The knockout king made an appearance in St. Louis on Saturday night and it was as regal of a fight that fans could’ve hoped for.
Former heavyweight title challenger Derrick Lewis picked up a 15th KO victory, this time putting Brazilian up-and-comer Rodrigo Nascimento to sleep in the third round of their main event bout from the Enterprise Center, and adding to his UFC record for most KO/TKOs all-time.
Fitting that in the UFC’s return to the “Gateway City” after six years, the gatekeeper of the heavyweight division proved why he’s not someone that can be passed easily.
Lewis came into the fight wanting to prove he’s more than just a knockout specialist, repeatedly hinting that he’d have some surprises for Saturday. And it didn’t take long to see what the 39-year-old meant as he followed up a head kick in the first round with a takedown attempt that got Nascimento to the ground.
It didn’t amount to much as the Brazilian escaped immediately but Lewis’s versatility was how he remained afloat until a KO opened up in round three.
Through the rest of round one and practically all of round two, any time Lewis engaged and baited Nascimento into exchanges, the 31-year-old tactfully countered with a takedown, even getting Lewis’s back towards the end of round two. Yet at no point, despite feeding Lewis multiple elbows and maintaining ground control, was Nascimento able to build enough momentum to end things. Instead, the divisional mainstay pulled a savvy veteran move, reversing positions on Nascimento to protect his back and wait things out until the second round horn went.
Showcasing his ability to handle Nascimento’s groundwork, although impressive, is not how Lewis got the title of knockout king. Which is exactly why his corner told him to look for a finishing shot before round three began and it took Lewis less than a minute to heed the words of his coaches. He connected on a looping right hand that both wobbled and dropped Nascimento, to which “The Black Beast” followed up with a flurry of unanswered ground strikes.
Referee Jason Herzog officially called a stop to the contest at 0:49 of round three and that was how Lewis closed the gates, for now, on the division’s No. 15 ranked fighter.
Nascimento had earned his way into the rankings with a three-fight win and taking on Lewis was meant to be his first test, but the American Top Team product ultimately fell short in his first bout against a ranked opponent.
Meanwhile, Lewis avoided losing back-to-back bouts for just the third time in his UFC career. After losing to Jailton Almeida via Unanimous Decision in Nov. 2023, he moved down the ranks and currently sits at No. 12, but one or two more impressive knockouts like Saturday and he could be challenging for a belt.
Considering the heavyweight division is stagnating at the top with Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic unable to finalize their legacy fight, Tom Aspinall is waiting on the sidelines, and Lewis says he’s the healthiest he’s ever felt, it could mean a third title run is on the horizon for the knockout king.
In the co-main event, St. Louis’ own Joaquim Buckley picked up a Unanimous Decision win after dispatching Nursulton Ruziboev — an opponent not many others in the welterweight division were chomping at the bit to fight. The Uzbekistani had won his first two bouts in the UFC by early stoppage and had yet to step into an octagon for a second round.
Yet, Buckley changed all that thanks to a measured approach, forcing the 30-year-old to fight on his terms. Buckley showed why he’s the No. 11 ranked contender in the division as he sprinkled in takedowns that frustrated Ruziboev, and when the two exchanged upright, Buckley was swinging with malice intent.
Not only did the St. Louis native earn himself a win, he ensured that hometown fighters went undefeated on Saturday. He joined Sean Woodson who earned a Unanimous Decision over Alex Caceres on the main card and Charles Johnson who also won by UD, beating Jake Hadley on the prelims.
Another standout from the main card was Carlos Ulberg who literally punched his way into the light heavyweight rankings thanks to a first-round knockout of Alonzo Menifield. Ulberg anticipated an aggressive start from the No. 11 ranked Menifield and was able to respond with a check hook that turned the light out.
“Coaches had reminded me that he may push forward right off the dot, so I was prepared for that,” Ulberg said after the fight. “He woke me up with a right hook … I woke up and said ‘OK let’s throw some.’”
The fight ended up lasting just 12 seconds, the third-fastest finish in light heavyweight division history.
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Before Ulberg had the crowd on its feet, Diego Ferreira had everyone practically falling out of their seats. The Brazilian entered the octagon as the biggest underdog of the night against Mateusz Rębecki (- 500), and after five minutes the betting line was looking accurate. Ferreira almost immediately found himself on the ground thanks to a left hand from Rębecki but withstood the danger and completely flipped the script as the fight went on.
Ferreira pieced up the Polish lightweight in the second round, and by the third round, he had chained together enough strikes to wobble Rębecki. That was enough for Ferreira to shoot and get a takedown before unloading a barrage of unanswered strikes, prompting referee Gary Copeland to end the right with just nine seconds left.
Ferreira not only pulled off the biggest upset of the night he put a screeching halt to Rębecki’s undefeated UFC start and 16-fight MMA win streak.
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The only other heavyweight fight of the card, unfortunately, didn’t live up to its billing like the main event, despite boasting major knockout power as well. Robelis Despaigne suffered his first MMA loss, a Unanimous Decision defeat at the hands of Waldo Cortes-Acosta that snapped a six-fight win streak.
Despaigne entered the night following a UFC debut win at UFC 299 where he knocked out Josh Parisian in 18 seconds, with his last three fights lasting a combined 25 seconds. But none of that mattered in St. Louis as Despaigne had no answers for Cortes-Acosta’s ground control. To his credit, “The Salsa Boy” ate some vicious strikes from Despaigne to set up his takedowns, and once on the canvas, his presence was overwhelming.
The prelims were pretty tame until the final two bouts, both of which ended via early stoppage. First came Chase Hooper’s submission victory against Viacheslav Borshchev which was pure domination from the opening bell. Hooper dropped Borschev with a left hand in the opening round, but the Russian somehow survived the ensuing onslaught.
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It didn’t matter though as Hooper, a submission specialist, immediately took the fight to the mat in the second round and continually punished Borschev while in a mounted position before securing a D’Arce choke and a tap, albeit questionably.
Borschev immediately began protesting that he had not tapped but to no avail. He’s now lost three of his last five fights while Hooper is now on a three-fight win streak in the UFC.
Right before that contest, Esteban Ribovics delivered the KO of the night just 37 seconds into his fight against Terrance McKinney. “El Gringo” was representing as one of just four Argentinians in the UFC and he made his country proud with a head kick that immediately shut down McKinney.
It was Ribovics’ seventh career knockout and second consecutive UFC victory.
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McKinney on the other hand is trending in the opposite direction as he’s now lost three of his last five fights under the promotion and has built an identity around knocking people out or getting knocked out.
The UFC will return next week, back at the Apex Complex in Las Vegas for another Fight Night Card. It’ll be headlined by a ranked featherweight matchup between No. 11 Edson Barboza and No. 14 Lerone Murphy.
After that, UFC 302 will take place in New Jersey, a long-anticipated title fight between lightweight champion Islam Makhachev and No. 4 contender Dustin Poirier.
