Tom Aspinall did not have many positive things to say about Derrick Lewis after his unusual second-round loss to Waldo Cortes-Acosta on Saturday night.
Even though he is recovering from eye injuries and is not active at the moment, the Briton is still keeping an eye on the division where he holds the title. Two fighters trying to make their case for a future title shot were Lewis and Acosta.
Lewis appeared slow throughout the fight, and went down in the second round from what seemed like a jab before getting finished. Some viewers even suggested it was a phantom punch, and Aspinall was not impressed by what he saw.
Tom Aspinall left in stitches after Derrick Lewis falls to Waldo Cortes-Acosta at UFC 324
While most UK fans stayed up into the early hours to catch Paddy Pimblett’s title shot live, Tom Aspinall chose a different approach. He switched his phone to airplane mode, got some sleep, and watched the fights on Sunday morning, recording his reactions for YouTube.
The first fight he tuned into was between Derrick Lewis and Waldo Cortes-Acosta, a bout that could have implications for the heavyweight division’s future. Acosta is still finding his feet in the sport, while Lewis is 40 years old with one of the more memorable careers of any heavyweight.
The American had trouble from the start and often looked unsteady on his feet. This caught Aspinall’s attention early on.
“Oh, Derrick’s fell over, he’s fell over,” he reacted.
“Come on Derrick, you can’t just fall over,” Aspinall continued. “If you’re going to fall over at least try to get up.”
He later pointed out that Lewis was “too slow” with his swinging punches.
“Waldo is just younger, sharper, Derrick is very slow. He tries the odd thing but you can see it a mile away,” Aspinall stated.
The Briton eventually grew bored and skipped ahead to the finish where Lewis hit the canvas again.
“Why has he fell over?” he asked again before adding: “Derrick, if you fall over you’ve got to at least try and get up, oh no he’s getting battered, Derrick. Fell over, couldn’t recover from the fall.”
Despite his criticism of Lewis’ performance throughout the fight and showing disinterest by skipping through rounds two and three, Aspinall did praise Cortes-Acosta for looking good in what was only his eighth UFC appearance.
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