MMA Preview – Jailton Almeida vs Derrick Lewis at UFC Fight Night 231
Click here for today’s sports betting tips from our expert analysts!
JAILTON ALMEIDA VS DERRICK LEWIS FACTS
When is UFC Fight Night 231? Saturday 4th November, 2023 - 23:00 start (UK)
Where is UFC Fight Night 231? Ginasio do Ibirapuera, Sao Paulo, (Brazil)
Where can I get tickets for UFC Fight Night 231? Click here to buy tickets for UFC Fight Night
What channel is UFC Fight Night 231 on? TNT Sports 2
Where can I stream UFC Fight Night 231? TNT Sports subscribers can stream the fight online via the TNT Sports website and Discovery+
For viewers in the United States, the event will be shown live on ESPN+ and you can sign up for access as part of a Disney Bundle here!
JAILTON ALMEIDA VS DERRICK LEWIS LOWDOWN
Even though Jailton Almeida (19-2) can make 205 lbs, he is proceeding to tear his way through the heavyweight division. He has five UFC fights in the bank since his debut last year finishing everyone who stood in front of him. He knocked out Danilo Marques (2022) before submitting Parker Porter (2022) and Anton Turkalj (2022). He then reeled off a routine knockout over Shamil Abdurakhimov this year and then pushed his way through the title contenders by submitting Jairzinho Rozenstruik at UFC 283 extending his streak to 14.
Derrick Lewis (27-11(1)) fills in for Curtis Blaydes and is fresh off his spectacular knockout extended his UFC record to 14 at UFC 291. He opened the fight up with a flying knee which sparked the beginning of the end for Marcos Rogerio de Lima. That display came with great relief after losing three on the trot getting knocked out by Tai Tuivasa (2022), Sergei Pavlovich (2022) and submitted by Sergey Spivak (2023).
JAILTON ALMEIDA VS DERRICK LEWIS PREDICTION
Almeida has a completely different opponent in front of him now. Blaydes is one of the best wrestlers in the division and Lewis is the knockout king. Who knows where Almeida’s takedowns sat in his strategy for Blaydes, but it has to be sitting on top of his strategy for Lewis.
His route to victory is obvious with a colossal advantage in the grappling department. It is just a case of how well he can set up his takedowns without being clipped with a missile. Those missiles do not just come from his hands as we saw in his last outing. He also possesses a deceptive head kick, but we can see him relying on his hands here to reduce the takedown threat.
Expect Almeida to throw his front kick before level changing. Lewis will also be aware of this, so once the kick is thrown, expect his straight-right or uppercut to be corked and waiting to find a home. The muscle-memory will already be there after executing it perfectly against Blaydes.
Lewis also has an exceptional ability to get back to his feet after getting taken down leveraging his weight and power which will be a significant advantage here. However, he cannot rely on his get-up game as Almeida will be relentless and only needs one takedown as his jiu-jitsu is at such a high level.
So, the likely outcomes are a Lewis knockout or Almeida submission and considering how easily Spivak carved through Lewis, we are backing the Brazilian.
Prediction: Almeida via Submission
Value bet: Lewis via KO/TKO
