On the main card of UFC 324, we saw a big matchup in the heavyweight division. Former title challenger and all time knockout king Derrick Lewis (29-13) was taking on Waldo Cortes-Acosta (17-2). Cortes-Acosta was fighting for the sixth time in less than 12 months.
Derrick Lewis has been no where near as active as Cortes-Acosta, but having won two fights in a row and given his name recognition, Lewis was on the cusp of another title shot on Saturday night. What he needed to do was find the chin of Cortes-Acosta and add another knockout to his resume.
The problem was that he couldn’t find that chin at all. Cortes-Acosta stayed at range throughout the fight and when Lewis would lunge in, he would use his footwork to get away. You could tell that Lewis was getting visibly frustrated with his inability to find Waldo.
In the second round, Lewis lunged in with a hook and was caught flush with a short counter. He slipped simultaneously and went to the ground. He accepted the bottom position and Cortes-Acosta blasted him with big shots ultimately leading to the stoppage at UFC 324.
What’s next after UFC 324?
This was a really tough loss for Derrick Lewis who is turning 41-years-old in a couple of weeks. I’ve learned to never say never in this sport, but I have a hard time believing that he’ll ever fight for the title again at this point.
Granted, this is the heavyweight division which is extremely shallow and if he can win two more fights by knockout, who knows what will happen. In terms of what’s next for the UFC’s knockout king, I think the perfect matchup for him is Shamil Gaziev.
Gaziev is also coming off a knockout loss to Cortes-Acosta and he’s ranked 11th, one spot behind Lewis. Sometimes matchmaking is incredibly easy, and I think this is one of those ones you shouldn’t overthink.
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