Curtis Blaydes reveals who hits harder out of Francis Ngannou and Derrick Lewis

Curtis Blaydes recently opened up about the power that Francis Ngannou and Derrick Lewis pack in their hands. He revealed that between the two heavyweight powerhouses, it's Lewis who hits harder.

While in conversation with MMA News, Blaydes offered fans some insight into the immense power he felt when facing both Ngannou and Lewis.

'Razor' has only suffered three setbacks over the course of 18 fights, all of which have been TKO & KO losses. While two came against Francis Ngannou, the most recent was a brutal defeat against Derrick Lewis.

Although Ngannou finished him twice, he was quick to declare that 'The Predator' failed to put him to sleep. On the other hand, Lewis did just that. When asked to clarify the difference between his stoppages, Curtis Blaydes said:

"Well Derrick, obviously I've never been put to sleep. He put me to sleep. Gonna have to give it to him." On his loss to Francis Ngannou, he said, "When we fought the first time, that was a doctor's stoppage. I was not out. But I guess it goes down as a TKO. And then in Beijing, again, he dropped me twice in rapid succession and then the referee jumped in. But I was aware. I remember everything. When Derrick Lewis knocked me out, I woke up in the ambulance. So there you go. That's a big difference."

Watch MMA News' full interview with Curtis Blaydes below:

---

When did Curtis Blaydes suffer his losses?

Curtis Blaydes suffered the first loss of his career back in April 2016 at UFC Fight Night 86. The event marked his debut in the promotion against Francis Ngannou. However, their clash was called to a stop after the doctor was forced to step in.

Ngannou's explosive strikes caused severe swelling to Blaydes' right eye to the point where it was completely closed. Although he had managed to survive the onslaught up until then, the cageside doctor refused to let him participate in the third round.

He recorded his second career loss in his rematch with Francis Ngannou while headlining UFC Fight Night 141 in Beijing, China, back in November 2018.

The fight was called to a stop in the first round after he was quickly dropped and swarmed by Ngannou.

His most recent loss came against Derrick Lewis at UFC Vegas 19 in February 2021. Lewis landed a massive right uppercut that knocked Blaydes out cold. That marked the first time he had been rendered unconscious in a fight.