Derrick Lewis is a renowned mixed martial artist who has competed in the Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship since 2010. Asides the UFC, Lewis also competed for Bellator MMA and Legacy FC; emerging heavyweight champion in both competitions. In his nearly ten years of professional fighting, Derrick Lewis has won groundbreaking victories over other heavyweights such as Alexander Volkov, Francis Ngannou, Travis Browne, Roy Nelson, and Gabriel Gonzaga.
He is steadily working his way to number 5 in official UFC heavyweight rankings, according to a March 2019 ranking. Popularly called The Black Beast, Lewis is certainly not a beast back home; especially to the woman in his life and the three children, they both share. Stick with us as we walk you through his life beyond the ring.
Who Is Derrick Lewis?
The pro fighter was born as Derrick James Lewis in New Orleans, Louisiana, the United States, on February 7, 1985, to a single mother. Growing up, young Lewis was a tumultuous youth and often got into street fights. In 1999, when he was fourteen, Lewis’ family moved to Houston, Texas, where he spent the rest of his teenagerhood. Only three years later, he began training in boxing and was well on his way to participating in his first amateur fight when the gym was shut down abruptly.
Two weeks after graduating from high school, Lewis got into trouble and was charged with aggravated assault. He was then placed on probation. He went on to attend Kilgore College on a full scholarship for football. Fresh in college, Derrick Lewis soon violated his probation and bagged a five-year prison sentence. However, he only served three and a half years in jail. After leaving prison, his friends thought his flair for violence could be better channeled elsewhere, thus, he got introduced into mixed martial arts. Lewis picked up a job as a tow-truck driver at the time. But that did nothing to quell his drive to learn his newfound vocation; boxing. He was trained under George Foreman. Following a decisive victory in his debut professional mixed martial arts fight, Lewis turned to mixed martial arts full time.
His Mixed Martial Arts Career
Career-wise, Lewis started in late 2009, when he first appeared in the year’s LSAMMA as an amateur against Jay Ross. However, he lost the fight through a technical Knockout. He went on to face Tim Buchanan at the United States American Combat Association event only a few months later in January 2010. This time, he won via Technical Knockout. He then accumulated a fighting record of 4-1 after which he signed with Bellator Fighting Championships in May of 2010.
May 21, 2011, was one of Derrick Lewis’ most remembered dates. He’d been scheduled to make his promotional debut against Brazilian Thiago Santos, at Bellator 45. The bout was, however, canceled as Santos did a last-minute pull out due to an injury. In June that year, Lewis faced Tony Johnson at Bellator 46 but lost via a unanimous decision. After leaving Bellator, Lewis garnered a 6-0 record with one no-contest and won, successfully defending the Legacy FC Heavyweight Championship. He got signed to the UFC afterward.
On April 19, 2014, Derrick Lewis made his first UFC appearance in a fight against a fellow newcomer, Jack May. After his win, via TKO, the Black Beast has continued to record victories over the likes of Guto Inocente, Ruan Potts, Anthony Hamilton, Viktor Pešta, Damian Grabowski, Gabriel Gonzaga, Roy Nelson, Shamil Abdurakhimov, Travis Browne and several more. In total, Derrick Lewis has recorded over 21 wins and 7 defeats. One of his most humiliating defeats came in the UFC 230 during a face-off with Daniel Cormier.
It would be Lewis’ first and only time of being submitted in a professional MMA fight. On October 7, 2017, Lewis was forced out of the bout because of a back injury he’d sustained. After a four-month hiatus, he returned with a win over Marcin Tybura in UFC Fight Night 126 on February 18, 2018. On November 2, 2019, UFC 244, Lewis would face Blagoy Ivanov.
Does Derrick Lewis Have A Wife?
Derrick Lewis has been married to his long-time girlfriend since June 17, 2017. Together, they have three children; two sons and a daughter. No sources have stated how they met or the untold story of their romance. However, their wedding ceremony was held in Hawaii. That’s confirmed.