Curtis Blaydes releases statement after knockout win over Junior dos Santos

UFC heavyweight contender Curtis Blaydes has released a statement following his knockout win over Junior dos Santos in the main event of UFC Raleigh.

Blaydes pummeled the former heavyweight champ JDS in the second round with a barrage of knees and punches along the fence before referee Dan Miragliotta was forced to step in and wave the contest off, giving Blaydes the TKO victory.

Following the event, Blaydes took to social media to release a statement. In it, he thanked his teammates at Elevation Fight Team Colorado. Check it out below, courtesy of Blaydes’ Instagram.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B7xSKvtAiCJ/

“I am nothing without my team thank you to everyone at @elevationfightteamco @ballengeegroup #mma #ufc #mainevent #curtisblaydes #razorblaydes #heavyweight #legendslayer”

For Blaydes, it’s the biggest win of his career, and it will inch him one step closer to achieving his dream of fighting for the UFC heavyweight championship. Blaydes has won three straight fights, with knockout wins over JDS and Shamil Abdurakhimov and a decision win over Justin Willis over that stretch.

Aside from two knockout losses to top-ranked contender Francis Ngannou, no one has been able to beat Blaydes inside the Octagon, with the majority of his opponents getting destroyed by him. The win over JDS improved Blaydes’ MMA record to 13-2, 1 NC with 10 wins by knockout, with his UFC record standing at an impressive 8-2, 1 NC with five of those wins coming by knockout.

As for JDS, the former champ is once again on hard times as he’s now lost back-to-back fights by TKO to Blaydes and Ngannou in his last two fights. At age 35, we could finally be witnessing the decline of JDS, one of the sport’s all-time greatest heavyweights. It’s very possible that this big win by Blaydes could symbolize the passing of the torch from a heavyweight legend in JDS to a future champ in Blaydes.

Who would you like to see Curtis Blaydes fight next?