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UFC heavyweight Chris Daukaus believes Derrick Lewis has more power in his hands than the UFC heavyweight champion, Francis Ngannou.
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Tenth-ranked UFC heavyweight Chris Daukaus recently appeared in an interview with John Hyon Ko for Sportskeeda. He expressed his views about the interim title fight between Derrick Lewis and Ciryl Gane in the interview.
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Over the course of the discussion, John Hyon Ko brought up the much-discussed knockout power that 'The Black Beast' packs in his strikes. Chris Daukaus, an incredibly powerful striker himself, immediately responded with enthusiastic appreciation. He said:
"That (punch) is the one, dude. It's that one. He (Derrick Lewis) has got that, whatever it is that he has got. He can do it to you thirty seconds into the fight, or he can do it to you with ten seconds left in the fight. So, that is the most dangerous thing..."
Derrick Lewis complements his patience on the feet with the ability to explode at any given moment during a fight. His knockouts tend to be unexpected, especially against fighters who do their best to keep Derrick Lewis and his dangerous strikes at bay.
Lewis' most recent fight against Curtis Blaydes is a testament to his unpredictable timing and enormous knockout power. Midway through the second round, as Curtis Blaydes leaned in to attempt a takedown, Derrick Lewis connected with a vicious strike that knocked Blaydes out cold.
Also read: "I don't believe I have a glass jaw" - Curtis Blaydes opens up on loss to Derrick Lewis
Another heavyweight known for unbelievable knockout power is Francis Ngannou. In fact, Ngannou is more associated with vicious knockout ability than Derrick Lewis is. However, Chris Daukaus believes Lewis is more dangerous than Ngannou. He said:
"... I honestly think he [Derrick Lewis] has got more power than Francis [Ngannou], Simply because the way Francis respected him when they first fought, and you know, before, if you waould drag Francis into deep waters, his power, you would think, would fade a little bit, but Derrick Lewis' power doesn't seem to go anywhere. Especially, no matter how hard he is working. In my opinion, he is a scarier fighter."
'There's no reason why this is happening' - Chris Daukaus reveals shock at the UFC booking Lewis vs. Gane
The UFC's sudden announcement regarding the interim title fight between Derrick Lewis and Ciryl Gane caught the entire MMA world off-guard. And Chris Daukaus was no exception. Discussing the entire scenario of the fight on August 7, Daukaus said:
"It's a little weird... I have no idea (why this was done). I think Francis was taking time off, and going to Africa, you know, like, doing everything with the belt, which you should. I think it's great marketing for the UFC, it's a great story for him - he's going back to where he grew up. I think that he should be able to do that. But for whatever reason... I think his management and Dana [Whte] were going back and forth and someone posted a screenshot of the conversation. It's only been three months! It's not like he's been sitting out for a year, a year-and-a-half. So, there's really no reason why this is happening. Maybe it's a moey thing, maybe it's a timing thing, I don't know. But it just seems extremely weird that it happened so quickly. I don;t know if they're just not on good terms, I don't know."
Although Chris Daukaus acknowledged the "weirdness" of how the interim title fight came into being, he does not recognize the fight for what it is slated to be. Instead, he feels like the fight is more like a number one contender fight. He said:
"You know, my brother tweeted it out and I feel the same that the interim belt holder, whoever holds that, is just the number one contender. So, that's really all it is. I'd love to, obviously, get my hands on a belt. It'll just be the number one contender to me. You're not the true champion until you beat the champion."
Chris Daukaus makes his pick for Derrick Lewis vs Ciryl Gane
Chris Daukaus shared that he discussed whether the fight between Ciryl Gane and Derrick Lewis would be similar to the first fight between 'The Black Beast' and Francis Ngannou with his brother, Kyle Daukaus.
While Kyle Daukaus does not believe the fight will be like Ngannou vs Lewis, Chris Daukaus feels that it might just pan out in a similar fashion. Giving his breakdown of the fight, Chris said:
"I think that Gane will push the pace a little bit earlier, especially with the kicks, get his range down, try and catch Lewis like that. But, I think Lewis will be patient, you know, it's five-fives. He's going to be super patient with everything. He'll look for that big knockout. I don't know, it's gonna be super exciting. I hope it's exciting... I have belief in the Black Beast."
Chris Daukaus believes Derrick Lewis will wrap the interim heavyweight title around his waist come UFC 265. What are your predictions for the heavyweight clash? Sound off in the comments section!
Watch the interview with Chris Daukaus below:
Also read: 3 reasons why Derrick Lewis will end Ciryl Gane's undefeated streak at UFC 265
