Derrick Lewis adds another KO to his UFC HW record with a stoppage win over Curtis Blaydes
It didn’t take a Din Thomas, Firas Zahabi or Greg Jackson type of mind to know what the game plans of Curtis Blaydes and Derrick Lewis were going to be when the two faced off in the main event of UFC Vegas 19. Blaydes, who entered the fight with the most takedowns in UFC heavyweight history with 59, was going to attempt to implement his wrestling skills. Lewis, who had a UFC heavyweight record of 11 knockouts ahead of facing Blaydes, was going to look to end the fight with his power. Appropriately, the fight closed with Lewis landing a wrecking ball of an uppercut as Blaydes leaned in for a takedown.
Blaydes opened as a big favorite in this matchup. He closed as an even bigger favorite. The odds might have had something to do with Blaydes coming off a win over Alexander Volkov where Blaydes landed 14 takedowns and racked up nearly 20 minutes of control time. Or it could have been the fact that Lewis has given up over 30 takedowns in his UFC career. Whatever the case, those who sided with power over takedowns walked away from UFC Vegas 19 with smiles plastered on their faces.
Blaydes did a decent job in the striking department. He landed more significant strikes than Lewis, but his strikes lacked the authority of the sledgehammers that Lewis was swinging. It only took one punch for Lewis to turn out the lights of his opponent.
It’s hard to tell where Lewis goes after his early second-round knockout victory, as the heavyweight matchmaking seems to set for a good part of 2021. In March, division champion Stipe Miocic meets No. 1 ranked Francis Ngannou in a rematch. Former UFC light heavyweight titleholder Jon Jones is expected to face the winner of that fight. However, at the post-fight press conference Lewis said he wants to stay busy and if he gets his wish, his next opponent will be Alistair Overeem.
Before the heavyweight division moves on, here is a look at the final fight stats for the main event of UFC Vegas 19, which took place at UFC Apex in Las Vegas and streamed on ESPN+.