How Curtis Blaydes and Derrick Lewis compare in key stats heading into UFC Vegas 15
UPDATE: Blaydes vs. Lewis has been cancelled due to Blaydes testing positive for COVID-19, is is presumed Anthony Smith vs Devin Clark will be elevated from the Co-Main and become the new headliner for the event.
The stakes of the main event of Saturday’s UFC Vegas 15 fight card are unclear since top-ranked Francis N’Gannou seems to be in line for a shot at UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic. The fight at the top of the event, which takes place at UFC Apex, features a former UFC heavyweight title challenger in Derrick Lewis and a title hopeful in Curtis Blaydes.
Blaydes is unbeaten in his past four fights. The 29-year-old is coming off a unanimous decision win over Alexander Volkov in June. The only two losses on Blaydes’ record are TKO losses to Francis Ngannou. Ngannou earned a doctor stoppage over Blaydes in 2016 and a stoppage via punches in 2018.
Lewis, who had a title shot against Daniel Cormier in November 2018, is on a three-fight winning streak. Cormier defeated Lewis via submission. In his next fight, Junior dos Santos earned a second-round TKO win over Lewis. In his most recent bout, Lewis scored a TKO win over Aleksei Oleinik. That fight took place in August.
Blaydes feels he has more routes to victory than his opponent.
“He likes to come at you with everything,” Blaydes told Combate. “He likes to throw heavy shots. He has nothing but a right hand and a flying knee. I have footwork, wrestling, striking. I have many paths to victory, he only has a specific one. I know he’s predictable. He only has one punch, almost like Ngannou, but without his reach.”
Before Saturday’s UFC Vegas 15 fight card takes place, here is a look at how the main event competitors line up in the most important statistical categories.