The UFC is heading back to Edmonton on November 2nd and last night, we learned the main event and co-main event. In an interview with Sportsnet, Dana White announced the two bouts and it’s a battle between ranked heavyweights that’ll be the co-main event.
The UFC’s all time knockout king, Derrick Lewis (28-12) will be taking on fourteenth ranked heavyweight contender Alexandr Romanov (17-3). Starting with Romanov, he’ll look to try and regain some of the momentum that he had earlier in his UFC career.
When Romanov first stepped into the octagon, he was a perfect 11-0. He parlayed that with winning his first five fights inside the octagon and at 16-0, many were looking at him as a potential title contender. However, there have been questions around his dedication and he’s now gone just 1-3 in his last four. He needs a big win over Derrick Lewis at UFC Edmonton to get back on track.
UFC Edmonton
The Black Beast last made the walk back in May in the main event of UFC St. Louis. Lewis was taking on Rodrigo Nascimento. Nascimento was able to use his wrestling to get the better of things in the first two rounds, but with the knockout king, it only takes one. Lewis blasted Nascimento with a huge right in the third that led him to finishing the fight and then firing his cup towards myself and other members on press row.
Lewis is a character and he always has that nuclear option in his hands. That said, it’s been a tough few years for Lewis in the UFC. A four-fight win streak including a knockout over Curtis Blaydes earned him an interim title shot against Ciryl Gane. Lewis lost that fight and starting with that fight, he’s just 3-5 in his last eight.
That said, you can never sleep on Lewis because the moment you do, he’ll put you to sleep. This fight will go one of two ways: either Romanov uses his wrestling to dominate the fight or Derrick Lewis puts him out.