The Takedown | UFC: can Derrick Lewis actually beat Francis Ngannou again? Rematch will be nothing like first fight
- Ngannou first squared off with ‘The Black Beast’ in 2018, but he is a new man and now the heavyweight champion
- In avenging his loss to Stipe Miocic at UFC 260 in March, Ngannou can close his loss loop with a beat down of Lewis after their first snoozefest
On top of their UFC 226 contest in July 2018 being one of the most boring fights in history, the statistics were equally mind-numbing. The two fighters only threw a combined 100 strikes, each landing an abysmal percentage as Ngannou connected 23 per cent of the time, and Lewis 37 per cent.
The fight got so boring some fans – their throats sore from booing – took out their phones and turned on their flashlights like lighters at a rock concert. Commentator Joe Rogan, never one to mince words, summed it up brilliantly: “As little as [Lewis] is doing, he’s just doing more.”
Lewis did attempt two takedowns and appeared at fleeting moments to be the aggressor, but let’s be honest: this was not a fight, it was a debacle and an embarrassment. Lewis won on paper, but in actuality, nobody won. The judges found themselves giving him the win by default, simply because neither wanted to engage the other, but Lewis, for a moment or two, looked as if he was at least trying to break from his trance.
The fight had shades of Israel Adesanya vs Yoel Romero for a number of reasons. There is no denying Lewis and Ngannou are scary, intimidating fighters. Throwing haymakers with either one of these heavyweights would be like walking onto a highway and trying to dodge traffic. But both were inexplicably hesitant to pull the trigger.