This fight just couldn't be bad. Tai Tuivasa vs Derrick Lewis was a fight made for the fans. It was supposed to just be a fun fight and Lewis would probably win, which wouldn't do much for his title asperations, but it would be a co-main event that the fans in the arena would get loud and excited for. Of course, it delivered what we wanted, just not with the final outcome most people were expecting. Tai Tuivasa was able to weather a bit of a storm and come out victorious after landing an elbow from a clinch situation against the cage. It was a shocking finish that I really hadn't seen coming. When it happened I thought I missed something because the elbow didn't immediately seem like something that would knock someone out cold in real time, but after the replay, it was very clear that it landed about as solidly as any elbow I've seen. It didn't have a ton of wind up or extra power on it, but when Tai Tuivasa is the one throwing it, he doesn't have to really muscle up in order to have enough juice on his shots to put someone out. It was an exciting and interesting fight while it lasted. Let's talk about each guy and what's next.
I'm so happy for Tai Tuivasa. He's found himself in the top 3 of the division now and in the right circumstances, could find himself in a title fight next time out. Again, I think I had a lot right when I tried to project his strategy. Unfortunately, it didn't really work out for him and he had to go to a plan B. He tried to stay on the outside and land kicks, but the reach disadvantage was too much and he wasn't really able to land. He got all the way on the inside and was able to clinch Lewis in the first, which I didn't really expect to see. Of course, then Lewis landed a takedown and that was worrisome for Tai. He's going to have to continue to improve his wrestling and takedown defense, especially if he's going to be fighting these higher level opponents. With that said, he did show a lot of good things. He wasn't able to land his leg kicks from a distance, but he was able to step in and land them then dodge the shots coming back his other way. He ended up landing quite a few kicks, but he had to rely more on his head movement, which wasn't something I really expected to say. What I did expect from Tai is for him to be a complete savage and he showed that side of himself as well. He was in the process of getting back to his feet after the takedown and Lewis was just hammering him against the cage. Instead of just calling it a day and going down to protect himself, he went full Justin Gaethje and just started swinging. He was doing a decent job of landing elbows in the clinch the whole time as well. Once the second round started, it was clear he had a little more confidence in himself. He felt like he could deal with Lewis's power a little bit and was more willing to throw his strikes. He was momentarily hurt early, but Lewis got a little too aggressive and ended up in the clinch. When they broke, Tuivasa stepped back, but kept the pressure on and that's when he started to land big. He hurt Lewis with a few shots in space before landing the elbow that ended it. We got a lot of what we expected from Tai. He was game to trade and very powerful. He showed continued improvement in his kicks that we started to see against Sakai. What wasn't expected was his willingness to clinch and how effective he was at landing strikes there as well as his ability to move his head and avoid damage while in the pocket. It was a great performance and he showed a ton of heart. I'm so glad he's getting these opportunities as he seems like he's one of the real, genuine guys in this sport. When someone as entertaining as him is in a position for big fights, we all win.
What's next for Tai is an interesting situation. He's new to the rankings, especially the upper tier, so he has several options because hasn't been around long enough to fight a lot of these ranked opponents. With that said, he just beat the number 3 ranked guy and is now in that spot himself. I think it is possible that he has to fight someone lower in the rankings. The first option that comes to mind would be the winner between Tom Aspinall and Alexander Volkov. Whoever wins that fight will definitely be in the top 6, potentially the top 5. That seems like a logical place to look for his next fight. The next place to look would be the winner of the Curtis Blaydes vs Chris Daukaus fight. I expect Blaydes to be able to win, in which case, I don't find it to be an exciting matchup for Tai, but it's still an option they have to consider. That winner will also be somewhere around the 4-6 area in the rankings, so it follows a lot of the same reasoning. They could reach a little lower and give him the winner of the Marcin Tybura vs Jairzinho Rozenstruik fight, but I think that may be a little too low at this point. If Rozenstruik wins then it could be an option, but it definitely is towards the bottom of my list. I think it is very possible that we see Tai fight Stipe Miocic for the interim heavyweight championship, as strange as that may sound. We know at this time that Francis Ngannou is going to have surgery and will be out for most of 2022. He was going to sit out anyways, but now he doesn't really have a choice. They're likely going to have an interim title fight at some point, maybe as early as this summer. I just wrote within the last month or so that I want to see Stipe fight Jon Jones for that belt, but we still don't know if Jon is actually going to fight again. If Jon Jones doesn't want to fight, I think that is Tai's fight right now. Ciryl Gane just fought for the title and lost. I don't think they immediately want to put him back and potentially give him an interim title that he just had. If I had to pick one, I think the Stipe fight for the belt and Aspinall/Volkov are the most likely and interesting options.
As happy as I am for Tai, I feel equally as bad for Derrick Lewis. From a big picture point of view, Lewis is still fine. He's still a fan favorite and everyone will be excited every time he's on the schedule. He really didn't even fight that poorly. He had a lot of success and was actually winning the fight. He was using his reach advantage early on and was still landing with power. He had Tuivasa hurt on a couple of occasions. When he landed the takedown, he solidified the first round for himself. The ground and pound he landed as Tuivasa was standing up probably would have finished most other opponents. He even had Tuivasa hurt again in the second round before they started clinching again. I can't even say that Lewis was in the wrong for trading with Tai because that is the type of fight Lewis wants. When he starts trading with opponents, he normally wins. He's just not used to having people absorb his power and then firing back and he ran into someone who could do it that night. Derrick Lewis has his style and it comes with limitations against other certain styles, but I'm not worried about him. I expect him to bounce back and be just fine.
When it comes to Lewis, finding an opponent for him can be a little weird. He's the exact opposite of Tuivasa in this sense because he's already fought so many of these top guys. I don't really have a good feel for what he is looking for either. Derrick Lewis always gives off the vibe that he doesn't really about much. He just wants his 2-4 fights a year and if he puts together a streak that gets him close to a title, then even better. Lewis has said that he doesn't want main events because they're 5 rounds, which I think was mostly joking, but I do believe that it doesn't matter much to him. Clearly, ranking doesn't matter to him or he wouldn't have fought Tuivasa in the first place. With that said, I think there's a few fights that would be good for him and where he's at right now. Those men, in no particular order, are Jairzinho Rozenstruik, Augusto Sakai, and Walt Harris. At this point, Lewis isn't particularly close to getting a title shot or being in a title eliminator. Because of that, I don't think they'll be looking to book him against a really tough matchup against a grappler. That isn't utilizing Lewis to the best of his ability and probably isn't something he has interest in at this stage. All 3 offer a striker who is coming off of a loss or has the potential to do so. Rozenstruik is booked right now, so Lewis would have to wait, but I don't think he's in a rush. He just came off of quick turnaround for this fight, so he could lay low for a little bit. That would be the one I would be most interested in since he's the highest level opponent of the 3. Sakai and Harris are about the same to me. They offer someone who will fight the style that Lewis wants to fight and give the opportunity for an exciting fight. They will have the opportunity to get back in the win column against someone in a similar situation to themselves as well. Maybe those aren't the most fun or high profile matchups, but I think they make some degree of sense. I would wait for Rozenstruik if I had to chose, but I don't think it matters too much with Lewis.
What do you guys think? What did you make of Tai's performance? Can he get his way into a title fight next? What about Derrick Lewis? Where does he go from here? Leave any and all thoughts below. Thanks for reading and have a good one.
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