimov, Alistair Overeem, Alexey Oleynik and Cody East. Blaydes holds five other victories by decision.
62: Takedowns landed by Blaydes since he joined the UFC roster in 2016, putting him 10th on the organization’s all-time list. He trails only Georges St. Pierre (90), Gleison Tibau (84), Demetrious Johnson (74), Frankie Edgar (73), Clay Guida (72), Nik Lentz (69), Demian Maia (68), Colby Covington (67) and Merab Dvalishvili (63).
8: Consecutive calendar years in which Blaydes has fought at least once. He went 3-0 in 2014, 1-0 in 2015, 2-1 in 2016, 2-0 with one no contest in 2017, 2-1 in 2018, 2-0 in 2019, 2-0 in 2020 and 1-1 in 2021.
.782: Cumulative winning percentage between the two men—Lewis and Francis Ngannou (twice)—who have beaten Blaydes. They boast a combined record of 43-12.
32: Years of age for Daukaus, who was born on Sept. 25, 1989 in Philadelphia.
11: Daukaus wins by knockout or technical knockout, accounting for 92% of his career total (12). His list of UFC victims: Abdurakhimov, Oleynik, Rodrigo Nascimento and Parker Porter. Daukaus owns one other win by decision.
5.26: Daukaus knockdowns per 15 minutes of UFC competition, placing him first on the promotion’s heavyweight list. He ranks ahead of Todd Duffee (2.91), Tom Aspinall (2.04), Shane Carwin (2.03) and Pat Barry (1.74).
6: Companies for which Daukaus has plied his mixed martial arts trade. He has gone 4-2 in Cage Fury Fighting Championships, 4-1 in the UFC, 1-1 in Xtreme Fight Events, 1-0 in King of the Cage, 1-0 in CES MMA and 1-0 in Ring of Combat.
49: Combined victories between the four men—Lewis, Azunna Anyanwu, Shawn Teed and Yordany Hernandez Figueroa—who have defeated Daukaus. They sport a cumulative .710 winning percentage (49-19-1).
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