UFC on ESPN+ 24 results: Curtis Blaydes TKOs Junior Dos Santos despite no takedowns

Curtis Blaydes rose to the occasion and beat a former UFC champ for the first time on Saturday when he stopped Junior Dos Santos.

Despite landing no takedowns in the fight, Blaydes (13-2 MMA, 8-2 UFC), a wrestling specialist, got the victory against Dos Santos (21-7 MMA, 15-6 UFC) by landing a massive bomb on the feet in the second round to set up the TKO.

“I feel great,” Blaydes said in his post-fight interview with Daniel Cormier. “Going against a guy like Junior, a legitimate legend, one of the OGs of the sport, was an honor. But to get the W in the main event, with the way I did, I couldn’t be happier.”

The heavyweight bout was the UFC on ESPN+ 24 main event at PNC Arena. It streamed on ESPN+.

After a brief feeling-out process, Blaydes shoots for his first takedown. He can’t get it, or his second, which clearly provided Dos Santos some confidence. Blaydes was forced into striking exchanges in the first few minutes, but made sure not to overcommit. Dos Santos stayed intelligent, too, not overextending and opening himself up for takedowns. Blaydes charges into a deep takedown attempt, but Dos Santos denied the entry. He forces the fight into the fence, but Blaydes accidentally punched Dos Santos in the groin to force a stoppage in the action. It resumed shortly thereafter and Blaydes managed to connect with some decent strikes against a mobile Dos Santos.

Confident in his striking going into the second frame, Blaydes put pressure on Dos Santos with his long straight punches. Dos Santos was put on the counterattack, and he struggled to find his range. As he pushes forward, Blaydes landed a massive overhand right that wobbled Dos Santos. He followed up with a flurry of punches and knees that caused Dos Santos to shell up and force referee Dan Miragliotta to step in and call the fight off at the 1:06 mark of Round 2.

With just one loss in his past 10 UFC appearances, Blaydes believes the triumph over Dos Santos should give him a shot in the heavyweight division.

“I want that title shot,” Blaydes said. “You know I’m next. I showed that wrestling, I showed those hands, I don’t know what else I need to do. I want that title shot.”

Complete UFC on ESPN+ 24 results include:

• Curtis Blaydes def. Junior Dos Santos via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 1:06
• Michael Chiesa def. Rafael dos Anjos via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
• AlexPerez def. Jordan Espinosa via submission (arm-triangle choke) – Round 1, 2:33
• Angela Hill def. Hannah Cifers via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 4:26
• Jamahal Hill def. Darko Stosic via unanimous decision (29-27, 29-27, 29-27)
• Bevon Lewis def. Dequan Townsend via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Arnold Allen def. Nik Lentz via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
• Justine Kish def. Lucie Pudilova via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Montel Jackson def. Felipe Colares via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-25)
• Sara McMann def. Lina Lansberg via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-26, 30-25)
• Brett Johns def. Tony Gravely via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 3, 2:53
• Herbert Burns def. Nate Landwehr via knockout (knee) – Round 1, 2:43