‘The Black Beast’ Derrick Lewis will remain in the UFC after signing a new 8-fight deal with the promotion.
The heavyweight star’s current deal ended in style at UFC 291 earlier this month when he TKO’d Marcos Rogerio de Lima in just 33 seconds after initially rocking his opponent with a flying knee strike.
It was an important win for the 38-year-old fan favorite as he had lost three fights in a row prior to that against Tai Tuivasa, Sergei Pavlovich and Sergey Spivak.
A highlight-reel finish followed by a memorable post-fight celebration reminded everyone that Lewis remains an important part of the heavyweight division though and earlier this week Dana White had confirmed that he had every intention of keeping him on-board.
“Listen, I love Derrick,” White told reporters. “Personally and professionally, (I) love the guy. So yes.”
Lewis’ UFC run began back in 2014 and he’s gone on to amass an 18-9 record in the Octagon, fought for the heavyweight title twice and established a reputation as one of the hardest-hitters the sport has ever seen, while claiming victories over the likes of Francis Ngannou, Curtis Blaydes, Alexander Volkov, Travis Browne, Roy Nelson and Gabriel Gonzag.
