UFC Fight Night: Blaydes vs. Lewis Preview

A heavyweight clash tops the bill in the UFC APEX in Las Vegas on Saturday November 28th. Curtis Blaydes (14-2) will take on Derrick Lewis (24-7) in the main event, the co-main event is a light-heavyweight clash between former title contender Anthony Smith (33-6) and Devin Clark (12-4).

The heavyweight division has been at a standstill in 2020 with only one title fight taking place and contenders stacking up each event. Two of those contenders will go to battle a Saturday night when Blaydes and Lewis step into the octagon.

With only one defeat in his last ten fight Blaydes has been on a tear in the 265-pound division. This year “Razor” Blaydes picked up wins over Junior dos Santos by a vicious knockout, and in his last fight he got a unanimous decision win over Alexander Volkov.

A fit Derrick Lewis is a very dangerous fighter, injuries have prevented him from performing at his highest level in the past. “The Black Beast” has looked great in his past three wins against Blagoy Ivanov, Ilir Latifi and Alexey Oleinik. Lewis will have to be at his absolute best on Saturday when he faces off against Blaydes, and with his devastating power he could end anyones night in an instant.

Blaydes will have his own ideas, and I doubt those plans will involve standing up with such a powerful striker. I would expect Blaydes to get this down to the mat and put the grind on Lewis. Lewis is no bum on the mat but I feel his grappling skills are not up to par with the skills of Blaydes.

Lewis does have a flying knee in his locker, we did see that vs. Oleinik when he exploded into a knee to the body of the Russian before landing a trademark overhand right. That will be on Blaydes’ mind if he does choose to shoot in for a takedown. This is a fun fight, and I’m looking forward to seeing how it all unfolds.

Anthony Smith (33-16) returns to action the 205-pound division, the former title challenger takes on Devin Clark (12-4) in the co-main event. Heavyweight Josh Parisian, who was a Contender Series contestant (13-3) will fight Parker Porter (10-6), Porter is searching for his first UFC win. Undefeated prospect Miguel Baeza (9-0) steps in to take on Takashi Sato (16-3) at 170 pounds, opening up the main card is a fight between Bill Algeo (13-5) and Spike Carlyle (9-2), that fight is in the featherweight division.

The prelims section of the card is headlined by Ashlee Evans-Smith (6-4) and Norma Dumont (4-1), Dumont will fight for the second time under the UFC banner after defeat in her debut. Martin Day (8-4) and Anderson dos Santos (20-8) will go to battle in the 135-pound division, Rachael Ostovich (4-5) returns from suspension to take on Gina Mazany (6-4) in the flyweight division.

At featherweight, Kai Kamaka III (8-2) and Jonathan Pearce (9-4) will throw down, Su Mudaerji (12-4) and Malcolm Gordon (12-4) will test their skills against each other in the flyweight division. Opening up the card is a 135-pound scrap between Nate Maness (12-1) and Luke Sanders (13-3).

OFFICIAL CARD

Main Card (BT Sports 2, 3am)

Heavyweight: Curtis Blaydes vs. Derrick Lewis

Light Heavyweight: Anthony Smith vs. Devin Clark

Heavyweight: Josh Parisian vs. Parker Porter

Welterweight: Miguel Baeza vs. Takashi Sato

Featherweight: Bill Algeo vs. Spike Carlyle

Preliminary Card (BT Sports 2, 1am)

Bantamweight: A. Evans-Smith vs. Norma Dumont

Bantamweight: Martin Day vs. A. dos Santos

Flyweight: Rachael Ostovich vs. Gina Mazany

Featherweight: Kai Kamaka III vs. Jonathan Pearce

Flyweight: Su Mudaerji vs. Malcolm Gordon

Bantamweight: Nate Maness vs. Luke Sanders