Derrick Lewis reveals he fought Jailton Almeida with injured shoulders: ‘I didn’t have any strength’ | UFC St. Louis

Derrick Lewis comes into his UFC St. Louis main event against Rodrigo Nascimento this weekend (Sat., May 11, 2024) on a 1-3 skid over the past two years, but “Black Beast” believes his recent record doesn’t reflect the improvements he’s made in his training and fitness.

“I’m feeling great right now,” Lewis reiterated during UFC St. Louis media day interviews. “I actually really feel like this is my prime. Whenever I was in my twenties — early thirties or whatever — I didn’t feel as good. And now I’m feeling fantastic right now.”

This was similar to what Lewis said coming into his UFC Sao Paulo main event against Jailton Almeida, a plodding five-round decision that did nothing for either fighter’s reputation. But, Lewis was battling several issues coming into that fight that he’s willing to share with the mixed martial arts (MMA) world now.

“I came in great shape for that fight,” he said. “The only thing that was bothering me, I tore both of my shoulders the week before the fight. Like after I signed. I said, ‘Yeah, I accept the fight.’ Then a few days later, I tore both my shoulders doing stupid jiu jitsu drills, my rotator cuffs from on both sides. So I couldn’t really push off or throw a punch. And even throwing an uppercut hurt it.

“And the week of the fight — that Monday — I had two ear infections in my left ear and my right ear at the same time and I didn’t get over that until, like, three weeks after the fight,” Lewis added.

Moving forward, Lewis prefers to concentrate on the positive from that fight: competing for 25 minutes without running out of steam.

“It was a bad performance, but I was I was feeling great, you know?” Lewis concluded. “I was feeling great. I was surprised for myself that I even went five rounds. I was comfortable in there, but it was just that I didn’t have any strength in my shoulders.”

If things work out against Nascimento inside Enterprise Center this weekend, Lewis wouldn’t mind running it back against Almeida.

“I would love a rematch with Almeida [after I] get through this fight right here,” he said. “I’m not looking past my guy, nothing like that. Get through this fight right here, I would like Almeida again for sure. This time in in the US, I don’t wanna go back to over there [to Brazil] no more.”

And no more 25-minute fights.

“I wanna get it over with quick,” he declared. “I’m in shape. I’m actually damn sure I’m in shape to go five rounds. But I wanna finish this guy in the first for sure. I like finishing the fights in the first. “Like the one I did in Utah, it was so good and I didn’t have to worry about even breathing that fight.”

That was Lewis’ 30-second flying knee knockout of Marcos Rogerio de Lima at UFC 291.

“It was so so quick,” he said, smiling at the memory. “I would love something like that again.”

Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC St. Louis fight card right here, starting with the ESPN/ESPN+ “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. ET, before the main card start time at 7 p.m. ET (also on ESPN/ESPN+).

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