Four fights into his UFC career, things were going almost a little too well for Chris Daukaus. Four wins, four stoppages, three "Performance of the Night" bonus awards. Even Daukaus admits it was a little bit wild, as he was tapped to headline his first UFC event just 16 months after joining the promotion.
"It was crazy to think about, to rack up all those wins, get 'Performance of the Night' wins, the bonuses and all that, and then to get shoved in the main event against Derrick Lewis – it's crazy to think about, man," Daukaus told The Underground. "It's like going from fighting on the regional scene and CFFC, losing my title shot, getting ready for the Shawn Teed fight and then to get called up, it's just like a whirlwind."
Unfortunately, that whirlwind ride to the top was unsustainable for anyone, and Daukaus suffered a first-round loss to Lewis in that December main event.
"It sucks, dude," Daukaus admitted. "I mean, you think you're just going to run through everybody, just ride off into the sunset with the belt, you know? It'd be great, but yeah, Derrick Lewis had other plans.
"It didn't work out, but you know what? It is what it is. I'm here now, and just picking myself up and just ready to go."
Just three months after that setback, Daukaus (12-3 MMA, 3-1 UFC) is primed for a return to the cage, and the promotion trusted him with another headlining role, facing off with Curtis Blaydes (15-3 MMA, 10-3 UFC) in the main event of Saturday's UFC on ESPN 33 event in Columbus, Ohio.
Daukaus admits he was a bit surprised with the booking.
"To be honest with you, I didn't expect to get it," Daukaus said. "I thought, you know, I was going to get shunned to the early prelims or whatever it was. That's just my mentality of things, like I worked my way up to the main event, got to the main event. I lost the main event. All right, now you've got to start all over again, and that's just what I thought was going to happen."
Instead, Daukaus gets a shot at redemption against a perennial contender. Entering the week at No. 9 in the UFC's official heavyweight rankings, Blaydes sits at No. 4, so a Daukaus victory would certainly see him make a move up the list. Of course, there's a reason Blaydes holds that position, and Daukaus knows it's not going to be an easy task.
"He's a big, heavy guy," Daukaus said. "He's big on wrestling. Everyone else is questioning my wrestling, my ground game. I don't want to show it off quite yet. I'm not a fool. I think that I'll be showing it off in this fight, so we'll see, man.
"A lot of people question my takedown defense, my ability to work off my back and get back up, and I think this is the perfect fight to showcase all those things. I mean, who else? Who else better? I mean, in my opinion, I think he's the number one wrestler in the heavyweight division as far as on paper."
Gary A. Vasquez/USA TODAY Sports
But no risk, no reward. While his run was briefly halted, a victory here would see Daukaus earn back that momentum and perhaps more, and he's acutely aware of what he can accomplish on Saturday night.
"You get through a guy like Curtis Blaydes, you're right at the top," Daukaus said. "Look what Tai [Tuivasa] did. Tai beat Derrick Lewis; he's No. 3. There's rumors floating on Twitter about him vs. Stipe [Miocic]. Tom [Aspinall], last week, was phenomenal against [Alexander] Volkov. He called for the Tai fight, so really, you know, I mean there's tons of possibilities. You can really line up anybody."
First things first, of course. Daukaus isn't looking past Blaydes one bit. Getting back into the win column is the priority, but it's awfully intriguing to consider what might come along with the result.
"I think that I have the skillset to beat Curtis, and I think I have the skillset to do it emphatically," Daukaus said. "Really, if I'm able to stop a guy, there's really two people on his resume who have done that, and that's Derrick Lewis and Francis (Ngannou), and that puts me in a small company and a company of great men and great athletes. I think that'll be really good to have my name up there with those guys, especially going forward with my career."
More MMA Coverage:
• The Underground: Blaydes Not Concerned About Title Shots Entering Clash With Chris Daukaus
