Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Heavyweight bruisers Francis Ngannou and Derrick Lewis will brawl this Saturday (July 7, 2018) at UFC 226 inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Ngannou rose to the top of the Heavyweight division via a combination of key attributes: patience, surprising technique, and ungodly power. He left all but the power in the locker room before chasing Stipe Miocic around the Octagon and exhausting himself in the process, resulting in an ugly five-round loss. Meanwhile, Lewis has won seven of his last eight contests, which includes six victories via knockout. “Black Beast” may not look pretty in wins, but he does win, which is all that really counts. Furthermore, these two have bad blood, making this one of those rare, truly exciting Heavyweight match ups between non-champions.
Let’s take a closer look at the keys to victory for each man:
Francis Ngannou
Record: 11-2
Key Wins: Alistair Overeem (UFC 218), Andrei Arlovski (UFC on FOX 23), Curtis Blaydes (UFC Fight Night 86), Luis Henrique (UFC on FOX 17)
Key Losses: Stipe Mioci (UFC 220)
Keys to Victory: Prior to coming up short opposite Miocic, Ngannou had built up more hype than any Heavyweight prospect I can remember in recent years. The Cameroonian athlete is preposterously intimidating, a giant ball of muscle capable of brutal knockouts and sudden submissions.
How did Ngannou put together a massive win streak? Counter punching. The giant knockout artist largely hung out at range, waiting on his opponents and pulverizing them when they dared to attempt to punch him.
It worked really well, and it probably will against Lewis as well. However, Miocic proved last time out that Ngannou’s ability to lead without getting sloppy is lacking badly. Similarly, Lewis will not immediately charge into counter punches if he’s learned anything, so this should prove a good opportunity for Ngannou to work on his offense from distance.
Use that 86.5-inch reach and jab! THEN counter Lewis when he gets frustrated at getting popped by that long distance strike.
Derrick Lewis
Record: 19-5-1
Key Wins: Marcin Tybura (UFC Fight Night 126), Travis Browne (UFC Fight Night 105), Roy Nelson (UFC Fight Night 90), Shamil Abdurakhimov (UFC Fight Night 102)
Key Losses: Mark Hunt (UFC Fight Night 110), Shawn Jordan (UFC Fight Night 68), Matt Mitrione (UFC Fight Night 50)
Keys to Victory: “Black Beast” swangs and he bangs. Lewis stands in the center of the Octagon and brawls happily, throwing brutally powerful hooks with the intent of sending his opponent to sleep. In addition, Lewis is sneaky fast with kicks and has perhaps the most devastating top game in the division.
Realistically, there’s a high likelihood of Lewis walking forward and trying to clobber Ngannou. It may work, but Lewis has definitely proven himself smarter than that in the past, so hopefully he’ll come in with a strategy.
To me, it seems Lewis’ biggest advantage is an ability to fight tired. That’s his advantage over just about everyone, the only problem is that usually Lewis gets tired first. Against Ngannou, it’s not so cut and dry. To take advantage of Ngannou’s questionable conditioning, some early takedown attempts would be wise. If one lands, there’s a fair chance Lewis batters Ngannou from top position right after. If not, both of them will be deeply fatigued by all that wrestling, and Lewis thrives in such scenarios.
Bottom Line: One man will leave the cage an immediate title contender.
Did Ngannou’s hype suffer a giant blow following his loss to Miocic? Of course, it was ugly and at time Ngannou looked completely lost. Really, though, if Ngannou destroys Lewis — blasts his head from his shoulders like the Overeem knockout — would any of that matter? There aren’t a ton of exciting options at Heavyweight … and Ngannou is firmly one of them.
This is a big opportunity for Lewis as well. “Black Beast” is firmly entrenched in the Top 10, but Ngannou would easily be the biggest win of his career. It would surely lead to a title eliminator fight for Lewis, a big step forward in his unlikely climb toward the title.
There’s a lot to lose for either man. In Ngannou’s case, a second consecutive loss would actually affect his status as a contender and force him back multiple steps. For Lewis, defeat is further evidence that his style will not work against elite opposition.
At UFC 226, Francis Ngannou and Derrick Lewis will throw down. Which man will remain standing when the dust settles?