Born: Feb. 18, 1991 (Age: 32) in Naperville, Illinois
Division: Heavyweight
Height: 6’4”
Reach: 80”
Record: 17-3 (12-3 UFC)
Association: Elevation Fight Team
Stage of Career: Prime
Summary: Blaydes is one of the very best heavyweight grapplers in
the world and has a limited but highly effective striking game that
is steadily improving. It all starts with his grappling, where he
can get takedowns from his fast, solid double-leg and can keep
chain wrestling whenever he runs into a wall. He is also quite
effective in the clinch with his high-crotch single and explosive
German suplex. Moreover, he can do this effectively for three
rounds thanks to excellent three-round cardio, though he gets badly
tired if fights run longer. His top control is decent and
improving, and he can be effective with his ground-and-pound,
especially the elbows, though he can also be tied up at times.
However, even if one stops Blaydes’ wrestling attack, it is no
guarantee of success. He has a nice jab and throws a good straight
right behind it, along with a stout, hard leg kick.
STRIKING
• Stance: Orthodox.
• Hand Speed: Average.
• Jab: Better by itself, being a straight, hard punch. However, it
is often thrown in bad situations or with him leaning into it too
much, making him vulnerable to right hand counters, as occurred in
both the
Mark Hunt
fight and the
Francis
Ngannou rematch.
• Cross: A straight, sudden, powerful shot that floored
Justin
Willis and repeatedly hurt
Junior dos
Santos, setting up the finish. It was also the punch that
knocked out Daukaus.
• Left Hook: A lazy, sloppy shot in the rare instances where he
throws it.
• Overhand Right: Almost never uses it.
• Uppercuts: Only throws them inside the clinch, and they are
average.
• Solitary Striker or Volume Puncher: Mostly throws a strike at a
time, with the exception of his one go-to combo.
• Favorite Combination(s): The one-two, which is technical and
harmonious.
• Leg Kicks: Technical and hard. Blaydes used to be light and more
tentative with them when he was afraid of being countered, but that
rarely happens nowadays.
• Body Kicks: Almost never utilizes them.
• Head Kicks: Rarely throws them.
• Chains Kicks to Punches: No.
Blaydes’ outstanding grappling opens up opportunities in the
standup department, and while he is lacking certain strikes and
abilities, he has several complimentary weapons with which he has
been having more and more success. It all starts with a straight,
hard jab, though his decision making with it is not always the
best, allowing opponents to counter. Behind the jab, he has an even
better cross that has done a lot of damage, including hurt,
flooring and even knocking out foes. He puts it together with a
crisp one-two. Additionally, Blaydes features a good, damaging leg
kick. Blaydes does not have much else at his disposal; his hooks
are lazy and sloppy, and he does not even throw overhands,
uppercuts or kicks to the head or body. Plus, he generally only
fires one strike at a time. Still, he is dangerous with the few
strikes he calls upon, and he has used them quite
effectively.
CLINCH
• Physical Strength: A tremendously powerful fighter who can throw
around other big heavyweights with surprise ease, the use of an
explosive German suplex included.
• Technique: Excellent, especially for his go-to maneuvers,
including the high-crotch single.
• Knees: Damaging and accurate.
• Elbows: Hard, fairly surgical shots he uses when the opponent
covers up too much.
• Defense Against Knees/Elbows: Benefits from the fact that
opponents are concerned with Blaydes’ own clinch striking and
takedowns. It even held true against someone as dangerous as
Alistair
Overeem.
Blaydes is a beast in close quarters. He is not only a major
threat to take down opponents, but he can hurt them with his
powerful knees and even a solid elbow.
GRAPPLING
Wrestling from a Shot: Blaydes takes advantage of openings to shoot
a fast, solid double-leg and also chain wrestles nicely if his
initial attempt is stuffed.
Wrestling in the Clinch: Loves the high-crotch single, as well as
his explosive German suplex—maneuvers with which he can take
opponents down at will.
Takedown Defense: Stellar but becomes far more vulnerable once he
tires.
Alexander
Volkov even took him down with a double-leg from a clinch
against the cage late in Round 4.
Ability to Return to Feet: Limited since he is normally exhausted
in order to have been taken down in the first place.
Submissions: Virtually non-existent, as he prioritizes
striking.
Defense/Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu from the Bottom: Limited, as he only
finds himself on the bottom if he is severely fatigued.
Top Control: Fair. He goes for far-side wrist control that is not
especially effective and still relies on being able to take
opponents down again and again. Blaydes does attack the base and
tries to kick out the legs, along with hooking a leg inside those
of his opponents when they try to post up.
Ground-and-Pound: Deliberate, thrown at a low rate of fire and
requires an opening, as he can be tangled up easily. Even with
those disclaimers, it can be damaging, especially when laced with
short, technical and powerful elbows.
Blaydes is a terrific heavyweight wrestler. He can take
opponents down repeatedly with either his fast, effective
double-leg shot or by chain wrestling. He especially loves to use a
high-crotch single and an explosive, impressive German suplex from
the clinch. Once on top, he has some top control, though he still
often has to rely on taking the opponent down again and again. He
has delivered finishes with ground-and-pound, especially his brutal
elbows, but he picks his spots and can be tied up. Defensively, it
is only possible to take down Blaydes if he is exhausted, which has
only ever occurred late in a five-round fight against a tough
opponent.
INTANGIBLES
• Athleticism/General Physical Strength: Immensely powerful and
moves well for such a big man.
• Cardio: Superb three-round conditioning but far weaker in
five-round bouts. He slows down some in the third round of grinding
fights where he scores constant takedowns, and his wrestling
effectiveness goes down a level or two in the final round. However,
he has not shown much of a gas tank beyond 15 minutes. He was
winded throughout the fourth period against Volkov and gassed
completely by the end of it.
• Chin: Blaydes has been clearly rocked by solid connections from
huge punchers, but it takes a catastrophic shot to knock him out.
It has only happened against Lewis and in his rematch with
Ngannou.
• Recuperative Powers: He was visibly hurt against Hunt and Overeem
but recovered quickly.
• Intelligence: Shows considerable improvement over his fights and
generally plays to his strengths.