2. Dana White chops down Blaydes
UFC president Dana White pulled off another classic job of anti-promoting one of his top athletes when he decided to stoke the flame of discontent around Blaydes’ performance.
Instead of offering praise for Blaydes after putting on a record-setting effort of 14 takedowns landed in a heavyweight fight, White decided to go the other direction and tear Blaydes down. He cited Blaydes pre-fight comments on fighter pay, hopes of getting a title shot and lack of conditioning as reasons he probably won’t be fighting for a UFC belt in the near future.
It’s hardly off brand for White to take this approach, and although he will get an abundance of support for not using a filter for his comments, it’s hardly beneficial for anyone involved.
At 29, Blaydes is the youngest fighter in the top 10 of the UFC heavyweight rankings. Unless a situation arises where the promotion parts ways with him, Blaydes isn’t going anywhere. He’s made it clear he doesn’t intend on altering his strategy, so it would seemingly be in White’s best interest to find a way to embrace what Blaydes has to offer.
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