Derrick
Lewis got the job done against Rodrigo
Nascimento a little earlier than he anticipated in the UFC
on ESPN 56 main event.
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After engaging his Brazilian opponent in the clinch in the first
two rounds, “The Black Beast” shifted gears in the third stanza,
flooring Nascimento with an overhand right and pounding away with
follow-up punches until the bout was halted at the 49-second
mark.
“I was really waiting for the fifth round then explode on him, but
the opportunity was there,” Lewis said at the post-fight press
conference. “He didn’t let me catch my breath, so that’s why I had
to finish him. I was trying to catch my breath, then wait it
out.”
In the aftermath of his latest victory, Lewis removed his fight
shorts and threw his cup at press row. He also briefly mooned the
crowd at the Enterprise Center in St. Louis. It’s all in a day’s
work for the popular heavyweight, though there was a playful
message behind the cup toss.
“You know, because y’all boys always talking s—t,” Lewis said in
reference to the MMA media. “Every now and then I’ve got to throw
y’all under the bus like y’all do me. ‘Oh, Derrick don’t got it
anymore! Blah blah blah!’ Yeah. Mmhmm.”
Lewis remains under UFC contract, but with the promotion under the
same ownership umbrella as World Wrestling Entertainment, the
Houston native has interest in a crossover to the sports
entertainment realm.
“That’s what we’re supposed to be doing in a few weeks, maybe.
Going to Orlando and checking the [WWE] facility out,” Lewis
said.
“I wouldn’t stop here in the UFC, but I would like to dibble dab in
WWE.”
If Lewis is serious about that pursuit, UFC CEO Dana White wouldn’t
stand in his way.
“I didn’t know that, but I would do anything for Derrick Lewis,”
White said. “I like Derrick Lewis a lot. Some of the fighters here
have always dreamed of a WWE match or whatever it is. Yeah, I don’t
have a problem with that.”