Curtis Blaydes is back in the win column, but at what cost?
On the UFC on ABC 8 main card Saturday, Blaydes (18-5 MMA, 14-5 UFC) defeated Rizvan Kuniev via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28). The event took place at Baku Crystal Hall in Baku, Azerbaijan.
The fight was competitive yet relatively uneventful. Kuniev, who made his UFC debut, was not out of place. After a strong first round from Blaydes, the hulking Russian took it to the perennial American contender.
While one judge scored it for Kuniev, the other two leaned Blaydes. The closeness of the fight could be due to injury, as Blayes revealed during his in-cage interview that his left MCL “popped” in the first round.
Should he be granted a relatively clean bill of health, Blaydes said he wants to fight Ciryl Gane next. Despite the divisional longevity for both men, they’ve never fought.
With the victory, Blaydes bounces back into the win column in his first competition since July 2024 when he was finished in one minute by Tom Aspinall.
Kuniev, 33, comes up short in his long-awaited UFC debut. His debut, including twice booked vs. Blaydes, was canceled three times prior to Saturday.
Up-to-the-minute UFC Baku results include:
- Curtis Blaydes def. Rizvan Kuniev via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Nazim Sadykhov def. Nikolas Motta via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 4:17
- Muhammad Naimov def. Bogdan Grad via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Seok Hyun Ko def. Oban Elliott via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- JunYong Park def. Ismail Naurdiev via unanimous decision (29-26, 29-26, 29-25)
- Daria Zhelezniakova def. Melissa Mullins via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
- Klaudia Sygula def. Irina Alekseeva via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Tagir Ulanbekov def. Azat Maksum via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
- Mohammed Usman def. Hamdy Abdelwahab via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
