In a warm fight, Derrick Lewis defeats Shamil Abdurakhimov at UFC Albany

D. Lewis (photo) is having a good time in the UFC. Photo: Srdjan Stevanovic/UFC

Expectations were high, but the main fight at UFC Fight Night Albany left something to be desired. The North American Derrick Lewis and Russian Shamil Abdurakhimov entered the octagon with serial victories in the organization, but as soon as the bell sounded the heavyweights left something to be desired. Despite his poor performance, Lewis withstood the punishment in the initial stages to win the fight by technical knockout in the fourth round.

The fight

See too

Ju Thai wins and recovers at UFC Albany; Tractor loses in the decision

Anthony Pettis explains weight-cutting failure: 'My body stopped'

Former Brazilian national team player will make kickboxing debut

With two explosive fighters in the octagon, fans expected a mind-blowing duel with a quick knockout. But that's not what happened. The duel between Lewis and Abdurakhimov started carefully, without major attacks.

PUBLICITY:

When Lewis took the initiative with a kick, he ended up being taken down and Abdurakhimov tried a Kimura, but without the perfect fit he lost the position. The North American still got up, but when he tried another kick, he was taken down again and ended the round on the bottom.

In the second round the pace, which was already slow, dropped even further. Abdurakhimov put pressure on Lewis, but without much force or effectiveness. Despite this, the Russian's clinch game was important to score points.

PUBLICITY:

In the third round, the story of the fight began to change in favor of Derek Lewis. The North American avoided the Russian's grappling game and, even without much force, unleashed more attacks with punches and knees. Abdurakhimov still managed to take the takedown in the final half, but already very tired he was unable to strike with force. The fight returned to standing and Lewis started chasing the Russian, who was fleeing the fight.

The end of the dispute came in the fourth round. At a disadvantage on the cards, Lewis walked forward and Abdurakhimov, unable to work in the clinch. In one of the North American's attacks, he pressed the Russian against the fence and managed to take him down.

PUBLICITY:

Lewis quickly mounted and threw several punches at his rival until the referee declared the technical knockout at 3:42.

Cameroonian finishes quickly and gains morale in the heavyweight division

If there was a lack of quality in the main fight, in the second most anticipated duel of the night the Cameroonian Francis Ngannou made the fans happy. The heavyweight needed just 1m57s to lock in a tight Kimura and submit the American Anthony Hamilton.

With the beautiful finish, Ngannou, who is currently 12th in the rankings, reaches nine wins and one defeat in his career, with a sequence of eight consecutive victories.

PUBLICITY: