The Ultimate Fighting Championship may have secured
the services of a fan-favorite heavyweight for the remainder of his
career.
On Wednesday, UFC executives spoke to the media about a number of
issues. One specific topic was raised, in regards to the recent
free agency announcement of Derrick
Lewis (27-11, 1 NC). The promotion confirmed he had been
re-signed during the scrum, and the terms were announced early
Thursday morning by The
Mac Life. While the dollar amount was not disclosed, the UFC
and Lewis agreed to an eight-bout contract. This is far from the
first long-term deal the UFC has issued to fighters towards the end
of their careers, as names such as Anderson
Silva, Jon Jones and
Michelle Waterson all signed similar contracts of this
duration.
Lewis last appeared in the Octagon in July, where he was slotted up
to the main card on short notice. Facing Marcos
Rogerio de Lima, Lewis smashed his foe in 33 seconds and
dramatically concluded his career-long three-fight skid. Before the
UFC 291 pairing, Lewis had lost three in a row to Tai
Tuivasa, Sergei
Pavlovich and Sergey
Spivak, all by stoppage within two rounds. The 38-year-old from
Houston did not take long to rejoin the roster, despite many fans
fantasy matchmaking him in a rematch against Professional Fighters League pickup Francis
Ngannou.
Owner of the UFC’s all-time knockout record with 14, “The Black
Beast” surpassed welterweight action fighter Matt Brown
with his July stoppage of Rogerio de Lima. Tied in second place for
the most heavyweight appearances in UFC history with Frank Mir, the
two trail divisional leader Andrei
Arlovski (40) by a wide berth. Lewis is just five victories
behind Arlovski for that record as well, but he does celebrate the
most finishes – as all 14 of his stoppages have come via strikes.
Additionally, he is just one post-fight bonus check away from tying
Stipe
Miocic for the most of any heavyweight in the promotion.