UFC Fight Night Preview: Derrick Lewis stands in way of Jailton Almeida hype train

UFC Fight Night Preview: Derrick Lewis stands in way of Jailton Almeida hype train

UFC Fight Night: Almeida vs Lewis Preview

After a rare week off, the UFC are back this weekend as they head to Sao Paulo, Brazil for a mouth-watering fight night card and a massive one for Brazilian MMA.

With the nation represented in every fight, expect a carnival atmosphere from the opening bell of the night, reminiscent of UFC 283 in Rio in January.

Jailton Almeida tops the bill, with the heavyweight finisher looking to throw his name in the mix at the top of the division as he faces knockout artist and fan favourite Derrick Lewis in the biggest test of his UFC career to date. 

Almeida has bulldozed his way through all five of his UFC opponents so far, spanning two different weight-classes, and is looking to cement his place in the title picture at 265lbs.

Lewis, on the other hand, is a perennial contender who has fought for heavyweight gold twice in the past, and is looking for back-to-back wins following his sub-40 second knockout of Marcos Rogerio de Lima in July at UFC 291.

Almedia Vs Lewis: Who is favourite?

The oddsmakers see Almeida as a heavy favourite here, as the Brazilian has a seemingly clear path to victory with his grappling and finishing ability on the ground.

Almeida will have to time his takedowns and avoid shooting in blind if he wants to get “The Black Beast” down however, as the current #5 ranked heavyweight Curtis Blaydes (who was originally slated to face Almeida in this one) found out back in 2021 when he shot from distance and was greeted with a concussive Lewis uppercut. 

With the top of the heavyweight division somewhat in limbo at the moment, with the news of champion Jon Jones’s injury and the subsequent delay of his fight with the consensus greatest heavyweight in UFC history Stipe Miocic, both of these exciting contenders can really make a statement on Saturday night with a finish in this one.

Don’t blink, as neither one of these guys waste any time when they enter the octagon. 

Almeida Vs Lewis card.

The co-main event sees unbeaten Brazilian Gabriel Bonfim take on UFC veteran Nicolas Dalby in a welterweight contest with potential top-15 implications.

Since earning his UFC contract with a first round submission win over Trey Waters on Dana White’s Contender Series, Bonfim has gone from strength to strength, submitting both Mounir Lazzez and Trevin Giles in under 90 seconds each.

With a perfect 15-0 record and a 100% finish rate, you can expect to see Bonfim in some big fights if he can get the win in Sao Paulo. 

However, he faces a tough challenge in Dalby who will make his 12th walk under the famous banner on Saturday.

Entering this one on a three fight win streak, the 38 year old will be hoping that a win will see him move ever closer to those elusive welterweight rankings.

Twelve of Dalby’s 22 career wins have come by decision, while Bonfim has never seen the final bell, so the Dane will be looking to push Bonfim to a place he hasn’t been before, while Bonfim will be aiming to stretch his finishing streak to sixteen. 

The rest of the main card sees heavyweights Rodrigo Nascimento and Don’Tale Mayes face each other for the second time, with Nascimento winning their first fight in 2018.

Both men are coming into this one off wins, and will be looking to settle the score when they square off one again on Saturday. 

UFC Fight Night.

There is an exciting fight at middleweight as Caio Borralho welcomes Abus Magomedov to Brazil in a fight that both men will want to win for different reasons.

Magomedov was rather hot property in the middleweight division when he finished Dustin Stoltzfus on his debut last year, and was given a main event slot against the now champion Sean Strickland.

With the result not going his way, and seeing where the man who defeated him is now, there will be huge motivation to get back in the win column and regain some of that momentum again. 

Borralho, on the other hand, is fighting at home for the first time since entering the UFC and has been improving each and every time we have seen him thus far.

The Brazilian is currently 4-0 in the UFC and found his first finish last time out against Michal Oleksiejczuk. Borralho will be looking to add another finish to his record and potentially move into the rankings at 185lbs here with a win. 

The first fight on the main card sees jiu-jitsu ace Rodolfo Vieira face “Superman” Armen Petrosyan in another intriguing middleweight contest.

The home crowd will be baying for Vieira to get the submission victory here, as all but one of his nine wins have come by way of submission.

Petrosyan enters enemy territory aiming for his third win in a row, and is looking to build some momentum and push himself up towards the middleweight rankings. 

The prelims have some UK interest too, as UFC tested Marc Diakiese and the resurgent Modestas Bukauskas both face Brazilian nationals in important fights for their future UFC careers.

Diakiese is on a two fight skid, after losses to the experienced Michael Johnson and a rather controversial submission loss to Joel Alvarez earlier this year, and will be eager for a win as he welcomes newcomer Kaue Fernandes to the UFC.

Bukauskas has looked good since returning to the promotion this year, earning back to back wins over Tyson Pedro and Zac Pauga, and with a win over the undefeated Vitor Petrino on Saturday night, Bukauskas will be looking to push towards the top 15 and beyond in 2024. 

Main Card

Jailton Almeida vs Derrick Lewis

Gabriel Bonfim vs Nicolas Dalby

Rodrigo Nascimento vs Don’Tale Mayes

Caio Borralho vs Abus Magomedov

Rodolfo Vieira vs Armen Petrosyan

Ismael Bonfim vs Vinc Pachel (OFF THE CARD, BONFIM MISSED WEIGHT BY 3.5LBS)

Prelims

Elves Brener vs Kaynan Kruschewsky

Daniel Marcos vs Victor Hugo (OFF THE CARD, HUGO MISSED WEIGHT BY 2.5LBS)

Elizeu Zaleski vs Rinat Fakhretdinov

Vitor Petrino vs Modestas Bukauskas

Angela Hill vs Denise Gomes

Montserrat Conejo Ruiz vs Eduardo Moura (Moura misses weight, but fight stays on card. Now a catchweight bout and Moura loses 30% of her purse)

Kaue Fernandes vs Marc Diakiese

Venue

Ginasio do Ibirapuera — Sao Paulo, Brazil