Mark Hunt vs. Derrick Lewis tips & bonuses UFC Fight Night

Sunday, June 11, 2017, main event begins at 2.30pm AEST, Spark Arena, Auckland, New Zealand

Fight records:
Hunt – 12 – 11 – 1
Lewis – 18 – 4 – 0

Head-to-head odds:
Mark Hunt: (+110 with Sportsbet.com.au)
Derrick Lewis: ($1.74 with Sportsbet.com.au)

Fireworks are expected across the Tasman on Sunday as home-town hero Mark Hunt faces off against one of the hottest prospects in the heavyweight division in the form of American Derrick Lewis.

@GallantSays Watch out boy Derek Lewis from Houston take on Mark Hunt heavyweight fight should be awesome

— Nick Trujillo (@TexansPride83) June 9, 2017

Mark Hunt is at the crossroads in his UFC career. After a two-fight win streak which re-inserted him into the title frame, the “Super Samoan” is now languishing after coming off a pair of losses to Brock Lesnar and Alistair Overeem.

A defeat in Auckland could spell the end of Hunt’s UFC career, but if the man is worried about unemployment he is hiding it well.

“There’s no pressure on me,” Hunt said.

“I’m going to go out and throw down, doesn’t matter where it is. All I worry about is whether I put on a good performance and give myself to the octagon, that’s all I’m happy with.

“If I come up short then so be it, that’s the way it is.”

Derrick Lewis is on a six-fight win streak and is one of the buzz fighters in the UFC right now. The man they call the “Black Beast” has knocked out his opponent in all but one of those fights.

“What are Derrick Lewis’ biggest weaknesses? Mark Hunt”- @MarkHunt1974#UFCAuckland pic.twitter.com/AGEmi7a1Qa

— UFC Aus/New Zealand (@UFC_AUSNZ) June 9, 2017

Lewis’ record is imposing, but Hunt represents the biggest challenge of his UFC career to date. The 32-year-old is welcoming the challenge of facing off against the former K1 champion.

“I believe he’s one of the toughest out there,” Lewis said.

“If I wanted an easy fight I would’ve called out Francis Ngannou from France but I wanted a tougher fight.”

Fight preview

Fighting purists who are looking for a dour and tactical bout between two technicians should look elsewhere on Sunday as Mark Hunt and Derrick Lewis lock horns in the main event at UFC Fight Night in Auckland.

In a combined total of 28 fights, the pair have left the fight in the hands of the judges just three times. These two are knockout artists and thrive on physically dominating their opponents through striking.

To compound that, the stakes could not be higher for both men; just in case there was no enough spice in this contest.
Hunt could be potentially cut from the UFC if he tastes a third successive defeat, while Lewis’ next fight may be for the heavyweight title if he can make it seven-straight wins on Sunday.

It is entirely possible that Derrick Lewis could earn HW title shot with impressive win Saturday, especially if UFC looking for fresh fight

— Matthew Holt (@MatthewHoltVP) June 5, 2017

It looms as an interesting match-up, but one we think favours the home-town hero Hunt.

It may surprise people to read that given their recent records, but Lewis has faced a lot of fighters at the tail end of their career, and his shot selection against those men can be described as sloppy. A number of times the Black Beast left himself wide open, and a precise power-hitter like Hunt thrives in that scenario.

Hunt is a marksmen. Given half an opportunity he will drop his opponent and end the fight in the blink of an eye.

We believe this is Hunt’s time to shine. The Super Samoan will relish the opportunity to get his career back on track in Auckland and we think he will do it in style.

Mark Hunt to win by KO +137 at Sportsbet.com.au