Fabrício Werdum vs. Derrick Lewis: What will go down:
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| Fabrício is keen to return to the heights of 2015 UFC gold. |
A former UFC Heavyweight champ and grappling ace, Werdum was defeated by Alistair Overeem in his last octagon appearance, an extremely close affair at UFC 213, as a majority decision was handed to the Dutch striker. Regarded by many as one of the greatest Heavyweights in mixed-martial arts history and with credible judgement, Werdum has stopped the likes of Cain Velasquez, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, the aforementioned Overeem and most eye catching, 'The Last Emperor' Fedor Emelianenko, tricking the Russian into a triangle to inflict Fedor's first legitimate defeat. Werdum doesn't just excel most opponents when it comes to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu but also in his striking, with his stand up game improving greatly over the last couple of years. twice knocking out Gabriel Gonzaga, Brandon Vera and he most noticeably, finished Mark Hunt with a flying knee back at UFC 180, claiming the Interim Heavyweight crown in the process.
A true crowd favourite and draw in the UFC, New Orleans' Derrick Lewis has seen his hype train momentarily derailed at the hands of the aforementioned Hunt, after he was stopped by the Auckland native in the penultimate round of their main event clash. Cruising on a six fight win and KO streak before the defeat, Lewis was fast approaching title talk, with his most recent victim Travis Browne feeling the full extent of his power at UFC Fight Night Halifax. Worryingly for Lewis towards the conclusion of both his fights with Browne and Hunt, he looked noticeably tired and almost ''gassed''. Lewis was systematically picked off by Hunt leading up to the finish, with some well placed body shots causing a wincing look on the face of Lewis. It seemed as if Lewis' career was over before it truly blossomed after the defeat, as he flirted with the possibility of retirement.
In my humble opinion, Werdum has faced some of MMA's greats and this matchup against Lewis seems quite favourable to the Brazilian particularly with Derrick's lack of real grappling pedigree. A real worry for me is the head space Lewis finds himself in after his loss to Hunt and retirement talk as it makes me question his commitment to the fight game, but one thing is for sure, Fabrício is undoubtedly eager to return to Heavyweight prominence.
Fabrício Werdum via submission.
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