Derrick Lewis was sent to the hospital Saturday afternoon and subsequently removed from his UFC Vegas 65 main event clash with Serghei Spivac due to a non-COVID related illness.
Midway through UFC Vegas 65’s “Prelims” undercard on ESPN+ reports began to surface that Lewis was sent to the hospital for an undisclosed reason. Mixed martial arts (MMA) reporters on site started to wonder what would happen to “Black Beast” and his scheduled main event bout with Spivak.
According to additional reports, Lewis eventually returned from the hospital and was still trying to compete. Unfortunately, UFC officials were forced to pull the plug on the main event and Lewis was removed from the card. The announcement was made official by UFC Vegas 65’s broadcast team.
“It’s horrible and you feel for Derrick Lewis and you feel for [Sergay] Spivac too because this is his huge moment.”@felderpaul, @bisping and @BrendanFitzTV react to the news of the Lewis-Spivac #UFCVegas65 main event being canceled. pic.twitter.com/Z0NU1XYUaZ
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) November 19, 2022
Lewis, 37, is coming off back-to-back knockout losses to Tai Tuivasa and Sergei Pavlovich so this was a big opportunity for the heavyweight knockout king to regain some momentum. “Black Beast” will have to wait a little longer to get back inside of the Octagon. That is if he’s able to return from whatever illness is preventing him from making the walk this weekend.
Due to Lewis vs. Spivak being canceled, UFC Vegas 65 will now be headlined by a light heavyweight clash between Ion Cutelaba and Kennedy Nzechukwu.
For complete UFC Vegas 65 results and coverage click here.