Curtis Blaydes Politely and Humbly Asks Stipe Miocic If He'd Like To Throw-Down.

Blaydes vs. Miocic - Exactly What the UFC Heavyweight Division Needs.

At UFC 226 Daniel Cormier became a two-division champion with his first round knockout of heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic. Since then, we've barely even heard mention of Stipe, although he is currently the number one heavyweight contender. Curtis Blaydes recently asked the former champ if he'd be interested in a Blaydes vs. Miocic match-up while they await the conclusion of this sideshow. While the UFC was extremely quick to book Brock Lesnar vs. Daniel Cormier for the heavyweight title, it has left other contenders (such as those who have actually managed to pass their drug tests) wondering what's next.

Current Heavyweight Landscape

Why not? Quite honestly, Derrick Lewis simply didn't do enough in his fight against Francis Ngannou at UFC 226 to warrant his jump over Blaydes to secure the number two heavyweight contender position, and Lewis knows it. In an interview Lewis was quoted as saying: “I know for sure I don’t deserve a title shot. I believe it hurt me more than it helped me. Even though I got the win, I believe it sent me, probably, about two fights back.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSjKOXscq4Y With Lewis set to take on fifth ranked contender Alexander Volkov at UFC 229, it only furthers the point that the UFC should make Blaydes vs. Miocic happen. These two fighters do not want to sit around waiting on a title shot, however the implications of losing that fight run deep. If Miocic takes the fight against Blaydes, and were to lose, he'd surely be out of the number one contender's position before he has an opportunity to win his belt back. For Blaydes, it seems like a no lose situation. His proposed date is November 10th at UFC Denver, over a month after UFC 229 on October 6th. This would mark an opportunity for Blaydes to take over the number one contender's spot, or at least be in the conversation if Lewis defeats Volkov.

The Blaydes vs. Miocic Rundown

Curtis Blaydes holds a 10-1 record along with one no contest. The 27 year old is six-feet, four-inches tall, and weighs 265 to compliment a 80-inch reach. The current number three heavyweight contender finished his last bout in style, leaving Alistair Overeem a bloody mess due to elbows. It was a bout that ended rather gruesomely. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=us1CA0bG6pI On the other side, Stipe Miocic is 35 and is listed at the same height as Blaydes and also holds a reach of 80 inches, but is listed at 25lbs less than Blaydes with Miocic weighing in at 240lbs.

Blaydes even followed up with Miocic a day after his initial tweet. It seems as though Blaydes is much more motivated to make this fight a reality as Miocic has yet to agree to the bout. All things considered, at a time when the UFC's heavyweight contender's rankings simply do not make any sense (seriously, how is Lesnar even fighting for this belt to begin with?) this could be the shakeup the division needs. From the UFC's standpoint there are many worse options than to have Blades vs. Miocic take place on a free card at UFC Denver.