WITCHITA, Kan. – Former UFC heavyweight champion Junior Dos Santos has destroyed many an opponent with his fists. But the Brazilian’s best feature is his conditioning, according to Derrick Lewis.
Lewis (21-6 MMA, 12-4 UFC) on Thursday said he’s hit the treadmill like never before in the buildup for his headliner opposite Dos Santos (20-5 MMA, 14-4 UFC) at UFC on ESPN+ 4, which takes place Saturday at INTRUST Bank Arena.
“It’s all I’ve really been focused on the last few months, really, just conditioning,” Lewis said. “No technique or nothing.”
Of course, there’s a very strong chance Lewis isn’t serious. The 34-year-old hates being picked over by the media and says whatever comes into his mind, so take what he says with a grain of salt. But for the haters who think he’s just a one-punch fighter with no cardio, he has a few serious things to say.
“I don’t care,” Lewis said. “(Expletive). By the time fight night comes, I’m 280 (pounds). So they (can) try to move around being 280 and move around 15 minutes and 25 minutes and see if they don’t get tired, no matter how much conditioning you got.”
Lewis has struggled to keep his breath in several big fights, often appearing to be at the edge of collapsing from exhaustion. He’s still managed to pull out some amazing wins, even if the run-up hasn’t been pretty.
All Lewis cares about, of course, is getting the job done.
“I’m not in this company to please people and prove people wrong,” Lewis said. “I’m in it to make money. They can say what they want.”
To hear more from Lewis, watch his media day scrum in the video above.
For more on UFC on ESPN+ 4, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.
