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(All stats according to UFC’s Record Book and Fight Metric as of February 9, 2021, and only include active athletes in their respective division unless noted otherwise)

Main Event: Curtis Blaydes vs Derrick Lewis

Curtis Blaydes

Key Stats: 55.7% takedown accuracy (2nd all-time among HW), 59 takedowns landed (1st all-time among HW), 1:13:28 control time (1st all-time among HW)

What It Means: Curtis Blaydes is going to wrestle, no ifs, ands, or buts about it. He wants to take his opponent down, control them, and rain down heavy ground-and-pound. Although he has shown an ability to use the threat of his wrestling to land big strikes like he did against Junior Dos Santos, he hasn’t fallen in love with his hands. Few fighters are artists with their ground-and-pound game, but Blaydes is one of them. Whether he feints a strike to secure a takedown or vice versa, he is a bulldozing, athletic heavyweight.

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Derrick Lewis

Key Stats: 11 KO/TKOs (tied-1st all-time), 52.7% takedown defense (9th), 50.8% significant strike accuracy (7th)

What It Means: Derrick Lewis stands above the rest of the brawlers, knockout artists and power punchers. He is an explosive striker with much more than just huge punching power. He uses an assortment of kicks, flying techniques and overall strength to set up that overhand right. Nobody is better at swarming a staggered opponent to end the fight. Lewis has shown increased cardio, explosiveness, and overall fitness each time out, including when he landed a flying knee that started the finishing sequence against Aleksei Oleinik.

RELATED: Expect Fireworks Out Of The Gate From Derrick Lewis

What to Look For in the Fight: This fight is relatively straightforward. Blaydes wants Lewis on his back, and Lewis wants to knock Blaydes out, and both have the tools to nullify each other’s strengths. Lewis is famous for his ability to just explode and get up off the mat, but Blaydes’ control is close to unparalleled. This is really a test of two unstoppable forces meeting in the middle and seeing whose strength is stronger. Both are explosive in different ways, and that is what makes this matchup incredibly intriguing.

Co-Main Event: Ketlen Vieira vs Yana Kunitskaya

Ketlen Vieira

Key Stats: 4.49 strikes landed per minute, 2.04 takedowns per 15 minutes, 33% takedown defense

What It Means: Ketlen Vieira is a violent and physical presence in the Octagon who has shown great potential in all areas of the Octagon. Her grappling is probably her most lethal and polished attribute, and she shows good skills in getting onto her opponent and looking for submissions or windows to drop some ground-and-pound.

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Yana Kunitskaya

What It Means: Yana Kunitskaya is a physically strong fighter with a good kickboxing background, but she does a particularly good job of pressing her opponents against the cage and working out of the clinch. She shows good control when digging for underhooks and fighting for position, and off the break, she can string together a decent amount of punches.

What to Look For in the Fight: This is an intriguing matchup in terms of the physicality of both bantamweights. Vieira is the more dangerous grappler when it comes to submissions, but Kunitskaya has shown an ability to really nullify her opponent’s game because of her pressure and strength. Look for her to find more windows for her striking, whereas Vieira might try to look for a finish either with a power shot or submission.

MORE UFC VEGAS 19: Fighters On The Rise

Other Fights to Watch (Andrei Arlovski vs Tom Aspinall)

Andrei Arlovski

Key Stats: 5:03:42 total fight time (1st all-time among HW), 19 wins (1st all-time among HW), 3.48 strikes landed per minute

What It Means: The former heavyweight champion has turned into a wily veteran who has seen it all in the Octagon. Andrei Arlovski is adept at mixing things up in a fight, either using footwork and his athleticism to stay at his range and rhythm when striking or by throwing in some grappling to throw his opponent off guard. Arlovski uses smooth striking, including a variety of kicks, to puzzle foes and gain the upper hand.

*Tom Aspinall

Key Stats: 1:10 average fight time, 74% striking accuracy, 71% striking defense

What It Means: Tom Aspinall has been a juggernaut through two UFC fights, earning a pair of quick finishes both times out. He is a powerful man who moves well for his size, and when he lets his hands go, he’s got some of the better boxing among the big men. What he hasn’t had to show yet is his black belt credentials in jiu-jitsu, and he has admitted that if he doesn’t need to show that, he won’t just yet. He’s a younger heavyweight with a lot of potential.

What to Look For in the Fight: This is a good test for Aspinall young in his UFC career. Few, if any, will be able to problem solve on the fly as well as Arlovski, who is coming off a string of wins showing he still has plenty of gas left in the tank. Arlovski can, at times, freeze an opponent up by taking away pieces of their game, but Aspinall has shown he has plenty of tools for opponents to consider. We haven’t seen a lot of Aspinall yet in the Octagon, and this could be an opportunity for the Englishman to really show off his game if he can handle all that Arlovski will throw at him in return.

View Aspinall’s Athlete Profile

*Hasn’t fought in weight class enough to qualify in UFC Record Book

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