New York— You didn't think Daniel Cormier was going to slug it out with Derrick Lewis, did you?
The "Double Champ" retained his heavyweight title and made it look easy, trapping "The Black Beast" in a rear-naked choke to which Lewis tapped out to at the 2:14 mark of the second round before 17,011 fans at Madison Square Garden. With the win, Cormier (22-1) became the first in UFC history to carry two titles (heavyweight and light heavyweight) simultaneously and defend both.
So, this is what DC meant when he said, "If you have a puncher's chance to beat Daniel Cormier, then you have no chance," leading up to the fight.
"I’ve been doing this for nine years and have fought at a championship level for eight, so nothing is a surprise to me," Cormier told Joe Rogan after his victory. "Derrick is good, but he’s just not that level yet."
Afterward, he also had some choice words for Brock Lesnar, the newly-crowned WWE champion.
"Brock Lesnar, bring that WWE belt over here when you come," Cormier said. "I feel like taking that one too. Let’s go, Brock!”
DC took Lewis down several times in the bout, grinding his bigger opponent out on the ground, before making him submit to the RNC. And he made it look easy. What Lewis brought to the Octagon as far as dynamic punching power, Cormier instantly negated with a cerebral assassin's savvy approach. Within the opening minute, it was clear that Lewis didn't stand a chance and was completely outclassed.
Here's how the Cormier-Lewis main event and entire UFC 230 card unfolded.
(All times Eastern.)
UFC 230 results
Main Card
Main Event: Heavyweight title fight: Daniel Cormier def. Derrick Lewis via second-round submission (rear-naked choke)
Round 2: DC opens the round with a willingness to stand in the pocket, even weathering a couple of fist flurries from Lewis. But that didn't last long, as Cormier got Lewis back down on the ground, with a headlock, grinding out the bigger opponent. That paved the way for DC to eventually trap Lewis in a rear-naked choke to which "The Black Beast" tapped out. Just like that, Cormier retains his heavyweight strap ... and made it look easy.
Round 1: Derrick Lewis surprisingly started this fight with a couple of high kicks, before Cormier charged and mauled him against the cage, taking Lewis down to the ground at the four-minute mark. After a minute of DC mounting Lewis, the crowd is booing here at the Garden. Lewis gave them something to cheer about, managing to get back up to his feet, but the "Double Champ" took him back down to the ground efficiently. Did anyone expect anything different? Seriously. Cormier is as cerebral as it gets. This is what he meant when he said a puncher's chance doesn't stand a chance to beat him. He spent the first round thoroughly grinding Lewis out. 10-9 Cormier
12:13 p.m.: The "Double Champ" Daniel Cormier coming out to the sounds of Lil Wayne's "Right Above It."
12:10 p.m.: Derrick Lewis did tell Sporting News on Thursday that he'll be coming out to the blues for this fight and he made good on that. He told SN he's rolling with the blues because he's "tired of rap" at the moment. And here comes DC next.
12:05 p.m.: A great night of action all leads up to Daniel Cormier putting his heavyweight title on the line against Derrick Lewis next!
Co-Main Event: Ronaldo Souza flattens Chris Weidman via third-round TKO
MORE: Twitter reacts to Ronaldo 'Jacare' Souza's thrilling KO of Chris Weidman
Round 3: An all-out slugfest just ended in shocking fashion, with Souza dropping Weidman with a vicious right hand. "Jacare" seemed momentarily miffed, looking over to the ref, as a fallen Weidman held onto his legs. But Souza quickly snapped out of it, pounding Weidman out, until the ref stopped the fight. Souza silenced the crowd, but then gained applause, declaring Weidman a "legend" to the sport.
