Waldo Cortes-Acosta scored the biggest win of his career earlier tonight (Sat., Jan. 24, 2026) at UFC 324 LIVE on Paramount+ from inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, stopping UFC heavyweight contender Derrick Lewis with a brutal second-round TKO (elbows and punches).
Cortes-Acosta came into Saturday’s matchup with “Black Beast” having won his previous two fights via first-round knockout. Lewis is the all-time UFC knockout leader and coming off his own two-fight knockout streak so fights figured
this heavyweight clash would produce a finish. They weren’t wrong.
Lewis, who turns 41 next month, looked sluggish from the opening bell. Cortes-Acosta moved around the cage and utilized his speed to pepper Lewis and stay out of harm’s way. All Lewis was able to do is load up his punches and hope for a Hail Mary shot. Sometimes that’s all Lewis needs, but against a patient and quicker striker like Cortes-Acosta “Black Beast” ultimately met his demise.
Lewis was pretty tired at one point and ended up slipping onto the canvas. Once he touched the mat he looked completely out of it. Cortes-Acosta quickly rushed in and unloaded heavy elbows and punches to eventually force the referee’s hand and earn the standout TKO finish (his third in a row).
Check out the video highlights below:
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