Heavyweight knockout machine Derrick Lewis will live and die by the sword when he collides with fellow 265-pound power puncher Tai Tuivasa at the promotion’s upcoming UFC 271 pay-per-view (PPV) event, scheduled for Sat., Feb. 12, 2022 inside Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.
A victory for the Australian will no doubt result in a celebratory Shoey, which for the uninitiated, simply means Tuivasa will hop onto the cage and guzzle beer from a nearby shoe (or sneaker), regardless of its smell or condition. Just don’t expect Lewis to reciprocate if and when the time comes.
“I like Tai, and I really appreciate him knocking out Greg Hardy like he did the last fight,” Lewis told FOX Sports Australia. “Greg was talking a lot of trash that week, so I appreciate him, but I just don’t like the shoe, the beer drinking out of the shoe and all that, what y’all do out there, I don’t like all that. That’s nasty. My feet smell cheesy. I just can’t imagine, just another man sweatin’ … I don’t know.”
Lewis (26-8, 1 NC) was unsuccessful in his bid to capture the interim heavyweight crown, falling to Ciryl Gane at UFC 265 last August. Undaunted, “The Black Beast” roared back to obliterate Chris Daukaus at the UFC Vegas 45 event back in December, the Texan’s fifth win across his last six fights.
Tuivasa (13-3) also knows a thing or two about streaks, in both directions. After dropping three in a row and fighting for his job, the hard-hitting Aussie went on to win four straight — all by way of knockout — including his first-round destruction of Greg Hardy as part of the UFC 264 event last summer.
To see the rest of the UFC 271 fight card and PPV lineup click here.