MANILA, Philippines – The Ultimate Fighting Championship's second live Philippine event on October 15 continues to take shape as a 3-round heavyweight encounter between Derrick Lewis and Marcin Tybura has been added to the fight card.
Kenneth Berger, UFC executive vice president and general manager in Asia, personally confirmed the fight booking during UFC Fight Night Manila 2’s on-sale press conference on Wednesday, August 17 at Conrad Hotel in Pasay City.
Lewis (16-4, 1 NC), who currently occupies the number 10 spot in the UFC heavyweight rankings, is coming off a split decision victory over mixed martial arts (MMA) veteran and knockout artist Roy Nelson this past July.
The 31-year-old American’s conquest of Nelson extended his winning streak to 4 bouts, which earned him an entry to the top 10 of UFC’s heavyweight divisional rankings.
Lewis rose to prominence in his brief run with Legacy Fighting Championship, where he captured the organization’s heavyweight title at the expense of Jared Rosholt.
“The Black Beast” was offered a UFC contract in 2013 after successfully defending the Legacy Fighting Championship heavyweight belt against Ricky Shivers.
Lewis, who owns a 7-2 UFC record, made his triumphant Octagon debut in July 2014 by knocking out Carlos Augusto Inocente Filho in the first round.
In the other corner, Tybura (14-2) is fresh from his first-round knockout of Viktor Pesta in August, turning the lights off on the Czech heavyweight with a head kick in the first round.
The 30-year-old Polish was a mainstay in the Russian MMA promotion M-1 Global before directing his career path to the UFC.
However, Tybura lost his first UFC appearance by bowing down to Timothy Johnson via unanimous decision in April of this year.
Tybura made up for his disappointing defeat and earned a statement-making win over Pesta nearly two weeks ago,
Lewis has won 14 of his 21 professional outings by way of knockout, while Tybura holds 6 knocks triumphs and 6 submission victories.
UFC Fight Night Manila, which takes place at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City, is headlined by a featherweight showdown between MMA legend BJ Penn and former title challenger Ricardo Lamas. – Rappler.com