Derrick Lewis explains why he is no longer interested in fighting Greg Hardy
Derrick Lewis is not looking to fight Greg Hardy anymore.
Ever since Hardy signed with the UFC, “The Black Beast” made it clear he was looking to fight and knockout the former NFL pro bowler.
“I think he looked good, but as soon as the fight ended, I started thinking about his (ex-girlfriend), I was like, I wonder if he had hit her like that,” Lewis said shortly after Hardy’s 2019 no contest with Ben Sosoli (via BJPENN.com). “I don’t know, man, I really don’t like guys like that 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.
“I would like to fight him,” Lewis added at the press conference for UFC 244. “That would be great to fight him next.”
Now, after Lewis’ win over Ilir Latifi at UFC 247, he walked back on those comments and made it clear he doesn’t want to fight Hardy anymore.
Why he doesn’t want to fight Hardy is simple. He says he doesn’t want to show the former NFL star any more attention.
“Anybody but Greg Hardy,” Lewis said when asked who he wants to fight next. “I’m not showing him no more attention.”
He also says they share the same management company and his manager has told him to keep quiet on that front.
“We’ve both got the same manager,” Lewis said. “My manager keeps telling him to be quiet, and my manager keeps telling me ‘don’t even worry about him.’”
With Derrick Lewis no longer interested in fighting Greg Hardy who he will fight next is up in the air. He is ranked fifth so fighting someone like Curtis Blaydes makes sense.
For Greg Hardy, he is set to make his return to the Octagon at UFC Columbus against Yorgan De Castro.
