Derrick Lewis made an appearance in UFC Tonight to promote his upcoming bout against Francis Ngannou at the UFC 226 pay-per-view event, which takes place July 7 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. While speaking about fight preparation and his upcoming opponent, former middleweight champion Michael Bisping asked Lewis about what he thought about Greg Hardy’s win on Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Series this week, Lewis said he is not a fan.
Derrick "The Black Beast" Lewis is still not a fan of Greg Hardy. pic.twitter.com/mJCoLBjVtb
— FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX) June 14, 2018
“I really don’t like guys like that,” said Lewis, “because I grew up with a troubled past, and I saw my stepdad fight my mom just about every single day. I don’t even remember one day they didn’t go without arguing or fighting.”
Lewis is referring to Hardy’s 2014 domestic violence arrest and conviction that got overturned. While the former NFL player seems to be using MMA as a second chance his contract signing has come under fire because of his past, and has gained just about as much attention as his 57 second first-round knockout of Austen Lane in his first pro fight.
The work needed to be put in for Hardy to come close to fight with Lewis who is currently ranked number five according to the UFC heavyweight rankings is apparent since Hardy is new to the sport. That doesn’t seem to matter much to Lewis as he said he, “loves fighting guys like that.”
“I’m more motivated fighting guys like that. I was more motivated to fight Travis Browne whenever I did. So, I would like that matchup.” –Derrick Lewis
While a matchup between heavyweights with knock out power that both Lewis and Hardy displayed make for great fights, he has a Francis Ngannou situation he needs to deal with on July 7.
Do you think the UFC will make a Greg Hardy vs. Derrick Lewis fight sooner than later?