Round 2: Some blood on Souza's nose. Weidman's left hand seems to be an available option all night. But a game Souza roared back under the four-minute mark, rocking Weidman with a solid left of his own. Weidman ate the punch admirably and returned fire before Souza once again began started nailing Weidman and controlling the round. The defense of each fighter leaves a lot to be desired, but the offense is there. Just under the one-minute mark, Souza attempted a high kick and missed, with Weidman mauling him up against the cage, before taking him down to the ground. Yet, Souza wrestled his way up to his feet, where both men seemingly prefer that this fight stays. Exciting second round — one we're giving to Souza by the slightest. 19-19
Round 1: U-S-A, U-S-A chants to calls of "Let's go Weidman" are alternating to start this bout. Both Weidman and Souza looked tentative, feeling each other out for the first couple of minutes of the first round, before Weidman seemingly stunned Souza with a pair of one-two combinations in the middle of the Octagon. Weidman spent a majority of the round's final three minutes walking Souza down and tagging him with clean punches. But "The All American" will need to watch out for Souza's leg kicks in the second round. 10-9 Weidman
11:35 p.m.: Here comes "The All-American" draped in the American flag. Who do you like to take this fight?
11:31 p.m.: The crowd is geeked over the Chris Weidman-Ronaldo Souza co-main event, which is next. Of course, they're about to erupt for Weidman, a Long Island native.
Jared Cannonier def. David Branch by second-round TKO (punches)
11:22 p.m.: Cannonier just dropped Branch with a devastating right hand, before pounding him out, forcing the ref to stop the action. Things escalated real fast from there. Spectacular middleweight debut ... and on short notice for Cannonier. After his victory, Cannonier definitely won over the Garden crowd by telling them how thrilling it was to eat New York City pizza this week. That knockdown and finish came out of nowhere.
Cannonier finishes Branch in round 2! What a statement for @KillaGorillaMMA ! #UFC230 pic.twitter.com/c0i0p2cz0w
— UFC (@ufc) November 4, 2018
11:20 p.m.: It looks like Branch exerted a whole lot of energy grinding Cannonier down on the mat. Let's see if that factors into the second round at all.
11:12 p.m.: Brooklyn native David Branch strolling out to Jay Z's "Coming of Age." Smooth. His bout against Jared Cannonier is seconds away.
Karl Roberson dominates Jack Marshman via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-27)
11:00 p.m.: Roberson told Joe Rogan that he re-aggravated an old wrestling knee injury during the fight, but had to adapt. Well, he adapted quite well.
10:56 p.m.: Roberson started the third round like he ended the second — landing solid, timed punches seemingly at will and scoring another big takedown, adding to his ground-and-pound game until the bout came to an end. SN has him as a 30-25 winner.
10:49 p.m.: Karl Roberson has been catching Jack Marshman with some stiff shots through two rounds. And around the 2:10 mark of the second round, he slammed Marshman to the mat with a pulverizing takedown, sending a jolt of electricity through the Garden crowd. We've got him up 20-17 in full control here.
Israel Adesanya destroys Derek Brunson via first-round TKO (punches)
MORE: Twitter reacts to Israel Adesanya's vicious first-round knockout of Derek Brunson
10:24 p.m.: An absolutely scintillating first-round TKO for Israel Adesanya. Wow! "The Style Bender" caught a charging Brunson with a perfectly-timed high knee and followed it up with a kick and solid right hand, which dropped Brunson. A couple of punches later and it was a wrap, as the ref stepped in to stop the action. Afterward, Adesanya broke out into a dance and called it a "walk in the park...no...a walk in the Garden" in reference to fighting at Madison Square Garden. This kid is a star! UFC 230 is a middlweight-heavy card, so, perhaps Adesanya's next opponent will be one of the others competing.
ADESANYA!! @Stylebender finishes Brunson in round 1! #UFC230 pic.twitter.com/WGu676jNr6
— UFC (@ufc) November 4, 2018
10:20 p.m.: Break in the action, referee speaking with Brunson and Adesanya responds by flipping his opponent the bird. The undefeated Adesanya is already a crowd favorite.
10:13 p.m.: Israel Adesanya already wins Performance of the Night for coming out to Lil Duval's "Smile (Livin My Best Life)" in our opinion. Derek Brunson out next.
Prelims results
10:04 p.m.: The Garden's bright lights are on and the main card is about to begin!
