UFC Fight Night will come to a close early Sunday morning from Las Vegas as the main event of the night gets underway. Ranked heavyweights will square off as No. 6 Derrick “The Black Beast” Lewis faces No. 12 Serghei “The Polar Bear” Spivac. The heavyweight knockout king Lewis will look to stay atop the rankings as the surging Spivac looks to advance positions. Check out our UFC odds series for our Lewis-Spivac prediction and pick.
Derrick Lewis is 26-10 in his MMA career and is the 6th-ranked heavyweight in the world. He also holds claim to the most knockouts in UFC history as no fighter has ever been able to find the one-punch knockout as often as him. His last few fights have seen him skidding, however. He's lost his last two fights in disappointing fashion. While they were both against stiff competition, he'll face an equally tough test in Serghei Spivac. Lewis stands 6'3″ with a 79-inch reach.
Serghei Spivac is 15-3 in his professional career. He's currently ranked 12th and has won his last two fights by way of vicious ground-and-pound. Spivac is a well-rounded heavyweight that wins fights with his fundamental game. He's been surging as of late and will hope to break into the top of the rankings with a win over the fan-favorite Derrick Lewis. Serghei Spivac stands 6'3″ and has a 78-inch reach.
Here are the UFC Odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
UFC Odds: Derrick Lewis-Serghei Spivac Odds
Derrick Lewis: +210
Serghei Spivac: -265
Over (1.5) rounds: -106
Under (1.5) rounds: -122
How to Watch Derrick Lewis vs. Serghei Spivac
TV: ESPN+
Stream: fuboTV, ESPN+
Time: 1:00 a.m. ET/ 10:00 p.m. PT (Main Card)
*Watch sports LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why Derrick Lewis Will Win
The great equalizer of Derrick Lewis has always been his ability to shut the lights off with one punch. He's done it more than anyone in UFC history and his sheer power has everything to do with it. While there have been rumblings of Lewis cutting loads of weight and looking “skinny” before this fight, he weighed in at the heavyweight limit and looks every bit of “The Black Beast”. Neverthless, Lewis will have certainly worked on his cardio to be able to keep up with Spivac's pace.
Derrick Lewis will have to fight smarter than he has in his last few fights. His chin is not what it once was and he's shown that he can easily be knocked out if the pressure gets too big. Lewis doesn't do a great job of covering up during heated exchanges, so it'll be interesting to see if he can handle Spivac's shots. Spivac will want to bring this to the mat, so it's essential for Lewis to preserve his energy when on the ground and not get caught in any submission attempts.
Why Serghei Spivac Will Win
Serghei Spivac has a suffocating game and can threaten his opponents from everywhere. He tends to play it safe on the feet, but can land heavy shots when he finds the openings. His heavy hands often leave opponents stunned, where Spivac usually looked to wrestle and take them to the ground. From there, he unleashes a concussive ground-and-pound game that many opponents have not been able to withstand. He'll have a sizable advantage on the ground in this one.
Spivac can win this fight so long as Lewis doesn't land a shot. We haven't seen Spivac's chin quite get tested yet as he does such a good job defensively. It'll be interesting to see if Spivac can eat a few of Lewis' shots when moving into range. It'll also be interesting to see whether Spivac is hesistant to move in as he's aware of the power Lewis carriers. The longer this fight goes on, the better chance Spivac has lasting all five rounds over Lewis. Derrick Lewis has shown a tendency to gas out early, so look for Spivac to take advantage of that.
Final Derrick Lewis-Serghei Spivac Prediction & Pick
While fight fans would love to see a knockout every time the Black Beast fights, they've been harder to come by. Spivac's path to the title is becoming clear and he's laser-focused on a title run. There have been questions surrounding Lewis' motivation for fighting at this point of his career and with this sport, you're either all-in or all-out. Serghei Spivac seems to be all-in. Let's take him to win, barring any stunning Lewis KOs.
Final Derrick Lewis-Serghei Spivac Prediction & Pick: Serghei Spivac -265
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