LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – Sergei Pavlovich will wait for his title shot.
Pavlovich picked up another first-round knockout last night (Sat., Apr. 22, 2023) when he finished Curtis Blaydes with punches at UFC Vegas 71 from inside the UFC Apex in Las Vegas (watch highlights). The knockout of Blaydes is Pavlovich’s sixth in a row which is a record in modern UFC history, and is currently tied with Don Fry for the most consecutive KOs in UFC history.
The Russian fighter also picked up a $50k “Performance Bonus” for his knockout.
6?? consecutive first-round finishes extends Sergei’s modern UFC record
Pavlovich is a BEAST #UFCVegas71 pic.twitter.com/tZVVNQrZcD
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) April 23, 2023
The fight between Pavlovich and Blaydes was seen by most people as a No. 1 contender fight for the UFC Heavyweight championship, which will hopefully be defended by Jon Jones later this year against Stipe Miocic.
When asked how long the 30-year-old Russian is willing to wait for a shot at the title, he made it pretty clear.
“I’ll rest. I’ll eat. I’ll sleep. I’ll rest some more. I’ll wait,” Pavlovich said through a translator during the UFC Vegas 71 post-fight press conference.
Indeed, if the knockout artist intends on waiting, he won’t be fighting for another year, as Jones vs. Miocic is currently being planned for November at Madison Square Garden.
I guess he’ll be eating, sleeping, and resting a lot.
For complete UFC Vegas 71 results and coverage click here.