Derrick Lewis Respects His Next UFC Opponent Tai Tuivasa; but There’s a Caveat!

Derrick Lewis, the former UFC heavyweight title challenger, likes Tai Tuivasa but not his way of celebrating wins.

After a loss in his interim heavyweight title bout at UFC 265, ‘The Black Beast’ bounced back into the win column with a first-round knockout victory over former Philadelphia police officer, Chris Daukaus.

And in his quest to capture the UFC gold strap, ‘The Black Beast’ will take on the number eleven fighter from the heavyweight roster, Tai Tuivasa next inside the cage. This intriguing heavyweight clash will serve as the co-main event inside the Toyota Center at UFC 271 in Lewis’s hometown Texas on February 12.

Ahead of this matchup, Lewis shared his thoughts about his next opponent in an interview with Fox Sports. He said, “He’s a good man. I like him. I like Tai and I really appreciate him knocking out Greg Hardy like he did the last fight. He was talking a lot of trash that week. So I appreciate him”

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‘The Black Beast’ likes the fact that Aussie fighter is knocking his opponents inside the octagon. But feels disgusted about the way he celebrates his win by drinking beer from a shoe.

Lewis continued, “But I just don’t like the shoe the bear drinking out of the shoe and all that. What you all do out there, I don’t like all that. That’s nasty. My feet smell cheesy, you know, just all American. Just another man sweating.”

‘We are kind of the same’- Tai Tuivasa has a message for Derrick Lewis

The ‘Bam Bam’ is a surging star of the promotion. He never fails to entertain his fans once he enters the UFC cage. The Aussie fighter has never lost a fight since 2020.

He is currently on a four-fight undefeated streak and won all of his four fights via a knockout, three in the first round. ‘Bam Bam’ is fresh from his recent win at UFC 269 and will soon be back to action.

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In an interview, Tuivasa claimed he is similar to his next opponent Lewis, as both the combatants are entertaining fighters and fan-favorite. He said, “I am a big fan of Derrick as well. I think we are kind of the same, you know. We go in there to bang on. And we’re usually the crowd favorite.”

What are your thoughts on Lewis not liking the ‘Shoey celebration’? Are you excited about this heavyweight clash? Write us down in the comments below.