9:59 p.m.: Your full prelim results:
Jordan Rinaldi def. Jason Knight via unanimous decision; Featherweight
Sijara Eubanks def. Roxanne Modafferi by unanimous decision; Women's Flyweight
Sheymon Moraes def. Julio Arce via split decision; Featherweight
Lyman Good def. Ben Saunders by first-round KO (punches); Welterweight
Matt Frevola and Lando Vannata fought to a draw; Lightweight
Shane Burgos def. Kurt Holobaugh via first-round submission (armbar); Featherweight
Brian Kelleher and Montel Jackson was canceled; Bantamweight
Marcos Rogério de Lima def. Adam Wieczorek via unanimous decision; Heavyweight
9:57 p.m.: Jordan Rinaldi's first thoughts after defeating Jason Knight by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-25, 30-26)? "I get to meet Joe Rogan!" He earned it largely on the ground, where he completely outclassed Knight en route to the win.
9:47 p.m.: The crowd erupted here in the waning seconds of the second round, when Jordan Rinaldi had Jason Knight caught in a rear-naked chokehold and Knight responded with the Dikembe Mutombo finger wag. That's cool and all, but Rinaldi has been getting the better of Knight this fight, so Knight better make moves in this third round.
9:26 p.m.: Sijara Eubanks def. Roxanne Modafferi via unanimous decision (30-27 on all three judges' cards). "SarJ" was in control all the way through this one, hurting Modafferi with a head kick at one point. If Joe Rogan didn't know of Eubanks before, he definitely knows her now, as he just conducted the post-fight interview. Eubanks definitely relishes in playing the role of the villain, soaking in the boos and even telling the crowd to "shut up." During her post-fight press conference, Eubanks said: "I’m the one who deserves to fight the winner of Valentina [Shevchenko] and Joanna [Jedrzejczyk]. Make no mistake, I will be there on championship weight. I’m a grinder and I’m just going to keep grinding and beating my opponents until there is a gold belt strapped around my waist.” Jason Knight vs. Jordan Rinaldi in featherweight action is next.
9:11 p.m.: Eubanks and Roxanne Modafferi spent the roughly the first minute trading shots, before "SarJ" was able to mount her opponent for the duration of the first round, sneaking in some ground-and-pound shots. Let's see how much damage they did.
9:02 p.m.: Sijara Eubanks coming out to Cardi B's "Money," but even that pounding the loud speakers can't drown out the boos she's getting. "SarJ" did fail to make weight during Friday's weigh-in.
8:51 p.m.: Prelims still taking place here at Madison Square Garden. Sheymon Moraes just scored a split-decision victory (29-28, 29-28, 30-26) over Julio Arce, leaving Arce a bloody mess in the process.
Sporting News will have live coverage of UFC 230 as we inch closer to the first bout of the main card at 10:00 p.m.
UFC 230 fight card results
Main card
- Daniel Cormier (c) vs. Derrick Lewis for Cormier's Heavyweight title
- Ronaldo Souza def Chris Weidman by third-round TKO; Middleweight
- Jared Cannonier def. David Branch via second-round TKO (punches); Middleweight
- Karl Roberson def. Jack Marshman by unanimous decision; Middleweight
- Israel Adesanya def. Derek Brunson via first-round TKO (punches); Middleweight
Preliminary card
- Jordan Rinaldi def. Jason Knight via unanimous decision; Featherweight
- Sijara Eubanks def. Roxanne Modafferi by unanimous decision; Women's Flyweight
- Sheymon Moraes def. Julio Arce via split decision; Featherweight
- Lyman Good def. Ben Saunders by first-round KO (punches); Welterweight
- Matt Frevola and Lando Vannata fought to a draw; Lightweight
- Shane Burgos def. Kurt Holobaugh via first-round submission (armbar); Featherweight
- Brian Kelleher and Montel Jackson was canceled; Bantamweight
- Marcos Rogério de Lima def. Adam Wieczorek via unanimous decision; Heavyweight
UFC 230 latest news
- Our MMA team breaks down the key fights at UFC 230 .
- Sijara Eubanks not too concerned about missing weight ahead of Roxanne Modafferi tilt.
- Derrick Lewis explains to SN how life's struggles led him to the point of challenging for the heavyweight title.
- SN discusses why Eubanks is the fighter to watch out for at UFC 230.
- Isreal Adesanya faces the biggest obstacle in his pursuit of UFC gold.
- Is Daniel Cormier the champion the UFC needs?
- Chris Weidman tells SN that he's ready to reclaim the middleweight belt.
