Pros react to Derrick Lewis’ knockout of Travis Browne, late referee stoppage
Last night, the UFC touched down in snow covered Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada for a second time. In the evening’s main event, streaking heavyweight contender Derrick Lewis faced arguably the biggest test of his already impressive career in towering Hawaiian Travis “Hapa” Browne.
In the early moments of this fight, it looked like it could be a tough night for Lewis, as Browne appeared to hurt him repeatedly with spear-like kicks to the body. Though Lewis’ kryptonite might have been exposed by these body kicks, he ultimately survive the first round. Once the second began, the complexion of the fight changed dramatically.
After dropping Browne with a crackling overhand, Lewis climbed into full mount, where he treated Browne’s head like a basketball until the referee intervened. Given that Lewis was able to land multiple unanswered shots to the dazed Browne, many fans and pundits felt that the stoppage was late – impressive as it was.
Here’s how the MMA community reacted to Lewis’ knockout, and the questionable stoppage by the referee. Oh – and people also had a lot to say about Lewis’ post-fight interview, which referenced everything from bowel movements to “Ronda Rousey’s fine ass.”
Holy crap! @ufc well that was fun!!
— Alan Jouban (@AlanJouban) February 20, 2017
That's a tough one for browne
All of his losses are devestating ko/tko.
Black beast is game— TJ Grant (@TJ_Grant) February 20, 2017
Wowwwwwwwwww awesome.
— Antonio Pezao Silva (@BigfootSilva) February 20, 2017
Holy Sh*t @Thebeast_ufc is a straight killer! #ufcHalifax #KillerInstinct
— Zak Cummings (@ZakCummings) February 20, 2017
Derrick Lewis is my favorite fighter!
— Rumble Johnson (@Anthony_Rumble) February 20, 2017
https://twitter.com/NeilMagny/status/833541298825134081?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Brutallll #UFCHalifax #UFCnoCombate
— rafael natal (@rafaelsaponatal) February 20, 2017
Real life, @Thebeast_ufc is my new favorite fighter. Hurt bad to the body and pushed through. Any fighter can tell you how difficult that is
— Anthony Smith (@lionheartasmith) February 20, 2017
https://twitter.com/HotSauceHoltzy/status/833540643456692224?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Wow what a round!!! @Thebeast_ufc finally let go of those hands and just tore @travisbrowneMMA apart and got the finish @ufc #UFCHalifax
— Jimmie Rivera (@JimmieRivera135) February 20, 2017
That fight was stopped waaaay too late! @ufc
— Tyron T-Wood Woodley (@TWooodley) February 20, 2017
HORRIBLE job Mazzagatti!!!!!!!
— danawhite (@danawhite) February 20, 2017
Wow that was unnecessarily brutal! The ref fucked up on that one.. Hope Travis is ok!
— Shane Burgos (@HurricaneShaneB) February 20, 2017
Must say there is no consistency with these refs!! Why was that not stopped earlier ? Just cos it's main event? Terrible #UFCHalifax
— scott askham (@scottaskham1) February 20, 2017
https://twitter.com/MightyMouseUFC/status/833542077656948737?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
https://twitter.com/thebigticket205/status/833542225137119232?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
https://twitter.com/DerekBrunson/status/833542262416089088?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Haha probably can't have Derrick Lewis on a Fox broadcast again. Great interviews always though #ufcHalifax
— Scott “Hot Sauce” Holtzman (@HotSauceHoltzy) February 20, 2017
Funniest post fight interview ever #UFChalifax
— Belal Muhammad (@bullyb170) February 20, 2017
"I got more heart and he beats females. Where's Ronda's fine ass at."
– #TheBeastLike I said, this man is pure entertainment! #UFCHalifax
— Johnny Hollywood ジョニーケース (@HollywoodCase) February 20, 2017
https://twitter.com/One_Punch/status/833542907994976256?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
He just talked about taking a shit and called the guy he beat ol' lady fine. Unprecedented. https://t.co/eXTszcFa1s
— Andre Fili (@TouchyFili) February 20, 2017
https://twitter.com/ColbyCovMMA/status/833543125419356160?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
With this second-round bludgeoning of Browne, Lewis extended his win-streak to six, as he has separated himself from a January 2015 knockout loss to Shawn Jordan with defeats of Viktor Pesta, Damian Grabowski, Gabriel Gonzaga, Roy Nelson, Shamil Abdurakhimov, and now, Browne. His defeat of Nelson was the only bout he failed to win by knockout. He’s now a strong 18-4 overall.
Browne, meanwhile, is now on a three-fight skid. In his last three fights, he has been TKO’d by Cain Velasquez, decisioned by Fabricio Werdum, and now, KO’d by Lewis. What the future holds for the once highly-regarded contender is difficult to say.
What did you think of Derrick Lewis’ massive win, and the referee’s failure to stop the fight on time? Sound off, PENN Nation!
This article first appeared on BJPenn.com on 2/20/2017.
Topics:
Derrick Lewis UFC Halifax
