It was a vintage [autotag]Derrick Lewis[/autotag] performance in the main event of UFC Fight Night 199.
Looking to rebound from challenging for the interim heavyweight title, Lewis faced Chris Daukaus at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. After promising to deliver a knockout in the lead-up, Lewis (26-8 MMA, 17-6 UFC) was patient early but found the finishing touch on Daukaus (12-4 MMA, 4-1 UFC) at 3:36 of the first round.
After a touch of gloves, the heavyweight main eventers began feeling each other out. Daukaus circled on the outside as Lewis stalked forward. The first strikes of the fight came from Daukaus, who charged forward with a punching combination, but Lewis was unphased. After being warned for keeping his fingers out, Lewis offered a few strikes in his opponent’s direction, but nothing landed flush.
After attempting a jumping switch kick, Lewis swarmed with a flurry of punches, tagging Daukaus a number of times. Referee Mark Smith stepped closer to monitor the action, but Daukaus was able to grab a hold of Lewis momentarily. A second later, Lewis broke free and continued his flurry of punches until one finally landed clean to drop Daukaus and end the fight.
Your KO King – @TheBeast_UFC 👑 #UFCVegas45 pic.twitter.com/SsJ11UeLDF
— UFC (@ufc) December 19, 2021
Lewis now sits alone atop the UFC with the most knockouts in promotional history with 13.
“The Black Beast” gets back in the win column with another highlight-reel finish. Saturday’s win over Daukaus marked his second of 2021, keeping his name among the elite of the heavyweight division. Although he lost his previous outing in an interim title bout to Ciryl Gane, Lewis returned to his winning ways, looking like the fighter who rattled off four straight before UFC 265.
Daukaus walks away with the first loss of his UFC run. Prior to facing Lewis, Daukaus won four straight with the promotion, including wins over Aleksei Oleinik and Shamil Abdurakhimov earlier this year.
The full of UFC Fight Night 199 include:
- Derrick Lewis def. Chris Daukaus via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 3:36
- Belal Muhammad def. Stephen Thompson via unanimous decision (30-25, 30-26, 30-26)
- Amanda Lemos def. Angela Hill via split decision (28-29, 30-27, 29-28)
- Ricky Simon def. Raphael Assuncao via knockout (punches) – Round 2, 2:14
- Mateusz Gamrot def. Diego Ferreira via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 3:26
- Cub Swanson def. Darren Elkins via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 2:12
- Gerald Meerschaert def. Dustin Stoltzfus via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 3, 2:58
- Justin Tafa def. Harry Hunsucker via TKO (head kick) – Round 1, 1:53
- Melissa Gatto def. Sijara Eubanks via TKO (body kick) – Round 3, 0:45
- Charles Jourdain def. Andre Ewell via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27, 29-27)
- Raquel Pennington def. Macy Chiasson via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 2, 3:07
- Don’Tale Mayes def. Josh Parisian via TKO (elbows) – Round 3, 3:26
- Jordan Leavitt def. Matt Sayles via submission (inverted triangle) – Round 2, 2:05
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