Rising heavyweight star Tallison Teixeira will face a stiff test when he comes up against Derrick Lewis in the main event of a UFC Fight Night, set for the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee, on Sunday morning.
Teixeira (8-0) has made an amazing start to his professional MMA career, claiming eight wins (seven by knockout, one by submission – all in the first round) from as many matches. The 25-year-old Brazilian came through Dana White’s Contender Series 72 in 2024 and then made his full UFC debut in February this year, claiming a TKO win over Justin Tafa.
The UFC has wasted no time in throwing Teixeira into the deep end, as he comes up against Lewis (28-12, 1 NC), a 40-year-old veteran who holds the record (15) for the most knockout wins in the franchise’s history.
‘The Black Beast’ says he is happy to be back in action, as it has been more than a year since his last match, a TKO win over Rodrigo Nascimento in May of 2024.
“It's crazy that nobody's fighting right now," Lewis explained. "Heavyweight, I don't know what's going on. I damn near had to beg to get this fight, so I don't know what's going on. Hopefully we can stay active after this.”
The veteran, who has challenged for the heavyweight title in the past, says he wants to build up a streak of wins before thinking about going after the belt again.
“I ain’t trying to get no title shot, hell no,” Lewis added. “I want to just continue fighting taxi cab drivers right now. Then we can start talking about title shots.
“I can continue fighting these taxi cab fighters, these newcomers coming in who want to get their name. I like fighting guys like that right now. Keep ‘em coming.”
The rest of the main card features Stephen Thompson taking on Gabriel Bonfim in the welterweight division; featherweight fights pit Calvin Kattar and Nate Landwehr against Steve Garcia and Morgan Charriere respectively; Junior Tafa battles Tuco Tokkos in the light heavyweight category; and the heavyweight opener sees Vitor Petrino take on Austen Lane.
UFC on ESPN: Lewis v Teixeira – Main card
- Main event: Heavyweight: Derrick Lewis v Tallison Teixeira
- Welterweight: Stephen Thompson v Gabriel Bonfim
- Featherweight: Calvin Kattar v Steve Garcia
- Featherweight: Nate Landwehr v Morgan Charriere
- Light heavyweight: Junior Tafa v Tuco Tokkos
- Heavyweight: Vitor Petrino v Austen Lane