Derrick Lewis vs. Blagoy Ivanov set for UFC 244 at Madison Square Garden
Daniel Cormier, right, talks with Derrick after defeating him by submission in their heavyweight title bout at UFC 230 at Madison Square Garden on Nov. 3, 2018. Credit: Getty Images/Steven Ryan
The last time Derrick Lewis fought at Madison Square Garden, the bout ended with him being submitted by UFC heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier.
That was on Nov. 3, 2018.
Fast forward 365 days, and Lewis will return to the Garden to fight Blagoy Ivanov at UFC 244 on Nov. 2. The UFC made the fight official on Thursday. The booking first was reported by ESPN on Wednedsay. This is the first official fight for the UFC's fourth event at MSG.
Lewis (21-7, 1 NC) last fought in March, when he was stopped by Junior Dos Santos in the second round at UFC Wichita. It was the first time Lewis, a 34-year-old from Houston, had lost back-to-back fights in his career. Lewis has been out since then after having surgery for a knee injury he said he first injured in 2015.
Ivanov, a 32-year-old from Bulgaria and a former World Series of Fighting champion, has won his last two fights after losing his UFC debut to Dos Santos in July 2018. Ivanov (18-2, 1 NC) won unanimous decisions over Ben Rothwell and Tai Tuivasa.
Mark La Monica is a deputy sports editor at Newsday. He also covers mixed martial arts.
