UFC heavyweight contender Derrick Lewis said that he hopes to send Curtis Blaydes to the ICU following their main event bout at UFC Vegas 19.
Lewis faces off with Blaydes in the main event of this Saturday’s UFC card. The two were previously scheduled to fight in November but Blaydes was forced out of the bout due to a case of COVID-19. The pair needed three months to be rescheduled, so there will be plenty of frustrations to be let out when the two heavyweights fight this weekend. Blaydes has promised that he will revert to his world-class wrestling to get the job done as always, while Lewis says he will get the KO. It should be fascinating to watch the fight unfold.
Speaking to the media ahead of UFC Vegas 19, Lewis was asked about his initial feelings when he found out the Blaydes fight was canceled because he had the coronavirus. “The Black Beast” said that while he hoped Blaydes wouldn’t be so ill that needed to end to go to the ICU for his case of COVID-19, it’s only because he wants to send him there himself.
#UFCVegas19 pic.twitter.com/fYneFC6XNu
— Borrachinha Depot (@FullContactMTWF) February 19, 2021
“I wanted to know why (Blaydes pulled out), what happened, and if everything was going to be okay with him. I was just concerned. I didn’t want nothing really bad to happen to the guy. I don’t like the guy, but I wouldn’t want him to go to the ICU or nothing like that because of COVID, I would only want him to go there cause of me. So I felt bad a little bit for him,” Lewis said.
Lewis (24-7, 1 NC) is a hefty underdog for this weekend’s bout with Blaydes. Most analysts believe that Blaydes is going to take Lewis to the ground at will and control him there, if not score a stoppage. Lewis, though, has other plans in mind and hopes to score another KO. Coming off of a big win over Aleksei Oleinik in his last fight and the winner of four straight fights, Lewis has a ton of confidence heading into this fight. And, as the video caption above noted, he still carries his trademark sense of humor, too.
Do you think Derrick Lewis can pull off the upset against Curtis Blaydes at UFC Vegas 19?