Curtis Blaydes did not apologize that his strategy got into a hugely tough fight with Derrick Lewis. Blaydes would use his dominant struggle early and often. He told everyone who would listen.
Maybe it was a distraction. But Blaydes should have stuck to his original game plan, as Lewis crushed him with an uppercut knockout at 1:26 of the second round in Saturday’s UFC Fight Night main event in Las Vegas.
Blaydes gained confidence in the first round, trying only one elimination, which Lewis stuffed. And Lewis, one of the most dangerous KO artists in MMA history, made him pay.
According to research from ESPN Stats & Information, it was the biggest shock to a UFC main event since Michael Bisping defeated Luke Rockhold at UFC 199 in 2016. Lewis was a +350 underdog, according to Caesars Sportsbook by William Hill, ESPN’s odds provider. Bisping was +400 against Rockhold five years ago.
With the stoppage, Lewis Vitor Belfort ties with the most knockouts in UFC history (12). Lewis is also now tied for the second-most wins in UFC heavyweight history (16) with Frank Mir. Andrei Arlovski is the all-time leader of the UFC heavyweights, with 19.
Saturday’s finish came when Blaydes dived in and tried to close the distance for a clinch or a takedown. Lewis saw it coming and let go with a massive uppercut. Blaydes’ body shook on impact and he was unconscious when he fell to the canvas. Lewis followed to the ground with punches until referee Herb Dean came in to pull him away.
“That was the only blow I was waiting for throughout the fight,” said Lewis. ‘I knew he was coming in. … That’s all I’ve been waiting for. I wasn’t worried about throwing a one-two, a shot or anything. ”
Blaydes was very effective on the feet in the first round, landing hard combinations and chewing up Lewis’ lead legs with kicks. He defeated Lewis 28-7 in significant strikes. Lewis landed early with a hard right hand that staggered Blaydes for a moment, but otherwise Blaydes was in control.
That’s how the second round started, but Lewis is always a threat to put an opponent to sleep. And Blaydes was caught with a bomb from an uppercut.
Blaydes did not put down any takedowns during the fight. He had 59 removals from his UFC career, the most in UFC heavyweight history.
“At the end of the first round, I was like, ‘He’s screwed up, he’s screwed up’,” Lewis said of Blaydes not landing a takedown. “That’s what I said in my head … I thought, ‘Okay, keep playing that game.’ That’s what I said to myself. “
The match was originally scheduled for November 28, but Blaydes tested positive for COVID-19 and the match was held a day prior to the event before the official weigh-in took place.
ESPN had Blaydes at number 3 and Lewis at number 5 in the world in heavyweight.
Francis Ngannou will be taking the next title to be shot at champion Stipe Miocic at UFC 260 on March 27, and the great Jon Jones seems to be waiting in the wings for the winner. Lewis is now on pole in case something happens to one of those athletes, but he said it would be silly to say he wants a title next time as Ngannou and Jones are ahead of him.
Lewis instead said he wants to fight Alistair Overeem next time, despite Overeem having suffered a knockout loss against Alexander Volkov.
“It will be cool to fight him because he is a so-called legend,” said Lewis. “It would be cool to fight someone like that … We’ve been trying to fight him for years, and he’s rejected the fight four times.”
UFC Fight Night took place at UFC Apex, the promotion’s location across the street from the corporate campus in Las Vegas.
Lewis (25-7, 1 NC) has won four consecutive times. He came out of a KO win over Aleksei Oleinik in August. The Houston native had the most knockouts in UFC heavyweight history before Saturday. Lewis, a 36-year-old fan favorite, has won seven out of nine and 13 out of sixteen.
Blaydes (14-3, 1 NC) had won four consecutive games and recently defeated Alexander Volkov by unanimous decision in June. The Illinois native, who trains from Colorado’s Elevation Fight Team, had lost twice to just one man in the UFC before Saturday: Ngannou.
Blaydes, 30, is a former wrestling champion of the National Junior College Athletic Association, and he usually praises his takedown-and-ground, control-based style in MMA.