Curtis Blaydes draws inspiration from iconic 'Attack on Titan' scene
![Curtis Blaydes (left), Attack on Titan screenshots (right) [Image credits: Screenrant]](https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2022/04/31c23-16508125976425-1920.jpg?w=500)
Japanese anime has an unlikely fan in UFC heavyweight Curtis Blaydes.
The world of mixed martial arts is a good place to find quite a few Japanese anime fanatics. While some, like Israel Adesanya and Roxanne Modafferi, have made their love for the art form quite obvious, others like Curtis Blaydes like to keep it low-key.
However, based on the occasional social media posts of 'Razor' on anime, it is clear that he is quite into the culture.
One of my all time favorite anime movies #PrincessMononoke #anime #90sbaby #closetnerd #igdaily
In a recent Instagram post, Blaydes paid tribute to the widely popular anime, Attack on Titan (Japanese: Shingeki no Kyojin). Created by Hajime Isayama and animated by Wit Studio and Studio Mappa, Attack on Titan is one of the anime juggernauts of the present day.
The post is about an iconic scene from season 3 of the anime involving beloved character Erwin Smith, the 13th Commander of the Survey Corps.
[SPOILERS AHEAD]
The story of the anime initially revolves around humans trying to survive against humongous, man-eating creatures called Titans. The Survey Corps, also known as the Scout Regiment, is humanity's first line of defense against the Titans.
In season 3, during a confrontation with the Beast Titan in the Battle of Shiganshina District, Commander Erwin Smith delivers one of the most iconic speeches in the history of anime. The purpose of the speech was to motivate the scouts for a final and suicidal charge at the Beast Titan, thereby creating enough distraction for others to complete their mission.
Erwin Smith goes on to lead the charge and becomes one of the first to get hit by the boulder bombardment by the Beast Titan. It would be the last among many moments where his character was shown to be a true leader.
The audio/video of the speech is a very popular piece of media among anime fans.
Watch the video of the speech below (Subtitles provided):
One can understand why Curtis Blaydes would draw inspiration from the speech. However, this is not the first time he has posted about Attack on Titan.
Curtis Blaydes promises to break Georges St-Pierre's record
Curtis Blaydes currently holds the record for landing the most takedowns in UFC heavyweight history, followed by Cain Velasquez and Stipe Miocic.
Blaydes currently has 62 takedowns under his belt and is ranked No.10 overall in the UFC. Before retirement, he wants to take the number to 90 and break Georges St-Pierre's record of most takedowns in the promotion's history.
Ahead of Blaydes are:
#9. Merab Dvalishvili
#8. Colby Covington
#7. Demian Maia
#6. Nik Lentz
#5. Clay Guida
#4. Frankie Edgar
#3. Demetrious Johnson
#2. Gleison Tibau
#1. Georges St-Pierre
The No.4-ranked UFC heavyweight is 16-3-1(NC) in his MMA career overall and 11-3-1(NC) in the promotion.