Dear MMA Gods, please do not force any of us to sit through another fight like this.
Derrick “The Black Beast” Lewis took on Francis Ngannou in what was supposed to one of the biggest wars in MMA history.
Instead, it was three rounds of torture for MMA fans.
The two moved out slowly and Ngannou immediately switched stances, possibly in preparation for a Thai kick.
The Black Beast threw a high kick, but missed completely. Both fighters were extremely patient. The crowd, on the other hand, wasn’t, and they booed the fighters for their inaction.
Lewis threw a kick, but Francis returned with two huge punches, neither of which landed.
Derrick threw a switch kick up high. The crack resonated throughout the arena, but Ngannou wasn’t hurt.
Another kick by Lewis, but Francis stayed patient.
Again, the crowd grew impatient with the inaction and they booed the fighters. Three minutes in, and Francis Ngannou threw little to no shots.
The two went for a clinch, but broke up completely.
The Black Beast threw a leg kick.
For the third time, the crowd booed the fighters, and for the second time, Derrick Lewis threw a switch kick.
The eventless first round ended.
Round 2 and the fighters again moved slowly into the middle of the cage. Ngannou threw a huge punch, but missed completely. Yet again, the crowd expressed their displeasure with the fighters’ cautiousness. Anyone who was expecting this fight to be chaos was sorely mistaken, at least halfway through the second round.
Lewis went in for a takedown, but Ngannou threw him off. Still, Lewis was the much more aggressive fighter, even though he wasn’t being that aggressive.
The crowd shouted “Fight, fight, fight,” and again booed when the fighters kept up with their cautiousness. Was Ngannou worried about gassing out like he did in his fight against Stipe?
Eventually, Herb Dean got sick of the timidity from both fighters and told them they needed to “engage” more.
Lewis came in swinging for the fences and Ngannou threw his share of punches, but there was little uptick in the action.
The third round started out slowly, just like the previous two rounds, and the crowd wasn’t having it at all. Herb Dean clapped his hands, signaling to both fighters that he wasn’t going to tolerate another round of inaction.
Everyone in this arena's life just flashed in front of their eyes ..#UFC226 pic.twitter.com/GKjSLhsCvN
— UFC (@ufc) July 8, 2018
Halfway through the third round, the number of landed strikes for both fighters was in the single digits. Joe Rogan pointed out that the two fighters had thrown fewer strikes than the fight which held the record for the least fights thrown.
With a little under a minute and a half in, there were some exchanges, but definitely not enough to appease the crowd. Rogan joked that the fight should be a double loss.
Lewis threw a high kick and Ngannou threw a punch. With ten seconds left, the crowd began booing. Joe Rogan called the fight the most boring heavyweight fight in history.
I am inclined to agree.
The crowd even booed while Bruce Buffer read the decision, which was unanimously awarded to Derrick Lewis.
The post UFC 226 RESULTS: Derrick Lewis Takes Unanimous Decision Over Francis Ngannou In Three-Round Snore Fest appeared first on Jiu-Jitsu Times.