Blaydes vs Lewis Review

The main event saw a sensational TKO victory as Derrick Lewis defeated Curtis Blaydes with an uppercut strike in second round. 

o   Feeling in a confident mood after his victory, Lewis said: “It felt like a dream. It just felt so weird afterwards. It still doesn’t feel real. This was the most satisfying (win of my career), because he was talking trash for years. He only picked up on my radar when I accepted the fight, but I heard he’d been talking trash for years. The uppercut or the knee—that’s all I was really waiting on. I knew he was going to come in and try to shoot and wrestle. I didn’t really care about anything else, but that. I made a lot of people money. Never bet against me. People should have learned that years ago. I could be a huge underdog, but don’t ever underestimate me. No matter how much time’s left on the clock. I’m still going to shine. You’ll hopefully see me soon. I’m feeling good. 

·       The co-main event saw flyweight Yana Kunitskaya edge Ketlen Vieira in a unanimous decision.  

o   Feeling proud of her victory, Kunitskaya said: “I feel I won the fight. I did more damage, but sometimes judges make very strange decisions. I wasn’t happy before I heard the result. Every fight is important for me. Every fight feels like the biggest win. If you look at how high she was ranked, and before everyone thought she could be champion, I feel proud of myself. I feel like I’m physically and technically prepared for anyone, but I always have a mindset issue. I’m proud of me and my team for putting me in the right place. I feel so good that I won this fight in my head. Whoever the UFC wants to give me, I’ll be happy. I was not happy with my performance against Aspen. I feel I can do better than that. If I could get the rematch, that would be my dream fight. I want to prove I can beat anyone.” 

·       In the heavyweight division, Liverpool’s Tom Aspinall forced former heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski to submit in the second-round to gain his sixth consecutive win and remain unbeaten in his third UFC bout. 

o   Earning a performance of the night bonus, Aspinall said: “I’ve been in that hotel scared all week. He’s a scary guy. I’m scared of Andrei Arlovski. I’ve got no problem saying it. I watched him for a long time. I watched him so much that I almost knew what he was going to do before he did it. It means a lot to me. I didn’t expect to finish him with a submission. That’s the last thing I expected. I thought it was going to be a quick knockout or I’m going to beat him on points. Very happy with it, but not very happy with the performance. I’ve got a lot to work on, but I’ve got a long time to work on it. It’s all good. I’d like to fight some more veterans, to be honest. I feel like I learned a lot in there tonight.”